The doggy paddle is the name of one swim stroke that many beginner swimmers use. It is named this because it is the same stroke that dogs use. They are born with this swimming ability and unlike humans don’t need to go for endless classes to learn, they just know how to swim. This means that taking your dog to the local watering area, whether it is an ocean, a pool, or a lake is a great idea. They will have lots of fun and be absolutely exhausted when you take them home, ensuring you get a quiet night. However, you should be careful with a dog’s passion for the water because if you are not careful it can all go wrong.
Luka is a husky that lives with a kind and caring family. They take her for walks, feed her the right food to ensure her coat is nice and shiny and when they go away they even get a dog sitter. Recently they hired a dog sitter but before she turned up Luka had already got in a spot of bother.
Luka lives in a nice neighborhood and one particular neighbor has a big pool. While no one was minding Luka she got the bright idea to go on an adventure and check out the neighbor’s pool. As it would be for most of us, the beautiful water just looked too good to turn down. Luka jumped in and went for a swim. What happened next was incredible.
Luka is a fairly proficient swimmer and usually has no trouble with her doggy paddle. However, when she got tired of swimming and used up all her excited energy, she tried to exit the pool. She couldn’t find a way out. The water level was too low compared to the sides of the pool and she found nothing to climb onto to help her great. Luka’s head started to go under the water.
Luka was drowning and there was no one in the area to help her. Luckily, right at the time when Luka was making a lot of noise and probably choking on water, a delivery man was passing by the house next door. He heard a noise and didn’t fully understand what was going on. It sounded like someone was in trouble though, he knew that.
John Cassabria went into the next door yard and saw the animal struggling. He didn’t have time to think about how strange it was or what it meant, he had to act, and quickly. He ran towards the pool and jumped straight in, with all his clothes on. He grabbed Luka and paddled to the side of the pool and lifted the heavy dog onto the side. Luka was visibly exhausted and full of panic.
While there is a lot a dog can’t understand it was clear that Luka understood how close she came to dying. John felt sorry for the poor animal and was kind enough to stay with Luka until Animal Rescue turned up. It took an hour and a half for the rescue team to arrive and when they did John left and finished his deliveries for the day. The team found Luka’s owner and informed them about what happened. They swore they would do a better job of keeping her away from pools in the future.
The moral of the story is simple. Always keep your dog out of the water when unsupervised and if your delivery driver is late, give him a break, he may just be saving a life. John Cassabria completed all of his deliveries that day but some were an hour or two later than he would have liked.
