80-pound dog gets extreme altitude sickness on Colorado hiking trail, rescuers say

An 80-pound dog needed a rescue after it suffered an extreme case of altitude sickness on a Colorado hiking trail, officials said.

A team from Grand County Search and Rescue responded after a hiker called for help from Crater Lake on the Cascade Creek Trail on Saturday, Oct. 8, the rescuers said in a Facebook post. The hiker said the Staffordshire terrier mix “was refusing to walk out from an overnight,” according to the news release.

One of the two campers was able to hike to an area with cell service to make the call, according to the news release. The dog was left with the other hiker about 3.5 miles from Monarch Lake.

Seven members responded to the call, and it took about two hours to make contact with the owner and dog, according to the news release.

The incident commander said the dog was “extremely sick and lethargic with altitude sickness,” according to the release. The dog was put into a harness and carried down by the team.

The dog, described as “80 pounds of pure muscle and super sweet,” was able to walk on his own after the team got him to a lower altitude, according to the release.

The hiker who called for help also had altitude sickness, rescuers said.

Grand County Search and Rescue urges the public to remember that “high altitude sickness can affect anybody, including dogs.”

Symptoms can include:

• Headache

• Feeling dizzy

• Shortness of breath

• Not being able to exercise

Crater Lake is about 170 miles southwest of Denver.

This story was originally published October 10, 2022 at 1:34 PM with the headline "80-pound dog gets extreme altitude sickness on Colorado hiking trail, rescuers say."