One of the surviving dogs from the plane crash that killed canine rescue pilot Seuk Kim was adopted Saturday.
Kim, who left his career as a high-powered advertising executive and began flying abandoned dogs to shelters where they could be adopted, died on Nov. 24 after his single-engine plane went down in the Catskill Mountains.
Kim was flying with four dogs from Virginia. He dropped off one in Maryland and then began flying to Albany International Airport, where he was to leave the remaining dogs with the Animal Shelter of Schoharie Valley. His plane crashed in the town of Windham after dark. Kim descended to avoid “moderate to heavy turbulence” before crashing into the side of a mountain.
One of the dogs, Lisa, was killed in the crash, but two survived: Pluto, a 1-and-a-half-year-old Yorkie/terrier mix who was rescued by first responders the next day, and Whiskey, a 4-month-old Labrador mix who was found with two broken legs.
After the crash, hundreds of applications from all over the country poured in, some from the South where the dogs were originally from, shelter Executive Director Maggie Jackman Pryor said. The shelter and its board spent entire days reviewing them. Pluto was adopted last month, and now Whiskey has found his forever home. His adoption was finalized when Cyndy Ross, who had been fostering him, signed paperwork at the Howes Cave shelter.
Whiskey was rushed to a veterinary hospital after the crash for reconstructive surgery on his legs. Ross, 67, a former operating room nurse, had been working there for a couple of years since retiring, though passing through the emergency room and seeing injured animals was never easy, she said.
“I just happened to walk through there that night, and he was on the treatment table,” Ross said.
Whiskey wriggled around on the table as an ultrasound was performed, an enormous cone around his neck. Ross was absolutely in love.
The multi-hour surgeries were successful, and Whiskey has since undergone an additional surgery to remove the pins in his legs that helped stabilize his injuries, according to the shelter. He has also been undergoing extensive sedated physical therapy to help him increase mobility and restore muscle strength in his legs.
Whiskey had to be kept immobile while his legs healed. Eventually she had to help him move his back legs as he learned to walk with the splints. Now about two weeks free of the splints, he still has a scar on each leg.
“Thank God, he’s still little,” she said. “Because he had to be carried.”
At 6 months old, Whiskey still enjoys being scooped up by Ross. But he was on his feet and full of energy Saturday in Howes Cave. He darted back and forth with Pluto, now known as Jack, who’d been brought over by owners Rachel and Stephen Clemens of Averill Park.
Stephen Clemens said he saw the plane crash on the news one morning. It was a long shot, but he and Rachel decided to take a chance and apply. Jack, named for a late relative, was adopted Dec. 11.
Seuk worked with Pilots N’ Paws, a network of volunteers who took dogs and cats who were abandoned or were in kill shelters to no-kill shelters across the country. He rescued hundreds of pets since 2021.
Photo: Sergio Mendoza Hochmann / Moment / Getty Images