(Reuters) - An Arizona dog owner cannot explain how Nicholas, her peppy Yorkshire terrier, ended up 1,800 miles (2,896 km) away in Wisconsin, but she is sure that if he could talk, he would have one heck of a tale to tell.

Linda Baldazo said her 1-year-old dog who went missing from her Tucson home in October and was located in Howard, Wisconsin, just north of Green Bay on Feb. 6.

"I have no idea how he got there ... but it's a great story," Baldazo said on Friday.

Baldazo, 42, said her best guess is that Nicholas hopped a ride with a motorist traveling from Arizona to Wisconsin.

The dog was found running down the street and an animal control worker telephoned Baldazo after identifying Nicholas through an implanted microchip, according to Lori Nachtwey, spokeswoman for the Bay Area Humane Society.

"When they called me last week ... it was awesome, because it's like your kid," Baldazo said.

The playful brown terrier is in good spirits and will remain at the humane society until Baldazo can get enough money together to fly to Wisconsin to retrieve him, Nachtwey said.

"We are more than excited about reuniting them," she said.

(Reporting by Brendan O'Brien in Milwaukee; Editing by Sandra Maler)