A Nampa police dog who escaped his handler's home near Can-Ada Road Wednesday night was found by a neighbor in the area, according to Nampa Police Sgt. Tim Randall.

The person who found Auggie, a 4-year-old Belgian Malinois, took him in for the night. Police put out a call for the public's help Thursday morning, and the person who found the dog put a notice on Craigslist.com. Someone connected the two, and the dog was returned to police.

Randall said the dog was unharmed. It was found about a half mile from where he was last seen, near Can-Ada and Ustick roads. The dog got loose at about 7 p.m., when his handler was changing his water in his kennel.

The officer chased the dog, but was unable to catch it, Randall said. Another officer saw the dog in a farmer's field near Can-Ada at about 9 p.m. A neighbor in the area found it at about 10 p.m.

It's unclear why the trained police dog ran off. Randall said the dog is very smart, but "free-spirited." The department has had the dog since it was a pup. It went through a year of training in Virginia.

"We need to look at that — whether it's training issues or handler issues," Randall said.

Katy Moeller: 377-6413