Every dog loves a road trip — but this Florida pup may have gotten the ride of a lifetime on Thursday morning.
The dog, who was identified as Max in a press statement shared by the Port St. Lucie Police Department, was riding with his owner on Nov. 21. The owner, who was not named in the statement, made a wrong turn onto Southeast Edith Court. Upon realizing his mistake, he stopped the car and stepped out, leaving the black Labrador inside for a moment.
Max accidentally hit the gear stick into reverse, locking the owner out of the car and causing the vehicle to circle the cul-de-sac for nearly an hour.
"I laughed. I thought they should give that dog a license to drive," said resident Anna Sabol to NBC affiliate WPTV. "He was a better driver than a lot of them I've seen."
Sabol became aware of the situation when several police officers arrived on the scene just after 8 a.m.
Police first tried to use a spare key fob to unlock the car door, only to find that the battery had died. Eventually, police gained access to the vehicle by inputting an entry code onto a keypad located on the driver's side door.
Related
"I saw the dog jump out of the car, wagging his tail," Sabol said. "I was like, 'OK, good driving!'"
She added, "He went around for about an hour without hitting anything at all."
That is, until the vehicle struck a mailbox and trash can, causing the car itself to sustain minor damage. But no injuries were reported.
"Max was fine, healthy, and happy!" confirmed the press release.