Rescuers find dog after night on freezing Highlands mountainside

A dog which fell through a snowy ledge and became lost has been rescued after spending a cold night on  Highlands mountainside.

Aggie, a three-year-old cocker spaniel, was part of a group of dogs and walkers which got into difficulty on Fionn Bheinn near Achnasheen on Sunday.

The group had fallen through a cornice – an overhanging ledge of snow near the summit of the 933-metre munro.

Dundonnell Mountain Rescue team said the hillwalkers and most of the dogs were able to return downhill – but despite a search Aggie was still missing.

It is thought that Aggie survived the night by curling up in a ball on an exposed corrie, as temperatures plunged to less than minus 10C with wind chill.

Three members of the mountain rescue team volunteered to return on Monday to continue the search.

A local deer stalker helped them up the hill and they were able to locate Aggie, who was “a little cold”.

The mountain rescue team said in a social media post: “Monday morning three team members gave up their free time and turned out not as mountain rescuers but as pet owners to help the dogs owners search for the missing pup.

“The local deer stalker was able to transport the hill party up high onto the hill and after searching for a while happily they located the pup not to far from where it was last seen, she was alive and well if a little cold.”

Iain Nesbitt, the Dundonnell Mountain Rescue Team’s leader, helped the group of four hillwalkers on Sunday.

He said three members of the team returned to the mountain in their own time on Monday, as they were dog lovers and could not bear the thought of Aggie being left behind.

Mr Nesbitt told Press Association: “You’ve got a horrible feeling in the pit of your stomach, it’s like you’ve left a member of your family there.”

Conditions on the corrie would have been “very wintery” overnight with whiteout conditions, he said.

One member of the mountain rescue team located Aggie on the corrie, around 10 metres from the ridge where the group fell.

Mr Nesbitt said Aggie had curled up into a ball and was “just sitting waiting”, though bit the rescuer who reached her first.

The team leader said: “It’s always amazing how resilient dogs are, they go into survival mode.”

He said the fall had been a “freak accident” and thanked those who had helped with the rescue.