Sometimes you’ve just really gotta admire a dog’s commitment to a good chase. I’ve seen a dog collide with his own reflection to defend his turf, but never before have I seen a chase end quite like this.
On a Saturday morning, October 5th, an eager pup on a walk with his person in Wilton, Connecticut started chasing a chipmunk. He ended up with his head stuck in a tree.
I’ve heard of firefighters rescuing cats stuck on top of trees (though I’ve never actually seen it happen,) but I had no idea they also rescue dogs stuck under trees.
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Emergency services in Wilton received a call at 11:51 a.m. informing them a dog had gotten its head stuck in the stump of a dead tree and needed help getting out.
Apparently, the man walking the stuck pup already attempted unsuccessfully to pull him out. Other passersby also tried to free the dog, including an off-duty Stamford fire lieutenant. It was a real sword-in-the-stone situation as no one could get the dog’s head out from under the tree.
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The firefighters eventually arrived at a precarious scene.
The dead tree the dog was stuck underneath had a large “widow maker” branch above it, named for the likelihood of a falling branch being fatal. The branch hung very loosely, about 25 feet above the dog.
That meant the challenge for the firefighters was trying to move the tree as little as possible while they rescued him. They feared that that due to its age, it was unstable and could collapse on the dog, Wilton Fire Lieutenant Tom Cassin told The Wilton Bulletin.
“We were worried that section of broken tree could fall on the rescuers, injuring them or the dog. The tree was rotted from top to bottom so you didn’t know what it was going to do.”
Rescuers used a battery-operated “spreader” and “cutter” hydraulic tools to chip away at the tree roots surrounding the dog’s head.
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“One advantage of the battery-operated tools is they are quiet and we didn’t want to create any loud noises to panic the dog.”
The poor little guy stood there with his rump in the air as he waited for the tree to be cut open. Even if he was scared, he couldn’t exactly go anywhere.
Once the root had been cleared, the rescuers worked together to free the dog. Cassin reached into the tree stump to push down the dog’s head while another firefighter lifted him up. At the same time, a police officer pulled on the dog’s leash. The combined efforts freed the dog’s head from the stump.
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It’s okay to celebrate. The little guy was just fine!
“The dog was uninjured and was smiling.”
Let’s just hope this pup’s next chipmunk chase doesn’t lead him to any tree stumps.
H/T: The Wilton Bulletin
FEATURED IMAGE: Tom Cassin via Facebook
Toledo, United States.
