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It took over 4 hours, but an elderly deaf dog was happy to be back in his family’s arms after a terrifying plunge into a ravine.
The San Diego Humane Society came to the rescue of the Australian Shepherd who accidentally fell down a 100-foot ravine near his home after he darted after an animal.
His mom, Julia Plant, said he ran off when the pair was out on a walk on their property in Sorrento, California. Hobo was was on leash but got away.
“It was only about six feet and he turned around to come back up the hill and lost his back leg footing, and the next thing I know he went over backwards,” Plant told KGTV.
She contacted the Humane Society who sent out their Disaster Response Team.
“It was just not a good situation where the dog was, not for people or animals. It was in a very secluded ravine and there was a big drop off just below that,” Lt. Clint Ganus, of San Diego Humane Society Disaster Response, said, according to KGTV.
The rescuers descended down the steep incline with ropes and discovered it required a lot of extra help.
“One of our Humane Officers responded to the scene first, climbing down loose rock to reach the dog. Realizing the hike up was too steep and dangerous, our officer called for backup,” the rescuers wrote on Facebook.
“Members of the ERT Technical Response Unit rushed to the scene, setting up safety lines to rappel down the steep terrain,” they continued.
“Five team members were required to cut the dog free from brush with a saw before securing him for the climb up,” the Humane Society added.
The rescue took four hours, and we are all so relieved that Hobo is back safe with his family! And from the looks of it, Hobo is very relieved too!
Plant says Hobo wandered into their lives years ago when he came out of the Sierra hills and they rescued him. She said they are currently in the process of putting up a fence around their home when the accident happened. She added he will be kept on a shorter leash from now on.
“I’m going to keep him on this very short lead. And then the irony of this all, we’re in the process of putting up a fence just because of him,” Plant told KGTV. “It was a miracle. I mean thank God for the Humane Society.”
