Dog the Bounty Hunter's leaving Florida empty-handed and hurt-footed after spending more than 2 weeks hunting for Brian Laundrie ... TMZ has learned.
A rep for Dog tells TMZ ... he injured his ankle in rugged terrain during his search for Gabby Petito's fiance -- still the main person of interest in her death.
We're told the notorious bounty hunter wants to see his regular doctor in Colorado for his injury ... so he's heading back there now.
Dog's rep says he's not giving up on his mission just yet though -- he's still raising funds to help the team he's put together to continue searching for Laundrie.
We're told the team consists of a talented group of Florida locals who will continue the manhunt ... and Dog will stay connected and keep going after leads as much as he can in CO.
As we reported ... Dog joined the extensive search for Laundrie in late Sept. and claimed he was hot on his tail, only to leave everyone waiting for an actual capture.
He certainly seemed dead set on finding him though ... wading through a swamp to track a lead and even cancelling a public appearance to focus more on the search.
It also seemed like Dog's prospects of getting back on TV were improving with the interest in his Laundrie hunt, but now that might be on ice ... along with his ankle.