Floyd, a 3-year-old, 190-pound Mastiff, managed to hike up the Grandeur Peak mountain trail in Utah on Sunday afternoon with his dog dad. But when it was time to head back down the trail, Floyd refused to budge.
As the sun began to set and the temperature began to drop, other hikers who saw the duo called 911.
Volunteer first responders with the Salt Lake County Sheriff’s Search and Rescue (SLCOSAR) team immediately sprang into action. “They had no hesitation whatsoever, even when they heard it was a dog,” Sgt. Melody Gray, of the Unified Police Department, told CNN.
Armed with a stretcher, the team “headed up the trail to make sure Floyd could get off the mountain … before it got too cold,” SLCOSAR posted on its Facebook page Sunday.
During their four-hour rescue effort, the team strapped Floyd onto the stretcher and carried the big guy all the way down the trail. At one point they had to walk across a narrow concrete beam above a creek, but neither they nor Floyd seemed the least bit nervous.
“Floyd was a good boy and was happy to be assisted,” SLCOSAR wrote in its Facebook post. “Floyd, his human and all the team members got off the mountain around 10:30 p.m.”
In a comment on the Facebook post, Amy Sandoval wrote that Floyd is her brother’s dog. During their hike, her brother took a wrong turn and the two had to find their way back to the trail. By then, Floyd was exhausted.
The Mastiff is fine and has been getting plenty of TLC at home. “Hopefully, Floyd will be up and hiking again soon!” SLCOSAR wrote. (And hopefully those future hikes will be on flatter trails!)
The all-volunteer SLCOSAR has over 30 members who are on call 24/7. All members are trained and equipped to handle any type of outdoor emergency. It’s pretty impressive that these heroes perform nearly 100 rescues every year, all free of charge.
Each of these rescues costs SLOCSAR about $12,000. If you’d like to make a donation to help the team continue their heroic efforts, visit their website.
Photo: Salt Lake County Sheriff’s Search and Rescue/Facebook