An elderly dog miraculously survived without any major injuries after slipping off an icy cliff in Virginia, according to authorities.
Oakley, a 16-year-old lab mix, was outside on Wednesday when he lost his footing and slid across an icy yard — sending him plummeting over the edge of a cliff, according to the Giles County Animal Shelter.
The Giles County Animal Control Chief, Bill Ahern, and Officer Jacob Taylor rushed to the scene to locate the senior dog in the perilous piles of snow and slick ice.
Local emergency services also brought a thermal drone to the scene to help locate Oakley, after spotting some paw prints in the snow at the bottom of the train tracks. It was too dangerous to walk to the bottom of the cliff.
“I stepped out, and I realized immediately how slick it truly was,” Taylor told WBDJ.
“There was not many footprints in the yard, which made it extremely dangerous and slippery the whole entire way,” he recalled.
The Virginia Department of Transportation then supplied the rescue team with a road grader to create a path to the bottom of the train tracks so the Norfolk and Southern rail team could help scour for the lost canine.
Oakley was soon found in the snowy landscape and placed in a truck by the rescue team.
“Right before they actually entered the tracks, they saw the dog down there and were able to call [him] and get him into the truck. And we just couldn’t believe when they said ‘he’s okay and we’re coming home with him,” Ahern said.
The senior pooch was unharmed in the harrowing fall, according to authorities.
Oakley’s owner, Meg Nettles, said she was extremely grateful for the rescue team for fighting to bring her “fur baby” home.
“Words cannot express how grateful I am to this team of amazing people. I was simply helpless, and watching them fight so hard to bring my baby home was truly incredible,” Nettles posted to Facebook.
“The dedication and effort to rescue my sweet fur baby has got me in all the feels. Folks put it all on the line, going above and wayyyy beyond their job duties.”
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