Thankyou. I appreciate that.

I think some people on this thread need to get out for a ride.
They seem a little up tight and in need of a bit of an outlet of all their pent up feelings.
The OP saved something he loves.
Seems like he did the right thing to me.

Stu – I couldn’t agree more mate! I’ve not been near my bike for a month due to my spazzy shoulder. Hence me being an even more insufferable dick than usual!

Sorry to everyone I’ve called stupid!

Binners.
A couple of wet and cold nightrides and a few beers in the pub after will see you back to full mental wellbeing. 🙂

my apologies to you and mrs mattbee,it wasn’t meant to be so offensive.

Thankyou. I appreciate that.

Sorry to everyone I’ve called stupid!

😯 I’ve woke up in some STW alternate reality..

Khani,I don’t mind offending people,but I don’t like hurting them.

You know AA on rerereading your post it is even more worrying,are you saying that human beings are genetically programmed to respond to manipulation by dogs?

nope, keep trying

To the OP: Yes I would have done the same, well done for saving your furry friend. And yes, it was a stupid thing to do 🙂

Dogs are ace. Whether they are intelligent or not intelligent is beside the point. You love them, they love you.

Dogs and bikes. Bikes and dogs. The two best things that ever happened to me 🙂

Oh AA you’re so mysterious,why don’t you just say what you mean?

My pet gibbon – Nigel – has just looked up contemptuously from the Times crossword and remarked that dogs are even more stupid than squirrels! And you should hear the jokes he tells about squirrels

Oh AA you’re so mysterious,why don’t you just say what you mean?

I did.

just view dogs as a noisy, filthy, smelly, stupid and potentially explosively violent, crap-generating nuisance.

To be fair, that description applies to lots of people as well.

Must be me then,not owning a dog has obviously made me moronic.

just view dogs as a noisy, filthy, smelly, stupid and potentially explosively violent, crap-generating nuisance.

To be fair, that description applies to lots of people as well.

Football fans spring to mind.
Even my dog thinks they’re stupid…

I’m quite surprised by some of the responses here – I think mainly the idea that people believe they’re somehow correct in the arrogant opinion that we’re somehow more important than any other creature on the planet.

Of course, our survival often depends on prioritising the importance of our own being, that of our family, and even of our species. But to state, like it is an absolute fact of the universe, that human beings are the most important thing on this planet, is **** stupid. We’re only important to ourselves.

OP, you obviously feel a strong bond with your dog, and you did what you felt you had to do at the time. Well done. That compassion is one of the greatest features of the human race. It just doesn’t seem very prevalent on STW.

I think this thread shows that people have too much time off work at this time of year.

Hindsight = not such a sensible thing to do
In the moment = instinct

Don’t over analyse it. All is well.

Well said butcher,hope I’m never in that situation with my dog or any member of my family,well done xterramac.

This would all be solved by making life jackets compulsory for dogs.
Along with insurance and road tax.

That dog hasn’t got a helmet on.

OP, you obviously feel a strong bond with your dog, and you did what you felt you had to do at the time. Well done. That compassion is one of the greatest features of the human race. It just doesn’t seem very prevalent on STW.

Except that when considered rationally it’s actually displaying a lack of compassion for your loved ones and for those who might end up trying to rescue you.

It’s understandable in the heat of the moment but it’s a completely irrational thing to do.

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/uk-weather-man-dies-after-2958120
http://www.lep.co.uk/news/man-dies-trying-to-rescue-dog-from-ambleside-river-1-6334495
http://www.bostonglobe.com/news/nation/2012/11/27/california-boy-parents-swept-out-sea-dog-rescue-attempt/UNMkqrHIwCOYgakfxn33dN/story.html

The search was called off Monday for a teenager whose parents were killed after they plunged into the cold, powerful surf in Northern California in a nightmarish chain of events that started when their son tried to save the family dog from drowning. Eureka residents Mary Elena Scott, 57, and Howard Gregory Kuljian, 54, both drowned Saturday, said Ariel Gruenthal, a deputy coroner in Humboldt County. The boy, Gregory James Kuljian, has not been found and is presumed dead.

Of course, our survival often depends on prioritising the importance of our own being, that of our family, and even of our species. But to state, like it is an absolute fact of the universe, that human beings are the most important thing on this planet, is **** stupid. We’re only important to ourselves.

