A stray dog has completed a remarkable 1700km journey across China after joining a cycle race from Sichuan province to Tibet.
The dog, nicknamed “Xiaosa”, joined the cyclists after one of them gave him food.
It ran with them for 24 days, covering up to 60km a day, and climbing 12 mountains.
The little white stray showed incredible determination to run for 24 days and complete a 1,100-mile bike race across China.
Her journey started when one of the cyclists, Zhang Heng, 22, gave her food on highway G318 in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. After that, she refused to stop following.
Since then she’s become a celebrity in her homeland and a micro blog recording her life online has attracted more than 37,000 followers in two weeks.
On Thursday night more than 4,000 comments on a micro blog online were left congratulating her after a picture was posted of Xiao Sa in the arms of her new friend in front of the Llasa’s Potala Palace.
Mr Heng, a student in Wuhan, Hubei province, had decided to cycle to Llasa as a graduation trip with friends when he met a lonely dog.
‘She was lying, tired, on the street around Yajiang, Sichuan province,’ he told China Daily. ‘So we fed her, and then she followed our team.
They thought she was following for fun, but found she insisted on sticking around them day and night.
‘We felt she might want to come along with us, so we decided to bring her along to the end.’
A week later, Zhang and his friends opened the micro blog account for her.
‘We thought the dog was encouraging us, and wanted others to know its story,’ he told China Daily.
They created the name Xiao Sa by combining xiao meaning ‘little’ with the last syllable of Lhasa.
During their journey, Xiao Sa, Zhang and his team covered 1,138 miles and climbed 10 mountains higher than 4,000m.
Then word began to spread of the cyclist and the homeless dog.
Wang Penghao, 24, from Jiuzhaigou, Sichuan province, said: ‘I’ve heard about her from other friends who rode to Lhasa on the road before I met her.
‘They told me to take care of her if I saw her, and give her some food and water like they did.
‘She followed us for three days, running behind our team but sometimes leading us. She’s very smart and knows the route, because she never got lost even when we passed through mountains.’
After following Wang, the dog lagged behind and met another cyclist, Wang Zi, on May 4.
‘She may be the first dog who ran to Lhasa along this route,’ said Wang Zi, who was followed by the dog one day.
‘I have a special feeling about her, especially when I found she was never lost, waited for us at milestones on the road, and ran all the time, making me feel that she never feels tired,’ he said.
Wang Zi will continue to the foot of Qomolangma, known as Mount Everest in the West, after he arrives in Lhasa.
‘If possible, I would like to take the dog with me, taking her to see a more splendid scene.’
Zhang Heng, who accompanied Xiao Sa for 20 days, called her ‘a buddy and a friend’.
‘I would like to take the dog home and take care of her. She has been a stray on the road for a long time. She needs a home.’
Cyclist Xiao Yong started a blog about Xiaosa’s adventures, which had attracted around 40,000 fans by the end of the race. Yong now hopes to adopt Xiaosa.