Arthur (dog)

Arthur was an Ecuadorian street dog who attached himself to a Swedish extreme sports team when they were competing in the Adventure Racing World Championship in 2014, was brought to Sweden and has inspired a foundation to help other Ecuadorian street dogs.

In November 2014, Mikael Lindnord was in Ecuador as leader of the four-person Team Peak Performance, competing in the Adventure Racing World Championship in the Amazon rainforest, when he offered a canned meatball to a street dog.[1][2] The dog then followed the team for the rest of the race. He sometimes had to be hauled out of deep mud, and during an ocean kayaking leg he jumped into the water and swam alongside until Lindnord hauled him aboard, after which he delayed the team by jumping back in after fish.[3][4][5][6][7] Lindnord named him Arthur after King Arthur of Britain.[5][8][9]

After the team raised money through a Twitter campaign,[6] received assistance from the Ecuadorian Minister for Social Affairs,[10] and obtained permission from the Swedish Board of Agriculture, Lindnord was able to bring Arthur back to Sweden.[1][4][11] Arthur required veterinary care for wounds that he had apparently had for several months and had to remain in quarantine for 120 days; in March 2015, after dental surgery, a "small operation"[12] and a press conference, he went to live with Lindnord and his family in Örnsköldsvik.[2][13][14][15][16][17][18] According to Lindnord, Arthur was seven years old when brought to Sweden.[10]

In May 2015 Arthur accompanied the team in the Wings For Life World Run in Kalmar.[19][20]

The team started a charity named Arthur's Foundation to help street dogs in Ecuador.[1][2][8][9][19][21] There are plans for a "Community Dog" project to provide food and veterinary care,[22] and Lindnord has co-written a book about Arthur, which was published in 2016.[9]

In late November 2014 Vicente Quiñónez of Quinindé told an Ecuadorian newspaper that Arthur was his dog, Barbuncho,[23][24][25] and by late December others had also claimed to be the dog's owner, but after a petition was started by Ecuadorians asking for his former owners to be punished for causing his wounds, all the claims were dropped. [8]

On 9 December 2020 Lindnord announced on his Instagram account that Arthur had died.[26]

References
  1. Savage, Maddy (November 25, 2014). "'Swedish' street dog becomes global celebrity". The Local. Sweden.
  2. "An Ecuadorian stray dog named Arthur finds his forever home in Sweden". The World. Public Radio International. March 20, 2015.
  3. McCoy, Terrence (November 24, 2014). "The amazing story of a stray dog that followed an extreme adventure team through miles of Amazon jungle". The Washington Post.
  4. Ollerenshaw, Tracy (November 24, 2014). "Stray dog taken to Sweden after epic trek around Ecuador". Newsbeat. BBC.
  5. "A stray dog adopts a team of Swedish trekkers on an endurance race in the Amazon". The World. Public Radio International. November 24, 2014.
  6. Chappell, Bill (November 25, 2014). "Dog Follows Athletes Through Mud And Water, And Melts Hearts". The Two-Way. National Public Radio.
  7. "Arthur, el perro ecuatoriano que conquistó a los aventureros suecos". El Universo (in Spanish). November 18, 2014.
  8. Cameron, Nicola (December 26, 2014). "The UpBeat: A jungle trek, a new friend and a foundation for stray dogs". Ottawa Citizen.
  9. Roden, Lee (May 19, 2016). "How Arthur the jungle dog 'opened doors and minds'". The Local (Interview). Sweden.
  10. Eriksson, Niklas (November 20, 2014). "Arthur har landat på svensk mark". Aftonbladet (in Swedish).
  11. Molloy, Mark (November 25, 2014). "Stray dog starts new life in Sweden after incredible journey from Amazon rainforest". The Daily Telegraph.
  12. Fallenius, Karin; Svanberg, Nina (March 22, 2015). "Äventyrshunden Arthur friskförklarad efter karantän" (in Swedish). Sveriges Television.
  13. Löfgren, Emma (March 19, 2015). "Stray dog Arthur to move in with Swedish family". The Local. Sweden.
  14. Demred, Jon (March 20, 2015). "Här återförenas hunden Arthur och Mikael". Aftonbladet (in Swedish).
  15. Malmgren, Kim (March 20, 2015). "Arthur fri – efter 120 dagars karantän". Expressen (in Swedish).
  16. Säll, Anton (March 20, 2015). "Hunden Arthur återförenas med husse". Dagens Nyheter (in Swedish).
  17. Hellem Aanstad, Kristine (March 22, 2015). "Gatehunden Arthur er endelig hjemme". Verdens Gang (in Norwegian).
  18. Björnlundh, Tove (November 6, 2015). "Djurhälten: 'Det har varit en omtumlande resa': Ett år har gått sedan Mikael Lindnord fick sällskap av gatuhunden Arthur". Aftonbladet (in Swedish).
  19. "Ecuador stray dog Arthur in global charity race". The Local. Sweden. May 4, 2015.
  20. Wallén-Widung, Minna (May 3, 2015). "Gatuhunden Arthur i fokus under nytt lopp". Expressen (in Swedish).
  21. Quayle, Anna (21 April 2017). "Multisporthunden Arthur får eget lopp" (in Swedish). Sveriges Television.
  22. "Hunden Arthur har julafton varje dag". Expressen (in Swedish). TT. December 24, 2015.
  23. Bonilla, Marcel (November 29, 2014). "El dueño del perro Arthur ahora solicita una indemnización". El Comercio (in Spanish). Ecuador.
  24. Joo, Nathalie; Bergsten, Frida (December 7, 2014). "Vändningen: Arthur har redan en husse". Expressen (in Swedish).
  25. "Dog Arthur may have another owner". Radio Sweden - News in English. Sveriges Radio. December 8, 2014.
  26. "Mikael Lindnord Instagram". www.instagram.com. Retrieved 2020-12-09.
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