PHILLIPS — A dog was rescued from the Sandy River on Wednesday after he swam out to the middle of the river and apparently decided it was too cold to swim back.
A child was walking the dog on the riverbank at about 10:30 a.m., Franklin County Deputy Nate Reid said.
The 60-pound dog swam into the river, climbed onto a piece of ice and wouldn’t swim back. The river was not wide at that point and the water was quite shallow, but the ice was in dead center of the river, Reid said.
A resident of Route 149 heard the child screaming and called for help. At first they thought a person was in the river.
Rescuers approached the river from the opposite side, from Sawyer Street, off Main Street, Reid said.
Members of the Phillips Fire Department provided rope to allow Animal Control Officer Josh Bachelder to wade into the river. Using a pole with a rope that goes around the dog’s neck, Bachelder guided the dog back into the water and onto shore.
Neither the child nor the dog was injured, he said.
abryant@sunjournal.com
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