Chad McManus didn’t expect to spend his Sunday stuck at the bottom of a ravine, but at the same time, he was grateful he did.
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The 63-year-old from Conroe, Texas, had been searching for his golden retriever named Sandi, who went missing two days before. At long last, he found her! The only problem was he couldn’t get her out on his own.
When Sandi didn’t come home that Friday, Chad was worried. The 15-year-old pup is deaf and has hip issues. Worse, their family lives next to a ravine that has steadily eroded since Chad first bought the property in 2012. He knew it wouldn’t be that hard for the dog to slip through the fence and tumble down the slope.
While his neighbors organized a search party on Sunday, Chad decided to check the ravine himself… and soon joined Sandi at the bottom.
While he wasn’t injured, Sandi was, and she was seriously dehydrated. So Chad called his wife, who immediately dialed 911. Thankfully, the Needham Fire Department arrived shortly afterward and called in the Woodlands Fire Department Technical Rescue Team.
One of the firefighters rappelled down before taking Sandi to safety first at Chad’s insistence. After placing a vest on the dog, he carefully brought her back up to the top, where she was taken to an emergency vet.
Chad came up next on a rescue line and is happy to report that he and Sandi are both OK! Of course, Chad knows how lucky they were to have the firefighters respond so quickly.
“The dog has a broken leg but will be fine,” he wrote on Needham Fire’s Facebook page. “I want to thank the entire department for the awesome job they did today.”
We’re so happy to hear these two are safe and sound! Thank you to all the firefighters who rushed in to save them. We appreciate everything you do to protect your community!
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