Tired Golden Retriever Airlifted Off Mount Seymour After Paw Injuries
A four-year-old golden retriever named Duke got the ride of his life Tuesday afternoon (Aug. 16) after North Shore Rescue airlifted him from Mount Seymour when he could no longer continue the hike.
The rescue was launched after North Vancouver RCMP received a call from two hikers — one of them Duke’s owner — who had been trekking near Tim Jones Peak. The big retriever, weighing in at about 112 pounds, suddenly refused to move further up the steep trail.
“At first, they thought it might be heat exhaustion,” explained Don Jardine, search manager for North Shore Rescue. “But it turned out Duke had cut his paws on sharp rocks and just couldn’t go on.”
The dog’s size made the situation even more complicated. Carrying Duke over rugged terrain in fading daylight would have put the hikers at risk as well.
Since North Shore Rescue is technically mandated to rescue people, not animals, the situation prompted multiple calls and discussions with the provincial emergency program. But in the end, officials agreed that flying Duke out was safer than leaving the hikers to attempt a risky evacuation on their own.
A helicopter landed on a helipad near Tim Jones Peak, and an experienced dog handler secured Duke into a harness for the short flight. Unlike some rescue dogs, Duke was calm and cooperative, riding alongside his owner back to safety.
Jardine noted this wasn’t the first time he’d seen such a case. Years earlier, he had to help another golden retriever stuck on a cliff ledge — an incident that also required a helicopter and cost him part of the $1,600 bill out of pocket.
He added that dog owners should be cautious when bringing large dogs onto alpine trails, particularly in hot weather. “Dogs that seem strong on city streets can quickly run into trouble on steep, rocky terrain,” Jardine said. “It’s not always the best place for them.”