A collie missing in remote alpine terrain on the West Coast has been found alive in what rescuers have described as a remarkable survival story.

Molly disappeared after falling with her owner down a 55 metre bluff near Hokitika. Her owner Jessica was rescued from the remote backcountry near Campbell Bivvy, but Molly was left behind in extremely harsh terrain.

A search effort was launched with the help of public donations, raising more than $11,500 in hours to fund aerial searches and deploy volunteers.

After days of uncertainty, Molly was located during a helicopter search using thermal imaging.

Precision Helicopters’ Matt Newton, who led the rescue, said, “It was a little bit emotional really. We’d been thinking about the dog for the last eight days and had been in there about three times looking for it. It was like trying to find a needle in a haystack.”

He said the thermal imaging was critical.

“It just glowed straight away and we knew it was a target. As soon as we got closer, we could see it was her. She was sitting under a rock.”

Molly was discovered close to where Jessica had been rescued.

“She could have gone back there. There was material left behind with a scent on it. We don’t even know for sure whether the dog went over the waterfall or made her way down later.”

Despite the conditions, Molly was in good shape. “She’d lost a bit of weight, but she was in pretty good condition considering. She must have found something to eat.”

Newton said Molly did not move when approached. “She just sat under the rock and watched us. It wasn’t until she was picked up and brought to the helicopter that we saw her move.”

Once back at base, Molly recovered quickly. “She was fetching tennis balls within five minutes.”

Public donations allowed the search to go ahead, with thousands of dollars raised in a matter of hours. “We were trying to raise about $2500 just to get one search in there, and eight hours later we looked at it and thought, this is going up like a rocket.”

Jessica has since been reunited with Molly. “She was very emotional and so pleased to have her dog back.”

Newton thanked everyone who supported the rescue. “Thanks to everyone for their donations and help. We really appreciate it.”