Sophie Tucker is this little, four-legged badass pictured above. She survived four months on a remote island, feeding on baby goats, after she fell off of her family’s yacht. Here’s the story:
Sophie Tucker, named after the American vaudeville comedian, fell overboard from the family’s yacht when they ran into bad weather off the Queensland coastal town of Mackay.
Miss Griffith and her friends searched the area, putting their own lives at risk in the rough seas, but there was no sign of Sophie Tucker.
Unknown to them, the dog swam towards remote St Bees Island, a quiet volcanic strip of land fringed with reefs.
On land there are rainforests and dense grasslands where koalas and wild goats live.
A handful of people living on the island reported seeing a dog running around, but assumed it was a feral animal.
When the bodies of several young goats were found, locals contacted wildlife rangers and word of a dog on the island reached the ears of Miss Griffith and her family.
‘We wondered whether it could be Sophie Tucker but thought ‘No way’.
‘She would have had to have swum through five miles of sea to get there and then work out how to survive.
‘It just couldn’t be her, we decided, but when we were told the dog had been caught and they were bringing it to the mainland we thought we should have a look.’
They waited at the marina as the rangers’ boat came in – and there in the cage was a grey and black dog.
‘We called her name and she went crazy – whimpering and banging on the cage, so they let her out and she ran over to us and almost knocked us over with excitement,’ Miss Griffiths said.
‘She’s settled in well back at home now. I think she’s appreciating the air conditioning.’
Locals said it was astonishing that Sophie Tucker had not been attacked by sharks.
Even though she was lost inside the Great Barrier Reef, which tends to keep sharks away from the coast, tiger sharks and hammerheads do swim through the coral – and dogs are at particular risk.
‘The smell of a wet dog is irresistible to a shark,’ said a fisherman.
‘You don’t often hear of dogs surviving if they decide to go for a bit of a swim. Even a big fish will have a go at their legs.
‘So for this dog to swim for five miles or so, and then swim a bit between islands, is incredible. She’s a very lucky animal.’
