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Handsome Hansel The Peacock Recaptured After Flying The Coop In Greensburg

GREENSBURG (KDKA) -- Handsome Hansel the peacock strutted his stuff among the Guinea hens and chickens at Bill and Dustine Antonucci's farm in Greensburg, until he flew the coop last Thursday.

"The neighbor's dog came over in the chicken run and scared him away," Dustine says. "And normally, he flies in the direction toward the house. But his time he flew in the direction toward the road, and he must have just followed the road up the road."

Dustine says he was spotted around the area sporadically since his escape.

Although they tracked the runaway bird the old-fashioned way, using nets, the peacock was actually discovered through relatively modern technology: Facebook.

"It all started with a post. Somebody saw him, asked if somebody lost a peacock," Dustine says. "And from there, it just escalated. We got the first phone call on Friday where he was sighted in the Fort Allen area. So obviously, we got in the car and ran up there, and he was gone."

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She says he was photographed at a church, peeking through a window.

"I found him several times, but I'm just not able to contain him, and keep him in one spot. There's only one of me, and he's pretty quick," Dustine said.

She says he doesn't seem to enjoy his new freedom.

"I can tell the difference in him now. He's very skittish. He's very scared. He doesn't quite know what to do with himself. And I'm thinking at this point, he probably would rather be home," Dustine said.

And now, he is. In the early evening Tuesday, Dustine's husband apprehended the wayward bird near the Fort Allen Elementary School.

We're sure Hansen will be happy to be home.

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