A Russian dog showed incredible loyalty after her owner fell through the ice and drowned in a frozen river. Refusing to leave the site of the accident, the dog waited alone by the river for days, hoping for her owner’s return.
Belka, the loyal pet, repeatedly returned to the spot on Russia’s Ufa River where her 59-year-old owner fell through the thin ice into the 23-foot-deep waters.
The incident occurred when Belka’s owner attempted to cross a thinly frozen river which proved fatal. As the ice wasn’t thick enough to hold his weight, and he fell into the freezing water. A passerby tried to intervene, but the strong current quickly swept the man away, making rescue efforts impossible.
The swift current carried him away, and despite immediate rescue efforts, it took four days to locate his remains downstream.
Throughout this heartbreaking ordeal, his loyal dog Belka remained at the riverbank, unaware of the tragedy, waiting tirelessly for her owner to return.
Even the darkness of night didn’t deter her. Photos captured her glowing in the dark, steadfast in her vigil. Despite waiting at the wrong location, Belka stood her ground, holding on to hope.
The man’s grieving family tried taking her home multiple times, but Belka always found her way back to the spot where she had last seen her beloved owner disappear into the water.
The pet dog has been compared by Russians to the legendary Japanese Akita, Hachiko, who famously waited endlessly for his owner, Hidesaburo Ueno, even after his passing.
Following the incident, a rescue attempt for the pet owner nearly resulted in the rescuer losing his life. The rescuer was discovered with severe frostbite.
The head of the rescue service in Bashkiria, Kirill Pervov said: “During the search, the rescue team used an air cushion boat with a hooking device to survey the river bottom, UK news outlet The Sun reported.
“Search work was complicated by difficult conditions – a strong current and unstable ice crust,” he said, advising, residents to “follow the rules of safe behaviour and do not put your life in danger”.
“Do not go out on thin ice,” he added.
Belka shares her name with one of the notable Soviet space dogs that travelled to orbit in Sputnik 5 spacecraft in 1960.