If a Livingston County dog could talk, he'd probably have a harrowing tale to tell.
Skippy went missing from his home last weekend, and two days later he was rescued halfway down the 400-foot Letchworth State Park gorge with the help of State Park police and a drone.
Park police Lt. James Hy said a female hiker heard a dog barking down the gorge Monday and went to the park police station looking for help.
A drone was used to try to locate the dog, which was found at an extremely steep and wooded section of the gorge near Hogsback Overlook. Lt. Hy said they couldn’t actually see Skippy, but the drone was still useful. This is the first time a drone has been used for any kind of rescue - human or canine - at Letchworth.
"It did help us out in that we got a little better idea of the area of the gorge where we'd be repelling into, because from the top where we were, it's thick woods and you really can't see what's below you."
Sgt. Ryan Clancy was lowered 200 feet into the gorge and used a "pick off" rescue method to save the dog.
"And that's simply when we send somebody down on ropes with a special harness for the victim - in this case it was a dog, and we actually have canine rescue harnesses - We send the rescuer down and they secure the person or the dog, and then we bring them back up on the lines,” said Lt. Hy.
Skippy is fine. He was released from a veterinary hospital with just a few scrapes and bruises. Lt. Hy said this is the twenty-fifth canine rescue at Letchworth in the last 20 years.
"Dogs, I've found over the years, are extremely resilient physically, more so than people, believe it or not. A lot of times, dogs get themselves into a position and perhaps take a fall, and it doesn't end up as well for the humans as it does for the dogs."
Lt. Hy reminds Letchworth visitors that there is a leash law in the park and Skippy’s adventure is a good reminder to heed it.
