A sheepdog that was lost and feared dead after plunging 20ft from the side of a cliff was rescued by coastguard crews armed with dog biscuits.
Stornoway Coastguard received a 999 call shortly before noon yesterday from worried farmer Angus Cameron, who reported that his pet Meg had gone over the side of a cliff near the Ardnamurchan Lighthouse.
In trying to despatch the coastal team to An Acairseid, the operator discovered that it would take more than two hours to reach the location by land – so the Tobermory lifeboat was sent out to help.
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The RNLI crew took a team of 12 Coastgfuard volunteers, from Salen and Kilchoan, to the search area – along with some snacks for the distressed dog should they find it alive.
Meg was quickly traced halfway down the cliff in “a distressed state” – but the crews used ropes to winch the Collie to safety.
An RNLI spokesman said the dog’s experience was “undoubtedly” helped by being fed some biscuits the thoughtful Tobermory crew had taken with them.
Coxswain, David McHaffie, said the mission represented “joint working at its best”.
He added: “We were hugely pleased to find that Meg was unhurt from her experience, and has now been reunited with her owner.”
A spokeswoman for the coastguard said: “We were worried that the farmer, or someone else, would try to rescue the dog without the proper equipment and put themselves at harm.
“But the dog was delivered back to the owner safe and well.”
She added: “After the rescue, the lifeboat returned the volunteers to Kilchoan and Salen, before returning to Tobermory.”