They say a dog is a man’s best friend, but some canines are also heroes too.
Such is the case for Blue, a fierce whippet who ran nearly four miles (over six kilometres) to save his owner Brandon Garrett after the man accidentally drove his truck into a ravine in Oregon on June 2.
According to a statement from the Baker County Sheriff’s Office, Garrett had been travelling north on U.S. Forest Service Road 39 with his four dogs before the crash.
The authority said Garrett, 62, “failed to negotiate a curve,” which caused his vehicle to plummet off the embankment and land on its side in a ravine.
Due to the crash, Garrett never made it to the campsite where he was supposed to meet his loved ones that day, so Blue leapt into action and sprinted the almost six-kilometre distance to the family’s campsite.
Garrett was able to crawl about 100 yards away from the truck, where police said he spent the night in the bushy wilderness.
According to the New York Times, Blue arrived at the campsite with shards of glass in his snout. There, Garrett’s friend was anxiously waiting for his arrival, but knew something was wrong by the state of Blue.
Garrett’s friends and family launched a search that night, but did not discover his truck until the next morning. Garrett’s brother told the New York Times he spotted the three injured dogs by the vehicle but did not see his sibling. Since the night had seen pouring rain and cold temperatures, Tyree Garrett feared his brother was dead.
Tyree called police around 9:30 a.m. local time on June 3, after driving back some distance to obtain a cellphone signal. Garrett’s family members could not reach the flipped-over truck due to the difficult, steep terrain in the area.
Police, rescuers and firefighters arrived at the scene to assist. They heard Garrett calling for help, some 100 yards from his overturned vehicle.
Amazingly, he and his four dogs survived.
Officials used chainsaws to clear a path to Garrett’s truck. He was provided first aid and was placed inside a rescue basket to be pulled across the ravine using a highline rope system.
He was airlifted to hospital.
The New York Times reported Garrett suffered “a cracked ankle” and was bruised and battered from the crash.
One of the four dogs had surgery for a broken hip and also injured its femur. Another broke its leg in two spots.
A spokesperson for the Baker County Sherriff’s Office told USA Today that Garrett has left the hospital and is recovering at home.
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