Whenever there’s a weather warning, we need to prepare ourselves for the worst-case scenario.
We need to secure our house and stock ourselves with essentials in case we’re unable to do so for the next few days.
Animals also need to be secured.
But, with hurricanes and extreme weather, anything can happen and most of the time, it’s out of our control.
The DeSoto County Sheriff’s Office received a call from a resident, who spotted a dog all alone on top of an RV.
Unfortunately, the RV is also located at The River Acres community in Arcadia, which went underwater because of the recent Hurricane Ian in Florida.
Limited access
The water had reached chest-deep levels in the area and could only be accessed with a boat.
It had already been nine days since the hurricane passed, which also means the dog has been stranded on top of the RV without food and water for nine days.
A dog’s body is made up of 80% water and can last maybe up to three days without water.
But nine days? It’s not going to be pretty.
Because the dog will have lost a lot of water, it’ll lose its appetite, will have sunken eyes, dry nose, and gums, and it’ll become lethargic.
A dog can survive longer without food but surviving without water for days is going to be dangerous and can even be fatal.
But this stranded dog had hope.
This dog knew he was going to be rescued and just needed to hold on a little bit longer. And it paid off.
His patience and hope paid off.
Nine days after being stranded, authorities from the DeSoto County Sheriff’s Office came by boat to rescue the dog.
It wasn’t easy.
They had to wade through the deep waters to find the RV and the dog.
Then they needed to climb on top of the RV to get the dog.
The very exhausted dog, a three-to-four-year-old “Black Mouth Cur and pitbull” mix, had become very skinny but it was also very much alive.
They carried him down to their boat on the way to recovery and freedom.
“The dog was turned over to DeSoto County Animal Control where it now has access to water, food, and shelter,” the DeSoto County Sheriff’s Office wrote on their Facebook post.
Arcadia was badly hit by Ian.
The flood waters reached up to 20 feet and even when the hurricane was over, the water kept rising over 23 feet.
This dog was one of the few who were lucky enough to get rescued and receive the help it needed to survive.
No owner has come forward yet to claim the dog.
Hopefully, they’ll recognize their dog once they’re safe and reach out to claim the dog.
Or if the dog is a stray or has been abandoned, a lovely person or family will come out to adopt the dog and give it a loving home.
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