Man finds starving dog on a deserted island — races against time to save him
No matter where you find yourself, chances are there is a stray dog or two nearby. This even extends to remote islands off the coast of Central America, as one kayaker learned while on an outing off the coast of Belize.
He was exploring the remote island when he found a stray animal, and it was a race against the clock to find him help.
Finding an abandoned dog on a remote island
Bozeman, Montana native, Wesley White, was doing a photography gig off the coast of the Central American country when he came across a starving and homeless dog. He had traveled thousands of miles for the job and found himself on the remote island the day before he was scheduled to leave.
“I was working on a small island off the coast of Belize called Thatch Caye,” White told NBC Montana. “I was just eating some food, drinking water, kind of looking out across the flat water looking for fish movement, and I saw his tail wagging in the mangroves, and I thought, ‘Oh, it’s another island dog,’ because they’re everywhere down there.”
The dog needed White’s help
As White interacted with the dog, he realized that the dog was in bad shape. “I turned around and saw the state he was in — he had no hair, he had mites. That’s when I realized like, OK, he was probably abandoned.”
White wrapped the dog up and put him in his kayak, determined to save the starving dog, who he named Winston. White’s biggest challenge in helping the dog was that he only had 36 hours before he was due to fly back to the U.S. Time was of the essence, and he wondered if he would be able to get Winston the help he needed in time.
Racing to save Winston
Arriving back at the hotel, White enlisted the locals in his effort to help Winston. Everyone pitched in to get him cans of dog food and helped White find a vet. Dropping Winston off at the vet, White was later informed that Winston would be OK but needed a foster family to stay with.
White was able to arrange a foster with the Humane Society of Belize. The foster parent, named Melanie, took care of Winston and kept White informed of his progress. Soon, Winston was strong enough to make the trip to the U.S., where White planned on adopting him.
Getting Winston to the U.S.
Melanie placed Winston on a flight for Dallas to make the long trip to the U.S. Meanwhile, White made the drive from Montana to Texas to pick Winston up. According to White, He spent thousands to get Winston to the U.S. to be with him, but it was all worthwhile.
“From the minute I found him felt like I knew that living in the United States, there were so many resources, so many friends that can help get us back to Bozeman.”
Reunited at last
At first, White was unsure if Winston would even recognize him, but his fears were dismissed as soon as Winston recognized his scent. Before too long, the pair were on their way to Winston’s forever home, where he would live with White and his other dogs.
For more on this sweet rescue story, check out the video below.
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