I had the most terrifying experience of my life yesterday. It was a nice day yesterday in Virginia so I decided to take Darwin (my beagle) to the dog park. I let him run inside the fenced in area for about 20 minutes, and since I saw so many other owners doing it, I decided to let Darwin off-leash on the beautiful nature trails. I'd done this before, and since I was carrying a baggie of treats in my purse I thought it would be good practice for him in case he ever got off-leash on accident. He would know to come to me when I called.
He did great on the trails! He would run ahead of me for a bit sniffing, and when I'd call his name, he'd trot back to me, and I'd make him sit and then give him a treat.
About 30 minutes into our walk we came across 2 golden retrievers and their owners. Darwin bounced ahead with the dogs, following them and being very well behaved.
Well, I guess the goldies knew the trails really well because they veered right at one point, and Darwin didn't--since it was really muddy (we had ice last week + warm weather=slippery slippery mud), he couldn't stop himself and FELL 5 FT INTO THE WATER.
I heard him yelp, and went running after him. I couldn't see him at first, there were tons of branches in the way, but when I could finally look down, my poor dog looked terrified. He was trying to grip on to the side, but the mud wouldn't let him pull himself up, and the water was deeper than he was tall.
I honestly thought he was going to drown. The look on his face was so horrible. So I did the only thing I could---I jumped in after him. I threw my purse to one of the dog owners before I jumped in, and made the plunge. It was soooo cold. It was the worst feeling of my life. I've never been so scared.
After I got him in my arms (the water was up to my chest), the guy holding my bag tried to pull Darwin up, and he fell in (with my purse). It took two other men to pull all three of us out of the water.
All of my stuff that was in the bag is destroyed-including a new lomography camera (i'm so sad I lost a roll of film with some awesome pictures on it) & the new iphone (I thought I was being a good girl, not walking the nature trails without a way to reach someone if I got in trouble) I just bought on Friday, but it really is a small price to pay. I'm so happy that Darwin and I made it out of the whole situation alive. I have a cracked rib, and my arms are really painful-they feel like I've been working out for 15 hours straight
I just wanted to tell you guys what happened so that people would remember to be really careful on trails they don't know. I'm shocked at how fast I found myself in a really dangerous situation.
He did great on the trails! He would run ahead of me for a bit sniffing, and when I'd call his name, he'd trot back to me, and I'd make him sit and then give him a treat.
About 30 minutes into our walk we came across 2 golden retrievers and their owners. Darwin bounced ahead with the dogs, following them and being very well behaved.
Well, I guess the goldies knew the trails really well because they veered right at one point, and Darwin didn't--since it was really muddy (we had ice last week + warm weather=slippery slippery mud), he couldn't stop himself and FELL 5 FT INTO THE WATER.
I heard him yelp, and went running after him. I couldn't see him at first, there were tons of branches in the way, but when I could finally look down, my poor dog looked terrified. He was trying to grip on to the side, but the mud wouldn't let him pull himself up, and the water was deeper than he was tall.
I honestly thought he was going to drown. The look on his face was so horrible. So I did the only thing I could---I jumped in after him. I threw my purse to one of the dog owners before I jumped in, and made the plunge. It was soooo cold. It was the worst feeling of my life. I've never been so scared.
After I got him in my arms (the water was up to my chest), the guy holding my bag tried to pull Darwin up, and he fell in (with my purse). It took two other men to pull all three of us out of the water.
All of my stuff that was in the bag is destroyed-including a new lomography camera (i'm so sad I lost a roll of film with some awesome pictures on it) & the new iphone (I thought I was being a good girl, not walking the nature trails without a way to reach someone if I got in trouble) I just bought on Friday, but it really is a small price to pay. I'm so happy that Darwin and I made it out of the whole situation alive. I have a cracked rib, and my arms are really painful-they feel like I've been working out for 15 hours straight
I just wanted to tell you guys what happened so that people would remember to be really careful on trails they don't know. I'm shocked at how fast I found myself in a really dangerous situation.
ush:, but Im happy to hear both you and Darwin are (or WILL be) OK. 
