ARLINGTON, VA — When a chicken, which would later become a national celebrity after late night talk-show host Jimmy Fallon sang a song about the bird, was found wandering around a secure area of the Pentagon early on a cold morning in late January, officials were uncertain how to handle the intruder.

The Pentagon Building Operations Command Center initially considered using on-staff pest control to capture the chicken. But the pest control staff wasn't scheduled to come on duty for another hour.

The Building Operations Command Center, or BOCC, then came up with the idea to contact the emergency number at the Animal Welfare League of Arlington, which handles animal control issues in Arlington County, where the Pentagon is located.

Shortly after 7:15 a.m. on Jan. 31, an animal control officer with the Animal Welfare League of Arlington arrived.

This inside look at how Department of Defense security handled the case of the chicken on the run at the Pentagon complex in January was made possible by Jason Leopold, a senior investigative reporter for BuzzFeed News and long-time Freedom of Information Act advocate.

READ ALSO: Pentagon Chicken Serenaded By Jimmy Fallon On 'The Tonight Show'

Leopold submitted a FOIA request for documents on the chicken found wandering around a secure area of the Pentagon. And the Department of Defense's Freedom of Information Division fulfilled the request in relatively quick fashion, providing Leopold with the chicken documents on Thursday.

"A chicken was found wandering around the security area of the Pentagon and caused a bit of a ruckus," Leopold wrote in a tweet Thursday. "It was later taken into 'custody' by Animal Control. Naturally, I filed a #FOIA request with DOD for details about this incident and I just got the docs."

According to the documents, the chicken was spotted roaming in between vehicles at the Pentagon around 6:45 a.m. on Jan. 31.

"BOCC unsure. Possibly their pest control but they don't come in for another hour," the BOCC said, according to the documents.

After phoning the Animal Welfare League of Arlington's emergency number, the Pentagon command center learned at 7:08 a.m. that the animal control officer's estimated time of arrival was seven minutes.

Right on schedule, the animal control officer arrived on the scene shortly after 7:15 a.m.

By 7:25 a.m., the BOCC reported: "Chicken is in custody of animal control."

Sgt. Cliff Ballena was the Arlington County Animal Control officer who received the message from the Pentagon officials at the start of his shift on Jan. 31 about the loose chicken.

"The Pentagon security people gave us a call saying that there was a chicken on their property," he said. "It was running around, and they called so we could come pick it up."

With the help of the Pentagon's security officers, Ballena was able to capture the chicken at one of the Pentagon's security points. There was no indication of how the chicken ended up there or where it had come from.

"There was nothing wrong with it or anything," Ballena said.

Two days after Ballena's capture of the chicken, Jimmy Fallon sang a song about the bird on "The Tonight Show."

Despite all the attention and notice the Pentagon chicken received, its owners did not contact the shelter within five days to claim it.

Animal Control Officer Kelley Davis adopted the chicken and brought it to her little farm in rural Virginia.

Patch editor Michael O'Connell contributed to this article.

RELATED: Chicken At Pentagon Captured By Arlington Animal Control Officer

Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.