When this German shepherd-husky mix was one-year-old back in 2016, it fell off a fishing boat in the north of San Diego in the Pacific Ocean and was presumed dead after her owner couldn’t locate her.
Luna was suddenly miles away from the land and her owner, fisherman Nick Haworth reported her missing in February that year. He explained to the authorities that Luna was a good swimmer and that she would probably head for the land.
The closest shore was San Clemente Island, the home to US naval facility and 2 miles away from where the accident happened.
One-Year-Old Luna Survives in the Wild for Five Weeks & Swims Two Miles to Shore
The public affairs officer at the base at the time, Sandy DeMunnik, said that the staff helped Haworth search the island for Luna, but they had no luck initially.
Haworth remained there looking for Luna for two more days, but she was nowhere to be found. After a week, according to DeMunnik, they already considered her lost and sea and she was presumed dead.
Sad and crushed because he lost his beloved dog, Haworth accepted Luna’s gone and shared a status about her on his Facebook: “RIP Luna, you will be greatly missed”.
However, brave Luna reappeared. She turned up near the naval installation of the island and the crew members spotted her as they were arriving for work. Luna was sitting on the side of the road, happily wagging her tail.
DeMunnik explained that it was an amazing sight since there are no domesticated animals on this island. The officers were surprised, but Luna wasn’t. They opened their car door, whistled at her, and she jumped inside, said Melissa Booker, a Navy wildlife biologist.
Luna Was Determined to Reunite with Her Owner Survives by Eating Small Rodents
Booker explained that Luna looked determined and they guessed she probably had swum to the shore and survived on her own for five weeks. She did seem a bit malnourished, but she was otherwise free of injuries and healthy.
They said she had probably survived by eating small rodents to survive.
When Haworth learned that Luna reappeared, he immediately sent his friend to pick her up. He shared the happy news with his social media friends and said that he’s stoked to have her back and how he always knew she was a warrior.
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