Hikers Find Skinny Pup Deep In The Forest, Then She Starts Following Them

Summary:

• One man’s kindness saves a starving dog on the Appalachian Trail, sparking a chain of rescue efforts and support.

• Matthew Price finds and carries a starving dog to safety, with help from his wife and a group of volunteers.

• Stitch the dog is now safe and healing thanks to the kindness and quick actions of strangers.

The starving dog was crying silently, appealing to hikers in the wilderness on the Appalachian Trail. Rather, it was a chain of caring, quick-thinking, and small-town righteousness that captured the hearts of Americans.

Key Discovery

One that had gone deep into the Appalachian Trail in Virginia was starving, survived with the aid of a Philadelphia hiker, a call on social media by his wife, and a handful of the rescuers who arrived within minutes.

One Trail. One Broken Dog

Matthew Price was a thru-hiker from Philadelphia, starting his walk on March 2 in Georgia. A hungry, skin-and-bones dog, obviously in need of assistance, he found one Easter weekend, near the Double Spring Shelter, in Virginia.

Skin, Bones, And Hunger

WCYB News says that the small healer was starving to death. Price told about how she passed by hiker to hiker, asking them to give her anything to eat, her ribs protruding, her strength all but drained, her spirit to live still burning.

She Just Walked Up And Quit

The exhausted dog would rest and refuse to be moved when the hikers tried to get her up the path to help her. She was done. She was as far up the mountainous road of Virginia as her human flesh and blood could carry her.

He Took Her In His Stride

Price did not want to abandon her and so created a raincoat-made sling and placed the 25-pound dog on his back and brought it home, covering a distance of three miles, according to WCYB. And so heavy as a hiking pack filled.

Wife To The Rescue -At Home

In the meantime, Matthew was hiking, and his wife Emma Coltoff placed an ad on the Lost and Found Pets of Abingdon, Virginia, Facebook page. In a few minutes, more than eight individuals volunteered to provide a home, transportation, or pay the veterinary bills of the dog.

Stranger Immediately Swept Away

Emma was assigned the dog and liaised with Jason Williams of Abingdon to pick up the dog at McQueen Gap Road. The burly little dog had, marvellous to relate, walked the last four miles herself.

She Jumped In and Never Never Looked Back

Price told WCYB that the dog jumped into the back seat and immediately curled up, looking as happy as he could. Very clear, it was that she was glad not to be on the trail, he said. She felt certain that she was in good hands and was safe at last.

Meet Stitch -She Made It

Stitch, the dog, is healing with Happy Tails Animal Rescue of Washington County, Virginia, as confirmed by WCYB News on April 10, 2026. She is receiving quality veterinary care, feeding, and love.

This Is What Kindness Looks Like

It begins with a one-man hiking group on a mountain trail, a Facebook group, a local volunteer, and a Virginia rescue – the survival of Stitch is testimony to the fact that when people stand up to the task, and help the most vulnerable, something really remarkable always happens.