A lost beagle surprised her owner by finding him at work after going missing two nights ago.

Cleo, the beloved pet of ABC Radio Hobart Breakfast presenter Ryk Goddard, slipped her collar while on a walk on the Queen's Domain and ran off into the dark.

The family has been frantic looking for her with posts shared hundreds of times on social media to try to find the missing pet.

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But it seems Cleo found Goddard first, when she was spotted curled up near the front door of the ABC Radio Hobart studios this morning, just metres from where her best friend was working.

Smelling links to find home

Did Cleo know Goddard worked inside the building she was sleeping next to or was it pure chance?

The answer is all in the nose, according to dog trainer Scott Hunt.

"She was finding the nearest link to Ryk," he told Sarah Gillman on ABC Radio Hobart.

"Once she got here, she would smell maybe Ryk's car and people she's met through Ryk.

"Ryk's dog may have only been inside here once, may have only been outside here once, but a south-westerly wind blows from here up to the Domain and she would know."

Mr Hunt said it was probably Cleo's nose that got her into trouble in the first place.

And just as a human can get distracted by sights and get lost, Cleo probably slipped her lead to follow a scent and got distracted from her family and home in the process.

"She was smelling things and that's why she lost Ryk," Mr Hunt said.

"They want to smell the world just as we want to see the world.

"There's the cold air at night, and possibly there are a few more nocturnal animals skipping around, even in the suburbs they'll be possums and things like that. They love it."

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Help your dog smell you

Mr Hunt said if you lose your dog, leaving out an object with your scent on it such as a t-shirt, or staying by the car that they know, can be enough to help the dog find you again.

"If Ryk had left his car there [on the Domain], that's where Cleo would have been," Mr Hunt said.

"Like Red Dog [the movie], that's quite typical. That's why the dog goes to the most obvious link to you."

Cleo was reunited with her family this morning and the Goddards will be investing in a walking harness for future outdoor adventures.