Missouri Spelunkers Rescue Dog Missing for Months Deep Inside Cave: 'She Was Happy to Be Out'

A team of spelunkers in Missouri rescued a missing dog during a routine caving project over the weekend.

The group discovered the pup named Abby deep inside the Tom Moore Cave system in Perry County on Saturday, Fox 2 reported.

Recalling the unexpected rescue on Facebook, team member Rick Haley wrote that he and another spelunker worked together to safely bring the animal back to the surface.

"The dog was not in good shape," Haley said of what they first found.

In order to save the dog, and not risk the rescue team, Abby was placed in a duffel bag with her head sticking out.

"We moved her 500 feet to a very tight, awkward, vertical climb, handing her hand to hand upward to the surface," Haley recalled. "She was totally cooperative."

By the time they reached the light, Haley said "She was happy to be out!"

Following the rescue, the spelunkers contacted Biehle Assistant Fire Chief Robert Cahoon who helped them go door-to-door in the area to find Abby's owner, Fox 2 reported.

Once the team reconnected the dog with her family, the owner said the pet had been missing since June 9. It remains unclear when and how Abby got into the cave in the first place

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KSL reported that the animal was found in the Berome Moore Cave, which is over 21 miles long and is the second-longest in the Show Me State.

Though the cave has running water and a presence of fish and crustaceans, Abby was found in a location with total darkness which would have made it difficult for her to find any sort of food or water, according to Fox 2, adding to the mystery of how she survived.