It was a beautiful October morning when Madi McNaughton took her 150-pound dog, Rupert, to the beach to play fetch. The two were splashing around in Newport Beach when a surge came and pulled Rupert into a floodgate. Such an innocent trip to the beach turned into one of the most tragic events of their lives. Unfortunately, Rupert was sucked into the Santa Ana river drain and did not survive.
This brings a larger warning to the public. Rupert was a 150-pound dog and McNaughton suffered cuts and scrapes trying unsuccessfully to save him. McNaughton warns that this could not only happen to other pets, but to people. She told CBS LA, “Just minutes before I got here with my dogs to throw their ball, there was a dad and his two kids playing in this exact water that got him swept into that water,” she said. “That could’ve been those kids. He was way bigger than those kids were.”
Local dog owners are pushing the county to place warning signs and cover the opening of the drain that pulled Rupert to his death. These requests certainly aren’t unreasonable, especially considering the danger to both dogs and humans. Unfortunately, none of this will bring Rupert back and we want to express our deepest condolences to Madi McNaughton and her family. This is a loss no one should ever have to face.
