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Dog survives for two weeks on cliff ledge by drinking from waterfall
Last updated at 00:07am on 11.05.07When Bush the dog disappeared during a cliff walk, her owners thought she was a goner.
But Margie Brett had not bargained on the tenacity that Staffordshire bull terriers are famous for.
After an astonishing two weeks, her beloved pet was rescued from a ledge 100ft above the sea, after surviving on the remains of a dead bird and drinking from a waterfall.
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Bush, the Staffodshire bull terrier, is now recovering from his ordeal at a vet's surgery
When Bush went missing Mrs Brett, 62, launched a desperate search campaign, plastering the area with posters after the dog vanished during a holiday in Devon.
A fortnight later she was told of a news report about two climbers stranded near cliffs at Combe Martin, Ilfracombe, where they had been trying to rescue a dog.
They were later saved after failing to reach the animal and becoming trapped by rising tides.
Realising it must be Bush they were trying to rescue, Mrs Brett contacted the coastguard who called a nearby RAF airbase whose crew carried out the dog rescue as a training exercise.
Winchman Sergeant Mark Lean was lowered 200ft to reach the dog and spotted the remains of a dead crow and a small waterfall which ran nearby.
He said: "Bush was very, very thin and his ribs were really sticking out. He was lethargic and didn't put up any sort of a fight when we picked him up.
"I took a turkey sandwich down with me to try and gain his trust and he snapped it up straight out of my hands. He was clearly starving.
"Next to him was a pile of crow's feathers and it seems he managed to survive by eating the bird. Luckily there was also a small waterfall running past him.
"The vet said there was no way he would have lasted another day out there. Bush is one lucky dog."
Bush is now recovering at a vet's surgery and will soon be reunited with Mrs Brett and her husband Hugh.
Yesterday Mrs Brett recalled the moment her pet went missing.
"The dog literally vanished into thin air," she said.
'We went to the tourist information office and they told the coastguard and the dog warden.
"I went to Combe Martin and plastered the place with photographs. Everybody was so kind."
Mrs Brett, a magazine editor who lives in Oxfordshire, thinks Bush ran over the edge of the cliff after chasing a wild deer which veered off at the last moment.
She said: "It is quite extraordinary that Bush survived and was found and rescued.
"I was out walking with friends when she just vanished. I called her and called her but there was no reply.
"When she was found she was not that far away, but on a ledge part of the way down the cliff.
"She must have been able to move around the ledge because she was able to get to water, possibly from the Sherrycombe Falls."
She added: "She is a very brave dog and is all muscle but when she was found she was just skin and bones.
"It is such a relief she has been rescued. I never gave up hope of seeing her again and I am looking forward to picking her up as son as she is strong enough to come home.
"I just want to thank everyone who has helped in the search and the rescue. It is fantastic that Bush is safe."
Reader views (1)
Here's a sample of the latest views published.
What a tale with a brilliant ending. I am so pleased she was found, bless her, what a brave dog! My thanks to the coastguard and the RAF that took the time to rescue her. I have a staffie and would be devastated if he ever went missing.
Big hug and kiss to Bush when she comes home.
- Zoe Beech, Canvey Island, Essex
