A Jefferson County deputy made his way through a half-frozen pond on Wednesday to save a golden retriever that had fallen through the ice.
On Wednesday, Deputy Billy Brooks secured himself to a rescue rope held by a bystander and walked into the unfrozen water close at the edge of the pond, said sheriff’s spokeswoman Jacki Kelley.
“He walked out until he was waist deep, and then hauled himself onto a shelf of ice, and began walking,” Kelley said.
He walked a short distance before the ice broke and he fell into the water.
He continued to walk, chest deep in the freezing water, breaking the ice in his path until he entered the center of the pond.
He then braced himself atop a large ice patch and reached under the water, to grab the dog’s submerged body.
Brooks thought the female, named Cinnamon, was dead as he carried her body to shore. “He was surprised when he got the dog to shore and saw signs of life. He wrapped her in a blanket and raced her to the local vet clinic,” Kelley said.
The dog was treated at Lone Rock Veterinary Hospital, where those who attended to her said her body temperature was at a critically low level, typically associated with death.
Cinnamon has been reunited with the family that owns her.
Tom McGhee: 303-954-1671, tmcghee@denverpost.com or @dpmcghee
