A loyal dog stayed by her late owner’s side on a hiking trail for almost three months – and the starving pup weighed just 5 pounds after surviving on insects and chipmunks and fending for himself in the mountains of Colorado.
Rich Moore, 71, and his black and white Jack Russell, Finney, disappeared on August 19 while hiking at Blackhead Peak, located in Colorado’s San Juan Mountains.
The arduous search for Rich and his dog was the “most comprehensive” in the Sherriff team’s history – and despite other K9s searching for Finney and handlers shouting his name in the mountains, it did not lead to a sighting.
The missing man’s body was then discovered by a local hunter in the Lower Blanco watershed on October 30 – and miraculously, little Finney was still by his side.
Rescuers who came to collect Moore’s body were able to remove the loyal Finney from his remains with a can of dog food – after three months of being faithful.
The skinny dog was still wearing her purple collar with “Finney” written on it, but staff said she was so skinny it was hanging off her neck.
Finney, who most likely had to fend off other wild animals during her fraught 72 days and nights alone in the mountains, had long scars on her nose. The puppy was so starved that she held the can with her teeth, refusing to let go and savoring every bite, having most likely survived on insects and chipmunks for the past three months.
Rich Moore, 71, and his black and white Jack Russell, Finney. The arduous search for Rich and his dog was the most extensive in the team’s history – and despite other K9s searching for Finney and handlers shouting his name in the mountains, it did not lead to a sighting
Finney, who most likely had to fend off other wild animals during her fraught 72 days and nights alone in the mountains, had long scars on her nose.
It wasn’t until the team offered the starving Finney a can of wet dog food that she came close and was captured in a blanket by Archuleta County Deputy Director of Emergency Management Roy Vega.
The puppy was so starved that she held the can of food with her teeth, refusing to let go and savoring every bite, having most likely survived on insects and chipmunks for the past three months.
And the only water source Finney could drink from was a nearby spring.
As a result, Finney’s body weight was halved and she weighed only six pounds.
The search for the hiker was called off after 2,100 hours on September 22. Teams had deployed nine dogs and five helicopters, as well as 175 flight and ground crews to find him.
Ryan Foster, the sheriff’s emergency management commander, told the Gazette: ‘The day they found him there was a forest fire, and then a phone call came. A hunter messaged his son in town that he had found a body and a dog.
“I called the sheriff and said, ‘I think we found Rich.’
Finney, wrapped in a blanket, moments after he was rescued. Her collar can still be seen around her neck
Now Dana Holby puts her husband’s clothes all over the house for Finney to smell. And she lets the dog sniff her pillow with her snout at night
“The bottom line is, the dog lives. And that the hunter couldn’t pick her up because she was skittish. We were like, ‘No way, this is incredible!’
He said there were cheers and high fives among the team because even though they lost Rich, they said it was a miracle his dog was still alive.
Dana Holby, Richard’s wife of 34 years, had not slept in two and a half months when a sheriff’s knock on the door told her the news.
In an interview with The Denver Gazette, she said, “I’m just grateful she was with him. Rich didn’t want to grow old. He wanted to climb mountains until he couldn’t anymore, so here we are.”
Holby said she had often warned her husband not to hike to Blackhead Peak alone.
The little dog was “a little light at the end of the tunnel,” Sheriff Mike Le Roux said.
Now Holby puts her husband’s clothes around the house for Finney to smell – and she lets the dog sniff her pillow at night.
The two, who ‘saved each other from sorrow’, now go together everywhere.
Rich Moore with his wife of 34 years, Dana Holby
The day after Moore’s body was found, members of the Archuleta County Sheriff’s Office and search and rescue were flown into the area to recover the victim.
The walking route to the 3,000 meter high summit of Blackhead is approximately five kilometers long with a difference in altitude of 2,500 meters.
The road to the top is described as ‘rough, rocky and steep, but the final stretch is an unpaved’ social path.
The day after Moore’s body was found, members of the Archuleta County Sheriff’s Office and search and rescue were flown into the area to recover the victim.
Moore’s cause of death has not been released, but authorities said foul play was not suspected Denzer Gazette reported.
Moore was from Pagosa Springs, Colorado, and was attempting to climb a mountain just to the east.
Taos Search and Rescue wrote about the recovery efforts on their Facebook page.
Delinda Vanne-Brightyn, a member of the group, described her experience locating Moore. In the post, she wrote that she responded to the initial search along with her certified K9 dog named Akio Yodasan.
“We searched from just below the crest of the peak and directly west, down the mountain toward where his car was located,” Vanne-Brightyn wrote.
She spoke about the weather and conditions she and the team faced. “The wind was coming straight from the west/southwest,” she wrote.
‘It was so steep, we went in by helicopter. He was found 4 miles east of the mountaintop where we were brought in (by helicopter).”
She offered her condolences to the family, writing that they were “glad they were able to get some closure and bring their dog home.”
Others went online to express their condolences to the family, sharing what a special dog Finney was and sharing their gratitude to the search and rescue teams.
‘Amazing that the dog stayed with him. They truly are man’s best friend,” one person wrote.
“Kudos to the search team for their tenacity,” wrote another.
“Thanks for saving them and thanks Buddy for sticking with him!”
While another wrote how “sad” the ordeal was, but was grateful Moore wasn’t alone. They wrote in part, “Dogs are faithful, he didn’t die alone.”