A helicopter pilot rescued a border collie March 31 after the dog was separated from her owner, who was injured while hiking in New Zealand earlier that month.
Molly couldn’t be found after her owner fell from a 180-foot waterfall on New Zealand’s West Coast of the South Island, according to The Associated Press (AP). The dog’s owner sustained bruises and lacerations and was airlifted to the hospital March 24, though rescuers could not retrieve the pet. The dog was eventually found meters from where her owner had survived her fall, thanks to Matt Newton, the owner and operator of Precision Helicopters New Zealand.
“I contacted her in the hospital and said I’d go for a look for it,” Newton, whose business is located near where Molly went missing, said. “I went and looked for the dog several times and no avail.” (RELATED: Police Find 11-Year-Old Shot On Playground, Arrest Another 11-Year-Old)
Following these failed searches, Newton and his family started a fundraiser to pay for better search gear and additional flight time, eventually collecting over 11,000 New Zealand dollars, or $6,300, for a new search, according to the AP. The donations funded thermal imaging equipment and three more hours of flying. Newton, a veterinary nurse, volunteers, and a dog named Bingo found Molly with the help of the thermal imaging equipment March 31.
“We struck jackpot within about an hour,” Newton said, according to the AP. “As we made our way up the river, we could see the dog in the thermal and then we could visually see it.”
Molly had not previously been spotted at the waterfall during Newton’s earlier searches, the pilot said. It remains unknown if she ultimately reached the place where her owner had landed or also fell. One of the volunteers who accompanied Newtown used Bingo to coax Molly into the helicopter after getting off.
Newtown said the dog was in “surprisingly good condition.”
“She knew what we were up to, I think,” the pilot said. “She behaved real well. She didn’t run away and she was pleased to be rescued.”
Hours following the rescue, Newtown reunited Molly with her owner. Precision Helicopters shared a video to its Facebook page thanking the public for their support. Footage shows a dog atop a collection of rocks before a man and another dog approach. The man ends up being able to retrieve both dogs before all three appear to board the helicopter.
“Thank you to everybody who donated & volunteered to help, the success of saving Molly would not have been possible without this joint effort. What a happy ending to reunite her with Jess after her accident. 1 week lost in the wild, Molly will be happy to be home,” the company wrote.
Molly is not the first dog to be rescued. In August 2025, the Idaho Army National Guard and Air St. Luke’s rescued an injured hiker and his dog in the vicinity of the Trinity Mountains’ Fiddle Lake, according to the Idaho Statesman.