I was walking the dogs this afternoon without hubby. I decided to walk the dogs down the secluded wooded trail that is by a rapid river so they could play off lead and not have to worry about them starteling other pedestrians. There is a cliff of about 13 or so feet from the trail and the dogs were having a great time. It was chilly out but it was not bad. Maybe 55 degrees, but the water was bitter cold since it's been dropping down to the low to mid 30's during the evenings.
So anyway, we were all enjoying ourselves, when my precious baby Boone wasn't paying attention to where he was going and he took a fall down the cliff into the water, where he went in head first into the water. Once he got his bearings, he attempted his crawl up this cliff, but problem is that it was solid red clay and as slippery as ice. There was absolutely no way he was getting out, and the cliff didn't let up as far as I could see. He was helpless. I was helpless. I didn't have anything but 2 leashes and there was no way i could lift a 70 pound dog up a solid wet clay cliff. I stood at the top crying as he struggled. I realized the severity of this situation. Boone quickly gave up trying and just waited for me to instruct him on what he should do. He knew he wasn't going to get up that cliff by himself.
I am in my 6th month of pregnancy and there was no way in heck I was going to slide down that cliff putting myself and my baby in danger. If I went down that hill I'd have to swim almost a mile to the nearest opening in the terrain in ice cold water with blue jeans and tennis shoes on against the current, as it flowed away from the nearest break in the cliff.
I had my cell phone but on the trail where I happened to be it didn't have reception. I had no idea how I was goign to get my baby out of the water. Boone was starting to whine because he was cold and scared. I just happened to hear someone walking nearby, which is a miracle in itself because in the 100+ times I've walked that perticular trail, I've never once run into a single person. It was a man with his little 2 year old boy walking and the man saw me crying and I ran up to him and asked him to help me get my dog. I told him that Boone wasn't watching where he was going, and being the rambunctious puppy that he is, he lost his footing and slid head first into the lake. He calmed me down and told me that he'd help me.
I then proceeded to tie up Kersey and Boone's leashes to a small tree trunk and I proceeded my slide down the cliff into the ice cold water. I was so scared, shaking, cold, and covered in mud I had no idea what it would feel like when I hit that water. It felt like a thousand needles when my legs went into the water, but I only went up to my waist so it wasn't too deep. It took 20 minutes to get Boone and I out of the river, I was soaked up to my belly and just absolutly caked in red clay, the good samaritan was also covered in clay pulling Boone then me up the cliff.
If he were not there, I would have had to run as quick as I can to get help, or to get reception to where I could call my husband. If he were not there, and not willing to get his clothes covered in red clay which doesn't wash out even with bleach, I don't know what would have happened to my beloved baby boy. This happened at about 2 this afternoon and I am still so shook up about it that I can't seem to shake it.
I would like you all to say a prayer of gratitude for this wonderful man who, without a doubt, saved my dogs life. If Boone tried to swim to the nearest opening in the cliff, he would have gone towards the current, which is the natural way to go, and the cliff gets higher and higher...it might be miles upon miles before he would have been able to get out. It also flows under 2 freeways, one being an interstate.
I never even asked his name. I was adryline rushed, scared, cold. I told him "God bless you, sir" and told him thank you over and over, but I never did get his name. He's a hero, whatever his name was. His little boy was a doll, too. The little boy pet Kersey while the whole ordeal was taking place.
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Huney, Bon & Simba-missed so very much
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