ADOT workers find missing Tucson dog near Payson [View all]

PHOENIX - Workers with the Arizona Department of Transportation rescue a dog and reunite it with its Tucson owners.

ADOT employees Steve Maynard and AJ Gonzalez drive all over the state for their jobs. By spending so much time on the road, they've seen many different things, including stray animals wandering near the highway.

On Jan. 9, Maynard and Gonzalez were traveling west along State Route 260 toward Payson when they saw a dog wandering on an overpass. After witnessing the dog almost getting hit by a truck in front of them, they turned on their vehicle emergency lights and came to a stop. Traffic slowed down while Gonzalez jumped out to call the dog over to the vehicle.

"The dog was growling a little at first," said Gonzalez, "but she eventually came over to us."

As it turned out, the dog, a German Shepherd mix named Lexi, had been missing since Christmas Day. She had escaped from a place her owners were renting for the holidays along the Mogollon Rim. After wandering in the forest near Woods Canyon Lake for two weeks, she was found by Maynard and Gonzalez about 10 miles from where she went missing.