The heroes used sardines and a snare to save the deaf puppy. It was just after midnight on Saturday that volunteers lifted Toffee, a seven week old deaf puppy, out of a deep hole in northern Alabama. This ended the saga that caught the nation’s attention 30 hours earlier, as reported by local media.
“I still can’t believe she’s really out,” Karen Smith, the dog’s foster owner, told a local news outlet. “This is a miracle.”
The puppy fell into a hole in the backyard of her foster family’s home at about 5pm on Thursday. The local fire department began the heroic effort to save the dog. Cave rescue crews and volunteers also arrived to retrieve the puppy.
Volunteers in the rescue effort attempted to lower a person down the 50 foot crevice. They realized that the hole eventually became only 5 inches wide. The rescuers also tried reaching Toffee with rope, duffle bags and a crate, all to no avail, the local news reported.
During the whole process, Toffee remained awake, eating and drinking water, according to reports from local CBS affiliate.
The longer Toffee was in the hole, the more fans she accumulated on social media. People from across the United States rooted for the white puppy.
“Toffee is saved!!!!! So happy they got her out of that hole! Now I can sleep tonight,” said a Twitter user who goes by the name of Jamie.
There was a live feed from the scene late on Friday night showing spotlights shining on more than a dozen people who huddled around the hole discussing how to rescue Toffee.
Finally, at a little after midnight on Saturday, workers lowered sardines and a snare down to Toffee and were able to hoist her up to the ground where she was met by a loud cheer and some tears of joy.
Karen Smith held Toffee tightly after she was rescued, burying her head into her fur.
“I still can’t believe it. I don’t want to put her down, she’s probably going to sleep in the bed with me tonight,” Smith said. “And we are going to cover that hole up.”
Share this:
