Luna the Jack Russell survives over a month alone in Yellowstone — and finds her way home

Luna, a Jack Russell terrier aged 10, fled from her family's cabin at Yellowstone National Park on 10 September and was recovered alive on Wednesday after spending more than five weeks alone in terrain shared with grizzly bears, wolves and freezing temperatures. Volunteer Katie Boucher, who led the rescue effort, captured Luna using a live trap; the bait was fabric cut from her family's T-shirt and pillowcase. A vet confirmed she is underweight but alert and in good spirits.

The rescue team's special permit was set to expire on 31 October, with winter road closures approaching — the operation was only days from being called off.

Boucher said Luna had retraced her family's movements, slipping into lodges and eateries they had visited before she disappeared — as though she were looking for them herself.