A German Shepherd dog in a forest, similar to the missing dog who was found up in a tree in El Dorado County, California.
(Photo Credit: Anita Kot | Getty Images)

Missing German Shepherd Found 25 Feet up Tree

It’s common for cats to climb trees, but it is undoubtedly surprising to hear about a 70-pound dog getting stuck in one. However, that is how a missing German Shepherd was found. As per NBC15, a 10-month-old puppy named Luna found herself stranded on a slanted tree positioned 25 feet above ground in the woodlands of El Dorado County, California. The county lies nestled between Sacramento and Lake Tahoe.

Brian Spies, Luna’s owner, talked about his frantic search for his missing dog following her disappearance. Despite scouring the nearby forest around his residence, his concern grew as he feared wild animals had got to her. 

“We have bears, we’ve got mountain lions, coyotes, foxes. We kind of got them all, so we didn’t know if a mountain lion snagged her,” Spies expressed. 

Owner’s friend spotted the German Shepherd in the tree

Spies asked his friends for help to find Luna in the forest. It took more than a day, but eventually, they discovered the pooch. One of his friends, Luka Bogdanovich, spotted something while driving. He looked to the left and saw the German Shepherd in a surprising spot. In his words, “I see something in the tree, and I went, ‘Holy cow, that’s the dog.'”

Bogdanovich quickly called Spies to inform him of Luna’s whereabouts. According to KCRA, Spies rushed to the spot and brought a 24-foot extension ladder. Luckily, he had one handy since he works in construction. In order to rescue the animal, his friends assisted by holding the ladder and keeping a sleeping bag handy in case anything went wrong.

“I had to bear hug her and walk down the ladder with no hands,” he explained. “We felt like firefighters.”

Spies mentioned Luna seemed a little bit tired and slept a lot the next day but bounced back to her energetic self soon after.

Dog may have climbed tree to catch a squirrel

According to NBC15, Spies suggested a theory that his dog might have been chasing a squirrel when climbing the tree before realizing she had made a big mistake. The pine tree is slanted, making it quite steep.

“It was an impressive climb, and how high she made it up,” Spies noted.

Although he can’t be sure how Luna ended up in the tree, he has learned something from her adventure. 

He jokingly said, “If she ever gets lost again, we look up, because she can climb trees.”

monitoring_string = "c1299fe10ba49eb54f197dd4f735fcdc"