I think most posters were speaking for themselves and not claiming they were the most important thing in the universe as if it was actually a true fact universally accepted.

That compassion is one of the greatest features of the human race. It just doesn’t seem very prevalent on STW.

You have no more compassion for those you disagree with who you call **** stupid and arrogant.
If you want to risk death for a dog and possible leave your kids and spouse behind whilst calling everyone else who does not do this selfish then that is your choice.
I dont think it is what I would choose but as grum notes i doubt I would be doing a rational risk assesment/cost benefit analysis

I’m with Grum and binners, and everyone else on this thread who has mentioned the dog not being on a lead.

Someone up there ^ mentioned this: we only hear about the dog rescues that go wrong. This is true. We don’t hear about the dog rescues that go right. So the conclusion is that all dog rescues are dangerous.

Imagine you’re a non-cyclist: the media carry stories of the cyclists killed in London. There are no stories of the thousands upon thousands of journeys made every day with no problems at all. One might conclude that riding a bike means you will certainly die under a lorry.

Therefore, perhaps the conclusion is that, while there is risk in rescuing one’s dog, one will not necessarily die – and neither will anyone else.

For the record, my dogs are always on leads unless I know for absolute certain that there are no hazards.

“Dive” into a river in spate to save a dog? No chance. Wade in after assessing the flow and the run out area if I got washed of my feet? Possibly, depending on the flow and depth.

Years ago I watched a person drown 50 yards out into a fast flowing shoulder deep river as I assessed there was no way I would get near him in the prevailing conditions. Not jumping in wasn’t an easy thing to do but it was the correct thing. It was later established that the only reason he wasn’t getting washed rapidly downstream was because of the heavy steel drain cover he had tied to his ankles before jumping off the bridge.

A friend of my dads survived years of summer and winter climbing at a high level then drowned in a river crossing.

Was the OP correct to save his dog? I wasn’t there so I don’t know, it depends on the water conditions and his swimming ability.

Have we done cats, would you save a cat?

^nahh 😛

Have we done cats, would you save a cat?

No way! If I’ve just put six kittens and a brick in a pillow case and dropped them off the canal bridge then I’m hardly going to jump in and fish then out again. (Even if the canal water is static and only four feet deep)

It’s difficult to see how you’d end up in a river while eating, sleeping of terrorising small rodents, so I doubt you’d ever need to rescue a cat.

I have never found a walk where I can be certain there are no hazards. But I would rather not have a dog at all than restrict them to exercising only on a lead. How selfish would that be?

You would just do it where the hazards are, like most dog owners do.

Have we done cats, would you save a cat?
People who would jump into a river to save a cat are dead inside.

by the way, this just popped up on my twitter feed.

You would just do it where the hazards are, like most dog owners do.

and most cyclists jump red lights. 🙄

molgrips – Member
You would just do it where the hazards are, like most dog owners do.

True. But there are always unexpected hazards. The issue is how best to respond. And the advice from most emergency services would always be to avoid putting yourself at risk. As a lifeguard you are trained that the last measure is to enter the water whether for a human or an animal. And even in the water, you don’t put yourself at risk.

I would have gone in for the mutt. A few years ago in Wales we saw a dog run over a cliff and disappear although we could hear yelping. The owner was distraught and the only help we could offer was to call mountain rescue. They advised they wouldn’t come out for a dog which is fair enough. I asked the guy on the phone would he leave his or attempt to climb down. We met them walking up with the absaling gear so they only had the dog to rescue not a person. The guy later tracked us down through Mountain Rescue to thank us. Mutt and man safe. Hurray for daft dogs and Mountain Rescue!

Such sad people.

Well done OP, but think next time.

OP here, thanks for all the comments, sorry I’ve not put any pics of “solo” up, not that computer savvy. But for the record he is a collie.
A couple of things worth mentioning, yes I am a very strong swimmer(as that was asked)and secondly, hindsight is awesome!! I was deffo pretty stupid to go in right away, but like I said, I love that dog, he is my best pal. Id have gone in to save your dog too or your kid, cat, hamster, even you “binners” at the time, however if anything like that was to happen again I would certainly have a think first, a lot of you guys/gals are right, it could have gone to shite.

Cheers Macs

Solo?

I’d thank you for going in after my kid, but I’d hold you back from going in after my dog. Unless it was wading i to shallows or something.

OP, that was a totally stupid thing to do.

I would have done exactly the same!