Harley the dog was thrown overboard during a storm on a yacht. But he managed to swim nearly five kilometers and reach shore on his own.
A small dog named Harley accidentally ended up overboard a yacht during a storm. His owner, Shane Hale, was sure he'd never see his pet again. Incredibly, the dog managed to swim to shore on his own, about five kilometers away.
The man deeply regretted his loss. He berated himself for taking the dog on a Caribbean yacht trip. Shane had long wanted to sail with Harley along the Florida coast. All was going well, but overnight the weather changed dramatically and a storm arose. At the time, the vessel was three miles from the small town of Englewood in Sarasota County. The man began fiddling with the controls, Harley by his side the entire time, but suddenly found himself overboard. Unfortunately, Shane was unable to help him.
Shane and Harley had been together for over five years. It became a torment for the owner to watch his beloved dog bobbing in the waves, drifting further and further away. Despite the dog wearing a life jacket attached to the side of the yacht, Harley jumped out.
The storm was very strong and Shane's sea vessel was damaged. He stopped his excursion and pulled ashore. He was deeply distraught over the loss of Harley and didn't want to sail without him.
Still holding out hope, he wrote a post on Facebook, describing the incident and asking if anyone had seen his dog on the shore. The next morning, he received a message saying the dog had been found. Despite the storm, he had covered almost five kilometers on his own and actually swam to shore!
After seeing his pet, the man immediately took him to the clinic for a medical examination. The veterinarian diagnosed Harley with mild pneumonia and said the dog would soon recover.
Shane says he's unlikely to go on another trip like this, especially with his dog, because he doesn't want to risk his pet's life any more.
