[News] Hopes fade for Ben

[blackwidow]

CONCERN is growing over the deaf dog thought to have been trapped on a cliff ledge for 14 days near Seaton

After surviving for two weeks, Ben a 14 year old Yorkshire terrier is feared dead despite a rescue bid by coastguards, a specialist RSPCA team and attempts to feed him by Axe Cliff Golf Club workers.

Ben is thought to have fallen 50 feet onto a ledge surrounded by thick undergrowth during a walk with owners on Sunday November 19.

A search by the coastguard launched the same day was fruitless with officers returning on Tuesday, November 28, after barking was heard by golfers playing nearby.

The RSPCA was called out on Wednesday November 29, with an officer attempting a food drop before assembling a specialist rescue team, returning the next day to abseil down the cliff in a bid to save the family pet.

After a day searching in vain the team was forced to give up the hunt.

RSPCA spokesman, Jo Barr said: "The dog was owned by an elderly lady and she is very upset.

"He must have lost his footing or chased something and then fallen off the edge and unfortunately when we went to the site he couldn't be seen because there were too many gorse bushes in the way."

Adding: "We are asking people to inform us if they hear a dog barking in the area or if they find any signs a dog is there"

With the last reported sounds of barking heard on Friday, it is feared the Ben did not survive this weekend's violent weather.

[Toby'sMama]

Oh poor Ben... I hope they find him and get him back to his owners!

[Monday]

Originally Posted by blackwidow

With the last reported sounds of barking heard on Friday, it is feared the Ben did not survive this weekend's violent weather.

How sad .... but another reason to keep your baby on a leash. ('specially near a cliff)

[JeanieK]

Oh that is so sad. that poor woman must be frantic

[Jenn218]

Very, very sad!!! I feel for this poor woman! Any word on the outcome??

[Rae Rae]

How terrible

I hope there is a postive outcome for this poor little guy.

[Dragonfly]

That's so sad I hope they find poor Ben and he's o.k.....Bless there heart

[Ivy Lucille]

Awww, this just breaks my heart. Where is Seaton?

[red98vett]

That poor little yorkie - he must be so scared and probably hurt....I hope they don't give up on him why only after one day would they do that ??

[RoxyJosMom]

I searched for an update on little Ben and this is the only thing I could find:

The Times December 02, 2006

Terrier's rescue turns into a cliffhanger
Simon de Bruxelles

Old and deaf pet trapped for 12 days
Golf club helps coastguard search

An elderly Yorkshire terrier that has been trapped on a ledge for nearly two weeks after falling from a Devon clifftop is refusing to be rescued despite a big operation by the coastguard and the RSPCA.
Ben has spent 12 days on the ledge, where he has been kept alive by golfers and greenkeepers at a nearby club, who have been tossing food down the cliff to him.

On Thursday a coastguard team used climbing equipment to reach the overgrown ledge where the dog is believed to be trapped, but he did not respond to their calls.

There was no sign of Ben by the time darkness fell, and it was feared that he had succumbed to the elements.

But yesterday morning golfers again heard barking from the cliff.

John Pollock, an RSPCA inspector, said: ?The problem is that there is an area the size of 12 football pitches which is steep in places and covered in dense gorse. It would take a team of mechanical diggers to get through it, and so it is very hard to find the dog.?

The rescue mission is not helped by Ben being 13 years old and deaf. He went over cliffs at Axmouth, East Devon, while being walked by the son of his elderly owner, and has not been seen since.

The terrier is thought to be on a broad ledge halfway down cliffs that measure 450ft (135m) and are especially dangerous because they are made up of crumbly slate and shale.

He is thought to have tumbled about 250ft down the steep slope before coming to rest on an outcrop.

The clifftop is fenced off and golfers who use the Axe Cliff course are under strict orders not to cross the barrier because of the danger of landslips. Mr Pollock, who organised the search on Thursday, said that it involved seven RSPCA staff and the eight-strong volunteer coastguard cliff-rescue team from nearby Seaton.

The operation started at 10am and lasted eight hours until it became too dark to continue, but nothing was seen or heard.

Golfers at the Axe Cliff club have heard the terrier barking and greenkeepers have been throwing food into the dense gorse.

Mr Pollock has helped groundsmen at the club to prepare balls of meat and fat that have been thrown over the cliff.

He said: ?They were made of lard, butter and meat and they were throwing five or six of them over, so if the dog can get to them he will have a food source and there should be enough water.

?The club even lent us golf buggies to take our kit across to the cliffs when we carried out the search operation.?

Ben went over the cliff on November 19 and the coastguard was called in immediately to join the search.

It was assumed that he had been killed or badly injured in the fall, until barks were heard.

Charmed lives


Ben?s owner can take heart from the experience of Daisy, a Border terrier, who spent three weeks on a two-foot ledge 20ft above the sea after falling from a cliff at Carradale, Argyll

It took 20 people, including the crew of an RAF Sea King helicopter, to airlift 12 cows up a cliff at Pen Enys Cove, Cornwall, after attempts to persuade them to walk up failed

A 5ft crocodile called Scipio had to be rescued from his owner?s car after it crashed as he was being driven to a veterinary surgery to be circumcised
Source: Times database

[alfiesmummy]

I am so so very sorry to read this, please put details on my site and my members will say a prayer for this little boy. Justine

[bettyeanne]

I am heartbroken to read this. We will be praying for a miracle for Ben.