They rescue a dog that was wandering for more than a week on the Arctic ice

(CNN) – A dog that roamed the Arctic for more than a week was rescued by a group of sailors, according to Russian state media.

The crew of a Russian icebreaker came across the Samoyed deep in frozen fields near the northern Russian village of Mys Kamenny, state channel Russia 1 reported.

Yegor Agapov, captain of the icebreaker Alexander Sannikov, told the outlet that the dog approached the side of the boat as they crossed the icy landscape on their way to an oil terminal in the Gulf of Ob.

In video footage, the white dog, named Aika, could be seen wagging her tail and cautiously walking on the uneven ice before the crew lowered a ladder so she could board the ship.

“We got out the ladder, and the dog climbed on it on his own. Then, with the help of a mobile phone, we made contact with the local population, (and) found the owner of the dog, ”1 Evgeny Nagibin, navigation assistant, told Russia.

The crew took the dog to the nearby village and located the owners, who explained that Aika had escaped during a walk through the village and probably would not have survived without the intervention of the crew.

“The dog wasn’t going anywhere without us, we have no idea how she got there,” said owner Svetlana Chereshneva, a resident of Mys Kamenny.

Resistant dogs

The Samoyed, a sheepdog with thick, fluffy white fur, is a breed native to northern Russia and Siberia.

Aika’s remarkable feat of endurance is rare, although these dogs are known for their ability to survive harsh conditions.

In 2019, a group of workers found a dog on an oil rig more than 200 km away. off the coast of Thailand.

The same year, a French bulldog survived a six-story fall from a New York building.