A lifeboat crew rushed to save a pet rottweiler trapped on rocks after it panicked and became separated from its owners.
Rescuers from Lizard RNLI Lifeboat Station in Cornwall mounted a rescue operation for Otis the dog at Kynance Cove.
The family, including three children and the dog, became cut off during high tide.
The owner and staff from a nearby café used paddleboards to carry the people to safety, the lifeboat crew said, but the dog had scrambled onto the cliff of Asparagus Island.
“Though the sea conditions had worsened with the incoming rough tide, our smaller y-boat was deployed from the lifeboat with two crew members on board,” the volunteers wrote on social media.
One crew member jumped onto the rocks to reassure the dog while the y-boat returned to the lifeboat for another crew member and a heaving line.
The rescuers secured the line to the dog said they had no other option but for the crew member and dog to swim to the y-boat.
“However, due to the size of Otis, recovering him to the y-boat was almost impossible so he was held against the boat until they were able to make their way back to the awaiting crew on board RNLB Rose. Otis was then recovered, along with the y-boat on to the lifeboat ready for the journey back to the lifeboat station.”
The volunteers kept the dog warm until reuniting it with its owners.
“Due to the amount of water Otis had potentially ingested he was also going to pay a quick visit to the vets,” the RNLI said.
