Missing firefighter's dog Duke found; search to be scaled back

FILLMORE, Calif. (KABC) -- The dog of an Arcadia firefighter who has been missing for nine days has been found, while the search begins to wind down on Sunday, a Ventura County sheriff's official said.

The dog, named Duke, is exhausted but in good shape, according to Geoff Dean with the Ventura County Sheriff's Department. Authorities said it was unlikely he would be used to track his owner.

There is still no sign of Mike Herdman, who went missing June 13 during a camping trip in the Los Padres National Forest. About 375 people have spent about 5,250 hours scouring more than 50 square miles of rugged terrain.

Herdman chased after Duke when the dog ran off in the darkness. Herdman was barefoot, wearing only a T-shirt and shorts. It took his camping partner two days to find cellphone service and call for help.

The search effort will be scaled back to a skeleton crew. Monday's search will likely have only a handful of people, Dean said.

So far, about five search team members have been injured, including one with a rattlesnake bite, two with leg injuries and two cases of heat exhaustion.

Herdman, 36, is from Dana Point. He is an avid outdoorsman and trained paramedic. A candlelight vigil in honor of Herdman was held Sunday at an Arcadia fire station.

ABC News contributed to this report.