rapped and seriously injured beneath the wreckage of his car, 76-year-old Herbert Schutz thought he was facing certain death.
In agony and without protection from the elements, he knew the chances of being found quickly on his remote farm at the foot of an Australian mountain range were slim. But luckily for Mr Schutz, his faithful sheepdog Boydy was with him.
Boydy knew just what to do – he snuggled next to his owner to keep him warm as temperatures fell to 4C (39F).
He even refused to leave his master’s side when rescuers finally located them four days later.
Mr Schutz became trapped after his four-wheel-drive vehicle crashed into a tree on his property near Rylstone, in central New South Wales, on Friday.
He managed to clamber out but as he did so the car rolled over, pinning him under the chassis. He suffered a fractured skull, two broken hips and a dislocated shoulder. Neighbours set out to look for Mr Schutz after his worried daughter rang on Monday to tell them she had not been able to contact her father.
One neighbour, Eric Merritt, and his friend Julian Barrett discovered the upturned vehicle at the foot of the Nullo mountains yesterday afternoon.
‘We saw the car and that no one was in it,’ Mr Merritt said. ‘Then his dog ran around the front of the car and then we heard him call for the dog. That’s when we found him.’
More...
Body of boy, 9, found buried under eight-feet of snow after he fell down deep crevasse during snowmobile race
Kitesurfer critically injured after freak gust of wind hurls him 100ft across a beach into a building
Mr Merritt said Mr Schutz had Boydy’s hair all over him, a sign that the dog had provided some body warmth to help his owner combat the low night-time temperatures. ‘Even when we found him, the dog ran straight to his side and cuddled up to him. He didn’t want to leave him even then,’ Mr Merritt said.
Ordeal: The car under which Mr Schutz was trapped for four days
Recovery: His daughter, who declined to give her name, released a statement today saying it was 'amazing' that he was now remaining conscious and lucid in hospital
Mr Schutz told his rescuers that several of his horses had approached during his ordeal and some of his internal injuries may have occurred as they accidentally trampled him while walking around the wreckage.
His daughter, who declined to give her name, released a statement last night saying it was ‘amazing’ that Mr Schutz, who had no food or water with him, had survived his ordeal.
She said she wanted to express her ‘deepest gratitude to neighbours for responding so quickly to her requests to check on his wellbeing after she could not get in contact with him’.
‘She is extremely thankful to her neighbours for locating her father and then staying with him until the emergency and rescue services arrived,’ the statement said.
She paid tribute to the emergency services and the ‘fantastic’ staff at John Hunter Hospital in the town of Newcastle, 100 miles north of Sydney, where Mr Schutz is recovering from his ordeal.
Although doctors described his condition last night as still being ‘serious’, his daughter added: ‘He is in very good care and is conscious and lucid at the moment, which is amazing given what he has been through.’