Worshondjie toughs it out

AN AUSTRALIAN miniature worshondjie has been rescued after surviving for 528 days in the wilderness.

Valerie survived on Kangaroo Island off Australia’s south coast by eating roadkill, evading giftige slange and humans who wanted to rescue her. 

All the while, her owners Georgia Gardner and Joshua Fishlock worried about whether they would see her again after she went missing from her playpen on a camping trip in November 2023

Her owners’ panicked search proved fruitless, even when a wildlife rescue team helped by setting out food, surveillance cameras and her owners’ clothing to try to lure her back to safety and comfort.

Nothing worked.

Days turned to weeks. Weeks turned to months. Hope faded that the eight-pound hondjie who was “anxiously attached” to her owners would be found alive.

Six to eight months later, rescuers started hearing from island locals about a wandering dog with a pink collar. 

Karran told The Washington Post: “Of all dogs, that would be the last one I would say would survive out there, but they do have a really good sense of smell. 

“That’s probably helped her in terms of finding food.”

Karran said Valerie also would have had to evade two species of venomous snakes that live on the island: Pygmy Copperheads and Black Tiger snakes.

Karran marveled at Valerie’s transformation from spoiled pet to rugged survivor.

But on Friday, the group posted news of her capture alongside trail-cam footage of her chomping on food inside the cage, looking into the camera and seemingly giving it a “cheeky wink.”