Around New England

St. Bernard Rescued on Mount Washington

July 30, 2020

A 150-pound St. Bernard who had hurt his paws climbing Mount Washington with his owners was rescued by volunteers earlier this week.

St. Bernards are famous for rescuing travelers in the Alps, but this one needed help.

The dog, whose name is Jack, was unable to go any farther about 5 miles up the mountain, which is the tallest in New England, according to the Conway Daily Sun.

Mountain rocks in summer heat “are like sandpaper to a dog’s paws,” rescuer Brian Ahearn told the Conway Daily Sun.

The woman and her 15-year-old son hiked down the mountain with the family’s other dog, a Labrador or labradoodle, but the man of the trio stayed overnight Monday, July 27 with Jack, above the treeline.

The next day, a rescue team went up the 5.4-mile-long Boot Spur Trail with a stretcher, gauze, and booties. Getting up to the site, getting Jack treated and cooperative, and getting back down took about nine hours, a rescuer told the Conway Daily Sun.

The rescue team consisted of the owners of For Your Paws Only pet shop and bakery in North Conway, New Hampshire, two other people, and four people from the Appalachian Mountain Club.

Mount Washington, in Coos County in northern New Hampshire, is 6,288 feet above sea level.