The internet in South Korea erupted in celebration as a two-year-old wolf that escaped from a zoo was captured safely after a nine-day search that had gripped the nation and made the animal a national celebrity.

The male wolf, named Neukgu, burrowed out of his enclosure at the O-World zoo in Daejeon on 8 April. Animal rights activists questioned whether the wolf could survive outside the zoo and also worried he might be killed during capture, something that happened to a puma that escaped from the same zoo in 2018.

Intense national concern even prompted South Korea’s president, Lee Jae Myung, to make a statement reassuring the public that police, fire officials and the military were doing their best to capture the wolf alive.

Earlier in the week, authorities nearly captured Neukgu after spotting him on a mountain near the zoo, but he broke away from a perimeter set by rescue workers. A driver also spotted the wolf and shared a video of him trotting along a dark mountain road, lit by the headlights of the vehicle trailing behind.

Neukgu was finally found and tranquilised on a hill near an expressway early on Friday, after an hours-long search involving drones, police and emergency workers and veterinarians, according to city and zoo officials. He was in stable condition after being taken back to the zoo, where vets used a scope to remove a fishing hook from his stomach but found no other significant health issues.

Daejeon officials released social media videos showing rescuers pulling the limp wolf from a ditch and placing him in a carrier, and the animal undergoing medical examinations at the zoo.

Social media was flooded with celebratory posts, including messages saying “welcome back” and “Neukgu, it’s dangerous outside the house”. In a Facebook post, the mayor of Daejeon, Lee Jang-woo, expressed his “deepest gratitude to citizens of Daejeon and also the entire nation for your support in ensuring Neukgu’s safe return”.

Born at the zoo in 2024, Neukgu is a third-generation descendent of a group brought from Russia in 2008 as part of a project to reintroduce wolves resembling those that lived in the wild in Korea before becoming extinct in the 1960s.

Lee Kwan Jong, the director of O-World, said Neukgu would be kept in a separate area from other animals and receive care until he had fully recovered and stabilised.

The zoo’s management, which has been criticised over a series of animal escapes, closed the facility after Neukgu broke out. It said it had not decided when the zoo would reopen.

Lee Kwan Jong said the zoo, which is reviewing its security measures, would prioritise Neukgu’s recovery. The wolf is expected to be a huge attraction when the zoo reopens.