Going to the Dogs

On Sunday morning at the campsite lake we noticed a group of cars, vans, people in wetsuits and dogs. The dogs were having a grand time jumping in the water and retrieving things. It soon became clear that this was not a dog fun day and these were no ordinary dogs, but Newfoundlands having a rescue training session. These are big, powerful dogs as you can see in this photo, this one having just emerged from the lake dripping wet.

The dogs all wore a collar with a handle so that non-swimmers would have something to hold on to while being saved. How practical! This handle can be clearly seen on the swimming dog below. I suppose you could also use it to rescue the dog.

Even more impressive was the boat rescue. A Newfoundland swam out to an inflatable 30 yards off shore, grabbed the rope hanging off the side of the boat in its mouth and towed the boat to the bank with two men in wetsuits aboard. Perhaps it’s all part of a big eco-plan to save fuel. Container ships entering Livorno port will be piloted in by 2,000 Newfoundland tow-dogs.