A DOG who fell from a 550ft cliff has been found alive 45 days on — after eating seaweed to survive. Pet Shadow slipped his lead to chase sheep and fell on to a ledge. Owners Amber and Wayne Whiting, both 39, plus friends and the Coastguard, could find no trace of the year-old shar-pei […]
A DOG who fell from a 550ft cliff has been found alive 45 days on — after eating seaweed to survive.
Pet Shadow slipped his lead to chase sheep and fell on to a ledge.
Owners Amber and Wayne Whiting, both 39, plus friends and the Coastguard, could find no trace of the year-old shar-pei on May 9.
But they were reunited after a holidaymaker spotted Shadow skulking along the foot of the cliffs at Eype, Dorset.
He had managed to get off the ledge despite breaking a leg and losing half his weight.
The tourist called the RSPCA who checked Shadow’s microchip and discovered the Whitings were his owner.
Amber, a carer, said: “When I got the call he’d been found I burst into tears.
“We’d given up hope of seeing him again. I thought he’d died or been stolen.
“When my husband first saw him he was in such a sorry state, he didn’t think it was him.
“The vet has said he was perhaps trapped somewhere but managed to get down to the bottom of the cliff.
“He seems to have eaten anything he could. He’s had stones, sticks and seaweed removed from his stomach.
“It’s a miracle to see how he has survived and how he’s getting stronger all the time.”
Shadow broke his rear left leg and his weight dropped from 50lbs to 24lbs.
He will need an op and is being kept at the vet’s to help him put on the pounds.
A plaster on his front right leg stops him getting at an intravenous drip in the injured limb.
He is expected to make a full recovery.
RSPCA inspector Ken Snook said: “Shadow was visibly emaciated and not fully weight bearing on his leg.
“Thankfully he had a microchip and we were able to locate full owner details.
“A quick Google search revealed him as lost or stolen and last seen on May 9. I rang the Whitings and they were at the vets before me!
“Shadow’s reaction to them was amazing and proves beyond doubt the bond between dogs and owners.”
