The canine was dehydrated, and her face and neck have been lined with scratches, he stated. Florian instantly realized she was too weak to make it down the steep Finger Hill path with out assist.
“She was in the most treacherous part of the trail, stuck between two cliffs, and it was almost sunset,” he stated, including that there have been drop-offs in all instructions.
He referred to as out to the canine and slowly approached her.
He knew that he must carry her the half mile down probably the most vertical portion of the four-mile path.
Florian gently scooped up the canine — he estimated the canine weighed about 45 kilos — and commenced working his manner down the rocky path as robust winds swirled round them.
“She was quivering and scared, and I could feel her warm little underbelly on my skin as I hooked my arm around her,” Florian stated, recalling the day, Feb. 28. “She seemed really tame and loving, but she was really weak, like she’d been up there for a while.”
Florian didn’t know on the time that the canine’s identify was Stevie and she or he’d been lacking for 3 days since taking off to chase a wild pig. The feral pig population has skyrocketed on Oahu in recent years.
Hours earlier than Florian’s hike, one other hiker had come throughout the canine however couldn’t get her down by himself, and he posted about it on the Oahu Hiking Community personal Facebook web page.
“People had already heard about the dog and were trying to find the owner, but I had no idea any of this was going on,” Florian stated. “All I knew was this poor girl needed help and it was up to me to get her down.”
“Leaving her wasn’t an option,” he stated.
It took him about an hour to rigorously work his manner down the mountain whereas balancing the canine in his arms so he wouldn’t fall, he stated, noting that there are sheer cliffs on components of each side of the path.
“The lower part of the trail is more popular — lots of people go there to take photos of the spectacular view,” Florian stated. “Not many people go higher up because it’s quite dangerous. If you fall, you’re pretty much done.”
“I have fear and respect for the place, but I feel comfortable with it because I’ve been training here for so long,” he added. “I know where I’m putting my feet as I go up and down.”
Florian stated he works as a bodily therapist and helps folks with spinal accidents to study to walk once more.
“My arms are really strong because I’m lifting people all day,” he stated. “There aren’t a lot of people who could have carried that dog, but I knew that I could.”
He stated he stopped a number of instances on the way in which right down to relaxation with the pup and reassure her that she’d quickly be secure.
“I just kept telling her, ‘It’s okay, girl, you’re doing great,’” Florian stated. One of the movies he took through the ordeal reveals him petting the canine, saying, “I don’t know whose girl this is, but we’ve got to find out.”
On the steepest a part of the descent, he held on to the cliff with one hand and held the canine near him with the opposite hand as he scooted down on his behind, he stated.
“I really had to balance myself and hold her on top of me,” he stated. “I tried not to move too fast so she wouldn’t get freaked out.”
It was round 6 p.m. when he reached the underside of the path and took the canine to his home. His spouse, Dayane Florian, had seen posts about Stevie on social media, and she or he helped to trace down the proprietor, he stated. Island News reported on the rescue.
“While we waited for (the owner) to come over, we gave Stevie lots of water and some food,” Sergio Florian stated. “She’s such a nice dog — I hated to see her leave.”
The proprietor didn’t reply to a request from The Washington Post for an interview, however Florian stated he thanked him for getting his canine again.
“I felt I developed a little bond with Stevie out there on the trail, and I’d love to see her again,” he stated.
That night time after the rescue, Florian posted on Instagram that his arms have been aching from carrying Stevie, however his coronary heart was full. More than 24,000 folks have appreciated the publish.
“I couldn’t leave another living creature in distress like that,” he wrote. “Love happy endings.”
