Dog Falls Into River, Manatee Swims With It Until Rescue Arrives
on Jun 12, 2020
Early in the morning, a Tampa, Florida resident heard the sound of something struggling in the river behind her house, so she went outside to investigate. As she looked down into the river she noticed a pit bull pup clinging onto the edge of the sea wall.
In an attempt to save his life, the woman called the Tampa Police who radioed Officer Lopez to respond to the situation. The officer drove out to the location thinking he was going into a normal water rescue mission but there was something special with this rescue.
When he got there, the officer was shocked to see the dog was not alone, he was in the water with a large manatee. The pup looked tired and terrified. The manatee was just floating in the water near the dog as if it was just watching him.
“They’re curious by nature so I’m sure the sound of the dog splashing in the water trying to get up the sea wall got his attention and he came over to investigate, maybe calm the dog and tell him it was going to be alright,” Officer Lopez told iHeart Dogs.
The officer lowered a latter down to the water and climbed down to the dog. With a calming voice and some milkbone treats he grabbed the dog and pulled him to safety. Neighbors down the street heard the commotion and came running to the scene.
They said they were the owner of the dog and he went missing the night before after breaking through the fence in their backyard. They had been frantically searching for him ever since. The manatee ended up swimming off after the rescue but iHeart Dogs says the manatee was ensuring the dog that he had a helpful guardian.
