Dog feared lost at sea turns up on island 5 weeks later

More than a month after she fell off a fishing boat into the Pacific Ocean, Luna, a 1-year-old German Shepherd, trotted up to Navy staff members on an island 80 miles off the coast of San Diego.

Luna's owner, Nick Hayworth, reported her missing on Feb. 10, telling officials at the Navy's base in Coronado that she fell into the water about two miles off of San Clemente Island. "He told us Luna was a very powerful swimmer and that he was 90 percent sure she'd head for shore," naval base public affairs officer Sandy DeMunnik told ABC News. "So our staff searched the island, but with no luck. He stayed in the area for two more days to look for her, and after a week, we considered her lost at sea and presumed dead."

On Tuesday, Navy staff were shocked when they arrived at work on the island and "saw Luna just sitting on the side of the road wagging her tail," DeMunnik said. "Keep in mind, there are no domesticated animals on the island, so it was a stunning sight." Luna survived severe storms brought by El Niño, and likely ate a diet of mice. A wildlife biologist at the San Diego Zoo checked Luna out and said she's completely healthy, although a bit undernourished. She'll soon be reunited with Hayworth, who got the phone call that Luna was alive and well while on a boat in the middle of a lake "with horrible reception," DeMunnik said. "He had to do all sorts of acrobatics to get signal, but he was ecstatic — jumping up and down."

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