Sky Harbor traffic controllers had a dog-gone mess on their hands Thursday morning when they spotted a dog running around the tarmac.

Dozens of airports vehicles gave chase to try and coral the runaway canine, but the dog was wily and kept getting away. He kept crews running every which way for more than 30 minutes.

One plane that was on approach to land reportedly had to pull up and circle the airport when the dog crossed its landing path.

The would-be dog wranglers finally caught up with Fido after he ran into the baggage-carrier garage.

An airport spokeswoman said capturing the canine was a group effort.

While it's not clear where the dog came from -- it did not have tags -- airport officials do not think it escaped from a kennel that was being loaded on a plane.

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Crews finally nabbed the dog after a spirited chase that lasted more than 30 minutes.

"This dog could have just been a neighborhood dog wandering around that just slipped in very quickly," said Debra Ostriecher, a spokewoman for Sky Harbor. "As soon as he did, we were watching him, but we really want to make sure it gets back to its rightful owner."

What's not clear is how the dog found its way onto the tarmac in the first place.

"This whole airport is fenced in, so it would have to be through a door, but we really don't know," Ostreicher said.

The dog was handed over to Maricopa County Animal Care and Control.

This is the second dog-saving effort at Sky Harbor in the past two weeks.

The first incident involved a seeing-eye dog that somehow injured itself outside one of the terminals.