Florida Dog Stuck in Pond Rescued After Child Walking to School Spots the Distressed Pet

The child was on their way to school Monday morning when they saw a dog “trapped on some floating vegetation” in the mud and called Hillsborough County Animal Control for help rescuing the pet, according to Jan. 30 Facebook post from Hillsborough County Fire Rescue, Florida.

The dog was in the shallow end of a pond at Lucy Dell Park in Tampa when animal control arrived at the scene Monday morning. After assessing the situation, animal control officials realized they couldn’t safely access the dog themselves, so they called in the Hillsborough County Fire Rescue. A fire crew came to the scene shortly after the call and went to work helping animal control officers free the pup from the sludgy pond.

The crew set up a rope system to lower the pup’s rescuer, Gilbert “Gil” Navas, over the boardwalk by where the dog was standing. Once Gil “made his way to the stranded dog,” he lassoed the animal with “equipment provided by Animal Control,” according to the fire rescue’s Facebook post.

Gil then waded through the water, thick mud, and litter of the pond while carrying the dog until he reached the boardwalk where animal control officers awaited. The officers lifted the dog onto the boardwalk with a net while Gil received assistance back onto land from the fire crew.

After a quick photoshoot with their rescuers, the uninjured dog received a veterinary exam and was scanned for a microchip. The dog did not have a microchip, which often holds crucial contact information for a pet’s owners that can help rescuers reunite animals with their families.

According to Hillsborough County Fire Rescue, Florida, the dog is now under the care of the Pet Resource Center. The shelter will wait to see if an owner comes forward to reclaim the dog. If no one claims the pet, the pup will be put up for adoption with the name Gil — a tribute to the man who pulled him from the muck.

“If his owner does not come forward soon, they will adopt him out after neutering, microchipping, and registering him with the name “Gil” after his rescuer,” Hillsborough County Fire Rescue wrote in its post about the rescue.