Dog Trapped In Cave For 3 Weeks, Rescued By Hiker

After a three-week-long ordeal, a dog which was trapped in a cave in Florida was rescued by a hiker recently.

Joe Dunn from Pasco County was hiking in the Withlacoochee State Forest in Levy County when he came across a cave. "It was unbelievable going out there, just a cave in the middle of the wilderness," he told NBC-affiliated WFLA. "It took several miles to hike out there."

What Dunn did not expect to hear were the whimpers of a scared puppy which was stuck deep inside the cave. "It's sound you don't like to hear," he described. "Really disturbing, makes you really sad to hear. She was trying to get our attention, she looked up at us, trying to jump through the cavern, trying her best.”

Since he was not carrying any climbing equipment, he knew he could not get to the puppy. Since he did not want to give up on the suffering canine, Dunn took to social media and asked for help in rescuing the animal. The response was quick and overwhelming.

One of the very first persons to respond was Steve Pavlik, a friend of Dunn’s who followed the latter’s adventures online. Good Samaritans from Rhino Staging, a company that provided labor staffing solutions across the nation, also came to the puppy’s aid. Another volunteer, John Neal, traveled over from Orlando to lend a hand.

The group of rescuers met up with Dunn miles away from the forest and hiked back into the woods to save the puppy. "We were on a mission, on autopilot, trying to get this dog out," Joe said.

One of the volunteers rappelled down the wall of the cave, twenty feet down to the spot where the puppy was wagging its tail, with a desperate look on its face. After it was fastened to the harness and brought up, the dog was finally safe. "The dog was so happy," Joe recalled. "She just rolled around on the grass, wanting her belly rubbed. She was the happiest animal I've ever seen."

It was clear that the puppy was thirsty from the way it lapped up water offered by the rescuers. The group discovered that the dog’s name was Sally from the collar it was wearing. It also had the number of the dog’s owner, who was informed that Sally was alive.

Dunn said he was grateful to the good Samaritans who showed up to save the puppy. "I want to thank these guys. They wanted to help, and they came from all over. Now, we've become friends. This dog brought us together," he said, adding, “Going through all this, it made me feel really rewarded, helping another life survive. To help something good happen in this world."