Plucky pup rescued from Port Royal island. How did he make it past the alligators?
A dog that swam to an island at the Cypress Wetlands in Port Royal — which alligators patrol — was rescued at about noon Thursday unharmed. Volunteers needed a kayak and a drone to reach the stranded pup, which had been missing for a few days.
Beaufort Water Search and Rescue (BWSR) teamed with Lovable Paws Rescue and Sanctuary and the Beaufort/Port Royal Fire Department in the rescue.
A firefighter and BWSR volunteer used a drone to direct searchers through the thick vegetation to the adventurous rust-and-white terrier mix.
William Towne, a BWSR first mate, said the dog surely swam to the island. “We had to take a kayak ourselves to get to the island,” he said.
Besides being a bird-watching paradise, alligators also navigate Cypress Wetlands, feeding on turtles, frogs, small mammals, birds and even each other when food is scarce. During the rescue effort, one of the volunteers snapped a picture of an alligator, but the plucky pup somehow managed to sneak past them — then got stuck on the island.
“While different from our normal activity, the men and women of BWSAR will go above and beyond to make sure that anyone in need of assistance on the water is taken care of including our four-legged furry friends,” BWSAR said in a statement.
Heather Piontek of Lovable Paws Rescue and Sanctuary said Sarah Nutter of Port Royal was walking her dog late Wednesday afternoon when she spotted the stranded terrier mix. They decided to take action before the dog “became a gator snack” and reached out to the Beaufort-Port Royal Fire Department, which contacted water rescue. The rescue was mounted Thursday morning. “Port Royal (fire) and water rescue were amazing,” Piontek said.
Piontek’s daughter, Emmeline Malfroid, found the dog, which was so hungry and scared when she approached that it pancaked on its stomach as she placed a leash around its neck. Piontek isn’t sure why the dog ended up on the island, surmising that maybe he got spooked and took off ending up there before he knew what had happened.
The dog, which had been missing for a few days, will be returned to the owner, whose phone number was on the collar, Towne said.
The Beaufort/Port Royal Fire Department was notified at about 10:30 a.m. that a dog was trapped on the island, said Ross Vezin, a department spokesman.
When firefighters arrived, they met the volunteers from Lovable Paws, then contacted the fire department’s Lt. Kyle Peeples, who volunteers with BWSR. Within 30 minutes, Peeples and BWSR showed up with the kayak. Guided by the drone, the dog was located after about 20 minutes of searching.
This story was originally published December 31, 2021 at 11:16 AM.
