A lost Australian Shepherd, named Nanuq, survives an incredible 150-mile journey across the frozen Bering Sea before safely returning to his home in Alaska.
Mandy Iworrigan, Nanuq’s owner who lives in Gambell, Alaska, found the one-year old Australian Shepherd after people in Wales posted photos on Facebook of a dog, obviously looking lost, wandering the area.
Nanuq went missing last month when he and his family visited Savoogna, a city located at the St. Lawrence Island in the Bering Sea.
As a matter of fact, Nanuq went missing with the family’s other dog, Starlight. However, Starlight was able to return home a few weeks after, the CBS News reports.
Iworrigan said, “My dad texted me and said, ‘There’s a dog that looks like Nanuq in Wales.” So she immediately reactivated her Facebook account to see if the lost dog was Nanuq.
And lo and behold, the lost dog in Wales turned out to be Nanuq. “I was like, ‘No freakin’ way! That’s our dog! What is he doing in Wales?’” Iworrigan said as she recalls the experience.
Iworrigan also said she had no idea why or how Nanuq ended up in Wales. But she suspected that it might be when the ice shifted while the dog was hunting.
“I’m pretty sure he ate leftovers of seal or caught a seal. Probably birds, too. He eats our Native foods. He’s smart,” Iworrigan added.
To get Nanuq home safely, Iworrigan got him on a charter flight that was used to transport athletes for the Bering Strait school district’s Native youth Olympics tournament, according to The Guardian.
Iworrigan went live on Facebook on the day she got Nanuq back to record the heartwarming reunion, which you can watch here!
And except for a swollen leg and large bite marks from an unidentified animal, Nanuq is safe and healthy.
