Australian sailor says emotional goodbye to dog Bella after three months lost at sea

They survived on a diet of raw fish and rainwater

Tim Shaddock, 54, was discovered earlier this week after they went missing after setting sail from Mexico in April.

A storm hit his boat as he was en route to French Polynesia, which caused damage to the vessel's electronics.

This left the Australian sailor and his dog Bella stranded and drifting in the Pacific Ocean. Using the fishing gear on the trawler though, Shaddock was able to survive on fish he caught.

He also sheltered under the boat’s canopy to avoid the heat of the sun and the risk of sunburn.

Bella, a stray dog he picked up in Mexico, had survived alongside him, and Shaddock has now left her in Mexico with a crew member from the rescue boat.

Shaddock explained: "Bella sort of found me in the middle of Mexico. She's Mexican. She's the spirit of the middle of the country and she wouldn't let me go. I tried to find a home for her three times and she just kept following me onto the water. She's a lot braver than I am, that's for sure."

In video footage obtained by Australian news channel 9News earlier this week, he said: “I have been through a very difficult ordeal at sea.

“I’m just needing rest and good food because I have been alone at sea a long time. Otherwise I’m in very good health.”

Ocean survival expert, Professor Mike Tipton, said the 51-year-old had survived through a “combination of luck and skill.”

He added that the Australian sailor's boat being found was a “needle in a haystack” situation, and that having his dog Bella with him throughout the ordeal probably played a big part in Shaddock surviving.

“I think that may have well made the difference,” Tipton said.

“You’re living very much from day-to-day and you have to have a very positive mental attitude in order to get through this kind of ordeal and not give up

“But also, having a plan, rationing yourself in terms of water and food, is really the secret to long survival voyages.

“Just imagine how dark and lonely it would feel out there at night time.”

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