Lost after a cliff fall, how Pip the dog survived 10 days in the bush

STUFF
Pip the labrador was recovered after going missing on a hunting trip.

Stuck on a steep bluff, bordered by a creek and a waterfall, Pip the black labrador survived a 10-metre fall that nearly killed her.

That was 10 days ago and since then, her family have spent every day searching for their beloved pet with fading hopes she would be found alive. 

On Sunday afternoon, rescuers finally found her several hundred metres from the bottom of the steep bluff. Curled up, with broken bones and just enough energy to lift her head.

Pip's owner, Lee Hart lives in London and Pip has since lived with his parents Maria and Roger Hart in Richmond. 

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Pip in the helicopter, having been rescued after spending 10 days after a fall in the bush.
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Pip in the helicopter, having been rescued after spending 10 days after a fall in the bush.

The full extent of her injuries were not yet known. She was believed to have a broken leg and damaged spinal discs but her internal organs looked to be in good condition. More would be revealed after an x-ray on Tuesday afternoon.

"I can't believe she is still alive," Maria said. "It hasn't been easy getting to her."

Maria said Lee had "exhausted his options" trying to find Pip before he had to return to London, having walked back into the area seven times. He was on a plane home when Pip was finally found on Sunday afternoon.

"He had made us promise to try once more," Maria said. 

Lee had been back in New Zealand visiting family when he and Roger took Pip out hunting in the Branch Valley in Marlborough on April 12.

Nine-year-old Pip was a family pet, who loved the chance to get out in the bush.

"She didn't do it very often but she loved hunting, she pointed at deer," Maria said.

Roger and Lee were near Mt Morris, when they came to rest on top of a steep bluff, keeping an eye out for deer. 

"Lee got up and said, 'come on Pip' and went to walk away, then heard this almighty crash and turned around and she was gone."

The family spent the following days searching the area by foot. A helicopter scoured the area on the third day, flying up and down the surrounding valleys but they couldn't see any sign of Pip. 

Pip is comforted after a rescue party found her in the bush.
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Pip is comforted after a rescue party found her in the bush.

On Sunday, with the help of Kiwi Guiding owner Jack Gauld, Roger and Maria set out again to look for her.

"We climbed to the place where she fell and I yelled out to her and Jack heard two barks, then he said 'there's a dog down here'."

They initially thought the barks were from pig dogs and it took Roger and Jack more than two hours to find her in the rugged terrain.

Jack was peering over another steep bluff when he heard Pip growl, and he called for Roger.

"Her little eyes just lit up, even though she couldn't move, she held her head up at us," Roger said. 

Pip the labrador was carried back up a sheer cliff face in a backpack after being missing for 10 days.
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Pip the labrador was carried back up a sheer cliff face in a backpack after being missing for 10 days.

Thirsty and gaunt, Pip drank more than a litre of water before she was bundled into a backpack for the journey out.

Both Maria and Roger said if it wasn't for Jack's good hearing and bush skills, they doubted they would have been able to find her. 

"We couldn't really get out, we got bluffed in by the creek and a couple of big waterfalls and then had to climb up a fairly sheer cliff to a spot we thought we could hoist her out," Roger said.

The group had satellite communication devices which enabled them to make contact with each other and a helicopter despite having no cellphone coverage. 

"The chopper pilot was very good, he managed to sit the skid on a rock and just take her from there so she could go straight in the machine, it was amazing."

Pip was now recovering at The Vet Centre in Richmond and had lost about 10 kilograms as a result of her ordeal. 

"She was a chubby little labrador but she is not anymore," Maria said. "The vet said she needed to lose some weight."

Maria said Pip was a "fantastic dog".

"She is like a human, loving, caring, a big softie really." 

Pip has a few broken bones, but should recover after her ordeal.
SUPPLIED
Pip has a few broken bones, but should recover after her ordeal.

Lee's sister Samantha Carmody works at The Vet Centre in Richmond and said it was early days, but Pip had been made comfortable and they hoped she would come right. 

"10 nights is absolutely amazing, she is a trooper."

"She had a high temperature and she was in a bit of toxic shock so she is fighting an infection but she is comfortable today, she is a wee bit chattier."

After the ordeal Maria said she told Lee that this was the end of Pip's hunting career.

"She deserves her retirement," he said.

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