Floyd the dog was carried down the mountain in a stretcher.
Authorities in Utah came to the rescue of an exhausted 86-kg dog during a hike in the Salt Lake City area. The Salt Lake County Sheriff's Office Search and Rescue Team said 3-year-old bull mastiff, Floyd, was hiking the Grandeur Peak trail on Sunday with his owner when he became too exhausted to descend the trail.
"Several hikers had called Unified Police to report that the dog and his owner were on the trail and not able to move," they said in a Facebook post.
Comments on Facebook by the owner's sister reveal that the owner never left Floyd's side and was ready to sleep on the mountain overnight with him.
"This pup is my nephew!" wrote Amy Sandoval. "I was up on the trail with him and my brother... my brother never left his side. He was going to sleep with him overnight. Thank you to all the people who called the police and search and rescue.
"A vet also stopped to exam Floyd and recognized what bad shape he was in."
According to Ms Sandoval, the group took a wrong turn while descending the trail and ended up on a "very tricky slope."
"Poor dog just couldn't take any more after that," she wrote. "Thanks to all the nice hikers who offered us more water, as we used the remainder of ours to keep Floyd hydrated."
The rescue team strapped the dog onto a stretcher and carried him down the mountain trail, winning hearts online
Their post, shared on October 14, has been flooded with comments praising and thanking them.
"We passed him on the way down and it's all my kids could talk about. We were so happy and relieved to pass you all heading up for the rescue. What awesome people you are!" wrote one commenter.
"My favorite rescue story so far!" said another, while a third added: "He's beautiful!! So glad he made it down the mountain safely."
A video shared by Salt Lake County Sheriff's Search and Rescue also shows Floyd being carried down Grandeur Peak and has collected over 2.6 lakh views.
What do you think of this rescue mission? Let us know using the comments section.
Click for more
trending news