In less than one week, the cries of two adorable puppies found alone atop a Fraser Valley cliff have come full circle.
“I think we all fell in love with them,” said Mission Search and Rescue Society volunteer Emily Van Brederode.
Van Brederode is one of the 15 SAR volunteers who stepped in to save the pair of St. Bernard-crosses on Sun. Oct. 28 after Mission residents reported hearing the dogs howling for help for four days.
Even though rescuing animals is outside of their mandate, the team decided it was in their best interests to move in.
“The terrain was so tricky, so many cliffs and we knew a lot of people were going to go in after them so it was kind of risk mitigation on that part. We’re trained personnel, we have all the equipment and the knowledge to try and access them,” Van Brederode told Global News.
SAR volunteers spent two hours trying to reach the dogs from the top by rappelling down and also with a crew at the bottom – with the lower team getting to the dogs first.
“They actually fell and we were holding out a jacket and they just fell right into the jacket,” said Mission Search and Rescue Society volunteer Roger Williams.
WATCH: Puppies stranded for days finally rescued
Now Williams and Van Brederode are holding on to the rescued puppies by each fostering one into forever homes.
“We’re super happy that they just get a second chance at life and it’s fun to keep them in the SAR team. They’ll be super loved,” said Van Brederode.
PHOTOS: Puppies rescued from Mission cliff
How the puppies – who are believed to be about 16 weeks old – ended up on the rugged bluff near Mission remains a mystery – and when no one claimed them, the BC SPCA put them up for adoption.
“Two of the search and rescue teams put applications in,” said BC SPCA Maple Ridge Branch manager Krista Shaw.
“We just couldn’t think of a better home for them to go to.”
On Sat. Nov. 3, the puppies, now known as ‘Maple’ and ‘Fern,’ left the Maple Ridge SPCA to start a new life with two of the SAR volunteers who answered the canines’ call for help.
“It was pretty unbelievable because I don’t think a lot of us actually thought we’d be able to access them,” said Van Brederode.
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