After a cold snap hit Murfreesboro, Tennessee, homeowner Jennie Tatum realized the heater in her backyard pool was broken.
Her family usually keeps their pool open year-round, so they don’t use a cover in the winter months. They called a repair service to have the heater fixed, but in the meantime, a layer of ice formed on top of the water.
Security footage of Jennie’s backyard tells a terrifying story that resulted from the semi-frozen pool. Her two dogs, Sid and Olaf, were running around having a blast when Sid suddenly fell through.
In a video, we see Olaf looking on worriedly as his friend slips beneath the surface of the ice and disappears from sight.
Thankfully, Jennie saw Sid fall from inside the house. She bolts out the backdoor and runs around the snowy deck to the place where he went through, jumping in without a second thought for her own safety.
“It was pure adrenaline. I was not even thinking about being cold,” Jennie said later.
As the seconds tick by, Jennie frantically searches for her dog beneath the water, breaking a path through the 2-inch sheet of ice to see below the surface. When she still can’t find him, she jumps out of the pool for a better look. Finally, she spots him and jumps in for a second time, only to pull the 50-pound animal out of the water and onto the side of the pool.
“All I could think about was I need to get him into the house and to get him warm,” she recalled.
Sid was under the water for more than a minute. His vet, April Smith, said he likely wouldn’t have lasted another second without Jennie’s heroic efforts.
“You notice he just sunk and he didn’t have a chance without her,” the vet explained. “He wouldn’t have a chance.”
Jennie focused on getting her dog warm again while frantically calling his vet’s office for advice. The poor pup required oxygen to be revived, but he made it through!
Sid has made a full recovery, but he definitely has a new respect for the pool. Jennie said he’s been avoiding the area even though the snow has melted and the water is open again.
On the bright side, he’s loving all the attention he’s been getting, and his friend Olaf can’t stop loving on him.
“What an eventful 36 hours!” Jennie wrote on Facebook. “Never would have thought I’d have this guy back in our home after falling in the pool and getting stuck under the ice yesterday. Thankful to April, Cassi, and Kyle for helping me save this guy’s life! He’s one lucky dog (and his brother sure was worried about him).”
Jennie insists she’s not a hero and would have done the same thing to save anyone’s pet. We think she’s being modest – she’s definitely a hero! We’re so glad she and Sid made it out of this harrowing ordeal in one piece.
Watch the video below to see the dramatic rescue, and don’t forget to share this story.
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