Australian Family Walking Dog Named Lucky Discovers $24,000 Gold Nugget

An Australian dog named Lucky has lived up to his name. As the Bendigo Advertiser reports, a family from Bendigo in Victoria were walking their pet on May 12 when they literally stumbled upon a hunk of rock resembling gold on the ground. Experts have confirmed that the 20-ounce nugget is indeed gold, and in its intact state it's worth an estimated $24,000.

A father and his two daughters—who wish to remain anonymous—were taking their dog Lucky for a morning walk when one of the girls hit something with her foot. She noticed it wasn't an ordinary rock, and asked her Dad if it might be gold. He suspected it was and took their find to a nearby supermarket to weigh it on the deli scale.

Weighing over a pound, the gold nugget could earn the family a small fortune if they wish to sell it. The father says he does plan to find a buyer eventually; he had been struggling financially, and he told the Bendigo Advertiser the lucky event "couldn't be better timing."

The family has decided to keep the location of the discovery a secret. They plan to go for more walks in the area in hopes of striking gold twice.

[h/t Bendigo Advertiser]