Original Article: https://blog.theanimalrescuesite.greatergood.com/navy-water-polo-coach-saves-dog/

A U.S. Naval Academy water polo coach saved a dog’s life after he became trapped on an icy creek.

It all started on December 23, when Moose the mutt escaped from his sitter’s house in Edgewater, Maryland.

Speaking with ABC 7, the sitter, Nicolina Converso, explained: “I opened the door to pick up a tree on my patio and he just went on out.”

Converso immediately contacted Moose’s owner, U.S. Naval Academy water polo coach Luis Nicolao, and the search for the dog began.

With harsh weather conditions approaching, Nicolao and Converso knew the situation was dire. Converso ended up starting a Facebook group dedicated to finding Moose, Operation Fur Fugitive, where locals could help report sightings of the dog and receive updates.

To make matters worse, Nicolao explained in the Facebook group that Moose “came from a very bad breeding situation” and had only been rescued two weeks prior to escaping. He said, “[Moose] is scared of people” and urged people not to chase the dog if they spotted him.

Unfortunately, not everyone got the memo and several people attempted to catch Moose or chase him, which only frightened the dog further into hiding.

Thankfully, ABC 7 reported that after some days passed, a woman reported a dog on an icy creek.

Moose’s family immediately ran to the scene and that’s when they saw him, out in the icy creek and crying for help.

With little hesitation, Nicolao jumped into the creek and “crashed through the ice” to get his dog to safety.

Nicolao took to the Facebook group after the rescue to share some sweet photos of Moose at home.

Nicolao recalled in the post, “Seeing him in the frozen water was a moment I will never forget. Pure excitement that we found him but so much fear at the same time.”

Thankfully, following the rescue, Moose was rewarded with “a clean bill of health, a bath, lunch” and some much-needed rest.

Source: The Animal Rescue Site Blog