18 Mar 2016

Dog presumed drowned found weeks later

10:43 am on 18 March 2016

A Californian fisherman is due to be reunited with his pet dog, more than a month after the German shepherd fell overboard in the Pacific Ocean and was presumed drowned.

Luna, an 18-month-old German shepherd mix, reunites with Conner Lamb, a friend of her owner, at Naval Air Station North Island, San Diego, after going missing for five weeks.

Luna with a friend of her owner, Conner Lamb Photo: AFP

The one-year-old pup, named Luna, went missing about 100km out to sea, but managed to swim to a small island used as a military training base.

Navy personnel on San Clemente spotted Luna by a road, wagging her tail.

A biologist who examined her said she was slightly thinner, and had likely survived on rodents and dead fish that had washed up.

Get the RNZ app

for ad-free news and current affairs