Chloe the dog, from Clunes, has a miraculous story to tell after being rescued from the bottom of a 10-metre mine shaft completely unscathed on Friday.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Her owners, Jacqui Macormac and Mark Powell, took her out before bed at around 1am in the early hours of Friday morning.
Chloe, a nine-year-old rescued Maltese Shitzu crossed with a Jack Russell, spotted a rabbit and bolted after it.
“We were walking along the road when she saw a rabbit and took off. She didn’t come back,” Ms Macormac said. “Normally if she runs off, she will come back to the road. But she didn’t this time. I was calling her. In the distance, I thought I could hear a faint dog bark so I got in the car and shot around to the main road to see if she’d gone through the paddock but she hadn’t.
“We got out torches and went into the paddock on foot. We were calling her and she was barking back to let us know where she was.”
Eventually, the pair realised Chloe’s barking was coming from a fenced off area in the paddock they were searching.
“We climbed through the fence, shined the torch in and there she was at the bottom of a hole that was at least 40 foot deep.”
Ms Macormack returned to her house and picked up a doona to throw down to Chloe while she worked out how to free her.
“I didn’t know what to do. I posted in local Facebook groups for help but it was late so the posts weren’t approved. So I posted in Ballarat Buy, Swap and Sell where hundreds of people replied.”
Ms Macormack called emergency services but was told it was too dangerous to attempt a rescue in the dark.
“We had to leave her there for the night which was horrific,” Ms Macormack said. “She was in there for 12 hours.”
A spokesperson from the CFA said two firefighters from Lucas and five from Ballarat City travelled to Clunes for the rescue. Chloe was taken to the vet afterwards and although distressed, was cleared of any injuries.
“We were amazed when we saw the size of the hole in daylight,” Mr Powell said. “How she didn’t hurt herself is amazing.”
“She is a very lucky girl but we are concerned about why the mine shaft is not filled in,” Ms Macormac said.