Valerie the dachshund has finally been reunited with her owners after surviving 540 days alone on Kangaroo Island in South Australia.
Owners Georgia Gardner and Josh Fishlock described the moment they got to hold the tiny pup in their arms in a statement published Wednesday.
Gardner said she “burst into tears” when Valerie ran up to her as they saw each other again for the first time on Tuesday.
“She was wagging her tail, making her little happy sounds, and wiggling around with joy. I held her and cried and cried,” she said in the statement.
“She’s stockier now, strong and healthy… healthier than we are, honestly!” added Gardner.
Fishlock said the pair hadn’t expected to see Valerie again.
“It still doesn’t feel real,” he said in the statement.
Valerie, who will soon celebrate her third birthday, went missing on a camping trip to the island in November 2023.
When strangers tried to help, she fled into the undergrowth, and her owners eventually gave up and returned home to the mainland.
With no sightings it was assumed Valerie had met her match with a snake or perhaps one of the giant Rosenberg’s goannas — reptiles up to 1.5 meters (5 feet) long — that occupy the island.
However, reports of sightings started to emerge, sparking a massive search operation led by volunteers from the Kangala Wildlife Rescue, a non-profit group set up in 2020 following the devastating Australian bushfires.
Valerie was eventually found on April 25, and has been looked after by the charity since.
Director Jared Karran described Valerie as “truly something special.”
“She was just so much smaller than we imagined. If it was a miracle before that she’d survived — seeing her size — it’s just unbelievable that she was able to survive and thrive out there!” he said in the statement.
Home to around 5,000 people, Kangaroo Island is about 45 minutes from the mainland by ferry. Tourists go there to see Australian native wildlife, but officials have long had a problem controlling introduced species including feral cats. The island is thick with bush, and there are many places for a small dog to hide.
Another difficulty is the island’s vibrant ecosystem, according to the charity.
“One of the reasons this is such a difficult rescue and not as easy as just baiting and setting traps, is due to the fact we are constantly competing with hundreds of wildlife like possums, wallabies, kangaroos, goannas and feral cats. All which are all just after a feed also,” the group said in a post on Facebook before the little dog was found.
Now Valerie is preparing to return home to Albury, New South Wales, where she will be reunited with Gardner and Fishlock’s other pets, Lucy the rescue cat, Mason the red heeler and their latest addition, Dorothy, a fellow dachshund.