In Gambell, Alaska, a one-year-old Australian shepherd did an epic trek last month across 150 miles of Bering Sea ice as well as a biting scuffle with a polar bear and survived; this week he has safely been reunited with his family.
According to Mandy Iworrigan, the owner of the shepherd named Nanuq, last month the family had been visiting Savoogna, a community in the Bering Strait, when Nanuq disappeared with another one of the family dogs, named Starlight.
Starlight was found a few weeks later, but there were no signs of Nanuq. Oddly enough, however, people who lived 150 miles away from Savoogna in Wales, began posting photos on social media of a lost dog, hoping someone would recognize him and help the pup find his way home. Mandy’s dad had seen the photos and notified his daughter – yes, that was Nanuq.
On Mandy’s Facebook page, she posted:
That’s our dog! What is he doing in Wales?
Mandy
Mandy flew to Wales to reclaim her dog last week after chartering a regional air carrier used to transport athletes. Surprisingly, Nanuq didn’t seem that worse for the wear; he had a swollen leg and large bite marks from an unidentified animal – maybe a polar bear, wolverine or a nasty seal.
As to how he survived, Mandy thinks her clever dog hunted or ate leftovers from seals or birds. And how he ended up in Wales will remain quite a mystery, but he’s home and healthy!
(Photos via Facebook)
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