If Sophie Tucker was a human, she would have been a serious contender in the hit Television series, 'Survivor'. However, Sophie is an Australian cattle dog and, while she may not win the same accolades , in our minds she is definitely a winner - for surviving on a largely uninhabited island for FOUR months!

The whole saga started in November of 2008. Jan and Dave Griffith were out sailing with Sophie, when she suddenly fell off the boat in the rough, choppy waters off the coastal town of Mackay, Queensland. After searching frantically for over an hour, the Griffiths thought for sure that Sophie had drowned and returned home.

But Sophie was tougher and smarter than anyone realized. The hardy dog kept swimming in the rough waters, until she reached the shores of St Bees Island, a small volcanic spit of land, with rainforests that are populated with koala bears and wild goats.

The few locals who live there were convinced that Sophie was a wild dog, especially after they started to find remains of goats, which she had hunted down for food. They called the rangers who came and swooped up the dog and took her back to the mainland.

However, lucky for Sophie, her owners heard the story and decided to check the rescued dog out - just in case. They looked in the cage and lo and behold! - there stood their beloved salt and pepper haired Sophie, who greeted them quite enthusiastically. All those days in the wild hadn't dimmed her love for her family.

Now that Sophie is back in the comfort of civilization, she has lost her 'killer' instinct and spends the hot days lounging around in the couple's air-conditioned home, waiting for food to be brought to her. After almost losing her, Jan and Dave are only happy to fuss and spoil her as much as they can! Needless to say, Sophie is not planning on taking a sailing trip anytime soon.

Sources: smh.com.au,yatchtpals.com, dailymail.co.uk