One of four escaped 'wolf dogs' in Seosan returns on its own — 'I'm flustered,' owner says

One of four wolf dogs that escaped from a farm in Seosan, South Chungcheong Province, and evaded capture for more than a week has returned on its own, authorities confirmed Wednesday.

According to the Seosan Fire Department, an adult wolf dog walked into an open enclosure at the farm in Unsan-myeon, Seosan, on its own at around midnight Wednesday and was captured.

The incident began June 16, when 11 of the 18 wolf dogs kept at the farm broke out en masse at around 2 a.m.

The farm owner and authorities set up capture traps immediately after the escape and caught seven of the animals alive. The three still at large were identified as one adult and two pups about five months old.

Fire department crews are searching the area around the farm with four vehicles and 16 personnel. Authorities are also following up on a report received Wednesday morning of a wolf dog sighting near Jeongmi-myeon in Dangjin.

The owner, identified only by the surname A, is not a professional breeder but an ordinary office worker. He said he adopted two wolf dogs two years ago — one from a professional breeder and one from a private home — and the pair went on to produce 11 pups.

"Wolf dogs are not aggressive toward people at all — if anything, they are wary of them," the owner told Newsis. "They run away when they see people, so having so many people out searching like this will only make them hide more. I find this whole situation bewildering."

He added that he believed the adults broke out while trying to find the two pups that had escaped first. "It seems the three are now roaming separately," he said.

Dangjin city urged nearby residents Wednesday not to approach the animals if spotted and to call 119 immediately.