(UPI) A dog spotted stranded on a Michigan island by a passing angler was rescued by animal control officers using a trap.

Robert Debolt said he and some friends were participating Sunday in the Freeland Walleye Festival when he spotted a dog wandering on Green Point Island, where the Saginaw River branches into the Tittabawassee and Shiawassee Rivers.

"My buddy was whistling at her and she stayed there and we got closer to shore and she took off running," Debolt told WNEM-TV.

Debolt said he was concerned about the dog's ability to survive on its own on the island, so he alerted Saginaw County Animal Care and Control to the canine's plight.

Animal control officers worked together with the Saginaw County Sheriff's Office to visit the island and set baited traps.

Animal Care and Control said a call came in Wednesday from a resident who reported hearing barking on the island, indicating the dog had been ensnared in a trap.

"We're happy to report that we did take possession of the dog, she's a very good dog looks like she's lived kind of a hard life she's full of scars and marks," Animal Care and Control Director Bonnie Kanicki said.

The dog, now named River, didn't have a collar or a microchip. Kanicki said investigators believe she might have been abandoned on the island, as it would have been difficult for the canine to swim out to the remote location on her own.

Kanicki said investigators are still working to find River's owners, but the canine might soon be put up for adoption. Debolt said River already has a new home waiting for her.

"My buddy Eric that was with us is going to adopt her immediately as soon as she is ready to leave the facility. We're not going to let her go we're going to keep her right in the family," Debolt said.

Copyright 2021 by United Press International