When there was a fatal collision in the Rockies of Colorado, Bentley was flung from the car. Even though the Goldendoodle was nowhere to be seen for weeks, his mother remained optimistic.
A big boulder on the road forced Jennifer Orr, Samantha’s mother, to veer and fall off the road, plunging 600 feet down the side of a mountain, when she and Samantha were traveling to Colorado with their family in the summer of 2018. They were both talking and driving at the time.
Samantha was critically injured in the collision, which dislodged her ribs and compressed her vertebrae. Her mother did not survive.
And in the middle of her sadness, the young lady also didn’t know what happened to her Goldendoodle, Bentley, who was in the Jeep at the time.
Determined to search
According to the Facebook post titled “Bring Bentley Home,” Samantha witnessed Bentley being tossed from the moving vehicle.
She informed KOAA that her mother and her dog were her two closest pals.
She pleaded with the general public to become involved in the hunt because she believed that finding the dog would be essential to bringing closure to the family.
But after two weeks had passed, there was still no sign of the dog. However, the family could not shake the sensation that he was still alive somewhere in the world.
In a post that she made on Facebook, she wrote, “We know he is still out there and scared. We need to get Bentley back home to Kansas to his grieving family.”
Finding Bentley
Orr finally heard from a man called Joseph Stratmann after a few days of quiet on the Facebook page. Stratmann had been looking for Bentley and leaving food out for him close to the location of the crash.
19 days after the accident, she met him in the mountains on a Saturday morning, and together they went looking for the animal.
Incredible as it may sound, they found Bentley! On the other hand, he refused to go to them.
She said on the post, “Eventually his fear got the best of him and he made his way to the ridge (top). I slowly but surely followed him, upon reaching the summit, I could see him watching me.”
Orr tried to entice him with some food and a brand new toy, but he remained unmoved. After that, she made the decision to give him some distance.
In addition to that, she started recording a video of him on her phone.
An emotional reunion
Right at the scene of the collision, Bentley is visible in the distance. In fact, when the video starts, he is gazing down at the Jeep’s wreckage. Orr’s sobbing may be heard.
Then, Bentley makes the decision to approach, as if putting together some pieces of information.
Orr pleads: “It’s momma. Good boy … come, come.”
After some back-and-forth, Bentley felt relieved and rushed over to her after only a moment’s hesitation.
Thanking a rescuer
Orr published the following in a post on Facebook in which she thanked Bently’s savior:
“Joe was my living guardian angel Saturday. He safely led me up the mountain, kept me calm and positive, everything I needed in that moment. At times he was a human stepping stool for me when I had no foot placement while climbing the mountain on all fours. This incredible man is the reason I was able to engage with my traumatized Bentley. Had it not been for Joe, this puppy would not have returned home. Thank you so much, Joe.”
Make sure you scroll down to check out the news coverage of the dramatic story!