A loose pitbull on the Garden State Parkway caused heavy delays near exit 144 in Irvington Saturday evening, New Jersey State Police said.

The pitbull was eventually picked up by a trooper and handed over to animal control, but the incident caused a slowdown in the southbound lanes, State Police Sgt. Lawrence Peele told NJ Advance Media.

Troopers responded to the area near exit 144 around 6:05 p.m. and the dog was secured by 7:15 p.m., Peele said. State Police did not close the parkway for the dog, Peele said, but only slowed traffic so a trooper could fetch the pitbull.

Police department activity on Garden State Parkway southbound North of Exit 144 - CR 510 state police traffic slowdown in progress — NJDOT (@skywayrehab) January 25, 2020

Traffic cameras in the area showed vehicles beginning to move again shortly after 7 p.m. The dog could not be seen from the cameras.

Peele said it was unclear how the dog wound up on the parkway. The dog was uninjured when it was found, he said.

“It happens occasionally,” Peele said of pets running onto the parkway. “That section of the parkway goes through an urban residential area of Essex County so it’s not that uncommon that pets stray into the highway.”

Rebecca Panico may be reached at rpanico@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @BeccaPanico.