One dog was a little too excited to take in the beautiful views at Colorado National Monument.
The incident occurred when the dog, Yogi, and her owner pulled over to take in a view at the National Monument, according to a Facebook post shared by Mesa County Sheriff’s Office on April 2.
“Her owner opened the door to bring her along, but in her excitement she lept out of the vehicle and dashed towards the ledge,” the department wrote in the post. “Unfortunately, she didn’t understand the concept of the canyon and found her self falling over 100 feet off the edge before landing on a shelf.”
A deputy officer was close by and responded to the call, bringing a “dog catching pole” with them to help Yogi, per authorities. However, the pole was unable to reach her, which is when the Mesa County Search & Rescue ropes team — which according to their website is made up of 40+ volunteers — was recruited to help.
Emma Fox, a 25-year-old first responder who has been volunteering for Search & Rescue since 2021, was a crucial member of the team who helped bring Yogi to safety.
Fox tells TODAY.com that it was late in the morning when first responders got the distress call and began to make their way up to the National Monument.
By the time Fox arrived, other members of her team had already set up their rope system, which Fox says consisted of a main line and a belay line attached to both Yogi and the responders trying to help.
But there was an early hitch. The first responder sent down was a man, and Yogi does not like men.
“That was not going to work. It was really nervous and wouldn’t come up,” she says.
Next up was a woman member of the team who succeeded in getting Yogi to accept treats … but couldn’t get Yogi on the leash.
While others were attempting to retrieve Yogi, Fox was looking for signs of injury. After all, Yogi had just fallen over 100 feet.
“I’ve done some first aid before, so I was watching to see how she was moving around and walking,” she says. “She was putting weight on all four limbs and was moving around fine. I was definitely very worried at first, but it was clear quickly that she was in pretty good shape.”
Once the second rescue mission to get Yogi didn’t work, Fox was tasked with the third attempt down the canyon side, this time bringing a catch pole.
“I went down there, and I was able to get Yogi on the pole,” she says. “Then we put it in a full body harness that’s specialized for dogs and clipped it in front of me and ascended from there.”
Although Yogi was initially hesitant to go with the Search & Rescue team, once she was clipped into the harness, Fox says she was “totally OK,” describing her as “an angel on the way up.”
In the video, posted by the sheriff’s office, the search and rescue team is shown bringing the pup over the ledge. Despite falling over 100 feet, authorities said that Yogi was “up and walking” once she was placed back onto the ground, as seen in the video.
Fox tells TODAY.com that they unclipped Yogi (before even unclipping herself) from her harness and her teammates walked Yogi over to her dad.
“The dog’s owner expressed immense relief and joy upon being reunited with their pet, who appeared happy and in good spirits,” Mesa County Search and Rescue shared in their own Facebook post on April 2.
“The dog was promptly taken to emergency veterinary services, where it was confirmed that she had only suffered minor scrapes and bumps, with no broken bones or internal injuries,” they continued.
The sheriff’s office complimented the hard work of search and rescue team, writing, “If dogs have nine lives like cats, she definitely used one in her adventure on the Monument but we are so grateful to have an amazing Search & Rescue team ready to spring into action for all who need it!”
TODAY.com has reached out to Mesa County Sheriff’s Office for further comment.
Fox says that, although her training is with humans, this isn’t the first time she’s saved a dog.
“They’re not typical, but I believe this is our second one this year,” she adds.
The other one was a hunting dog named Tiny who took the Search & Rescue team 13 hours to save.
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