Cocker spaniel rescued from frozen Yorkshire lake after escaping from professional dog walker

Show-bred Bruce was being walked by Sharon Skinner, from Wakefield, at a fishing lake off Green Lane in Horbury when he ran off as she was getting the dogs back into her car during the current cold snap.

He ran across the ice before falling into the freezing water. Although he managed to swim to an island, he was then stranded and Ms Skinner considered trying to rescue him herself.

Her eight-month-old puppy River, who is also Bruce’s daughter, alerted her to his distress and she called West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service, who attended within minutes.

She said: “Bruce is usually well-behaved, and loves getting into the car at the end of a walk, so when I turned around in the car park and he was gone I couldn’t believe it. I called out for him but couldn’t hear anything – it was his daughter River that alerted me to something being wrong. She was running towards me and then off towards the lake, wanting me to follow. She was clearly worried and so I got her into the car and then went to investigate.

“Bruce isn’t a fan of water, normally he would just have a paddle, so when I saw him on the island in the middle of the lake, I couldn’t believe my eyes. He was distressed, but there was no way I could get into the water to help him, so I called the fire brigade. I’d seen in the paper and on TV how they have helped save pets, so I knew they were the best people to call.”

Firefighters from Ossett rescued Bruce within half an hour of her call using an inflatable sled.

She added: “The rescue team were amazing. I was in such a panic I wasn’t functioning properly and couldn’t tell them where I was. They found me and were very quick rescuing Bruce. He can be unsure about going to strangers, and he was so worried that he started to get back into the water. However, they grabbed him and gave him a warm cuddle as they brought him back – I think he was just as relieved as me.

“I’ve been a professional dog walker for five years and this is the first big incident I’ve had – and I’ve got a soft spot for Bruce as he’s a very loving dog. I’ve been walking Bruce for his family for a long time now, and his daughter River is my dog.

“A big thank you to the fire crew that saved Bruce. Every dog is special, but River showed just how much she loves her dad when she pointed me in the right direction.”

Station manager Richard Hawley said. “It was positive to hear from her that our warnings about being careful around icy water are having an impact. Dog walkers should always make sure that if their pet gets into trouble, they contact us straight away. If someone had gone into the freezing water to try and rescue him, we could have been dealing with a very different story today.”