MORRISVILLE, Vt. -
Ben Edwards, like many locals, has been bringing his dogs for years to romp at the Morrisville Rec. fields next to the Lamoille River. But Trapper, a beagle mix, decided to explore new ground Tuesday-- on the far side.
"Overnight it had apparently frozen over, so it looked like it was frozen," Edwards said.
Edwards says he noticed Trapper wasn't at his side and had somehow made it across. That's when Trapper's troubles began.
"I called him and he came, but when he got about 30-40 feet out he sank," Edwards said.
Sensing trouble, Edwards' larger dog, Polo, sprang into action.
"Polo went to try to save Trapper and he went through, so I had two dogs stuck," Edwards said.
Emergency crews from Morrisville and Johnson used ropes and poles to try to fish the floundering dogs out of the water. And with their aid, Trapper eventually got out.
"He hung in there-- held himself up for, like I said, over an hour," Edwards said.
Polo was also able to get his paws onto a rescue flotation device. The drenched dogs returned to their thankful owner.
"I had so many people helping. I'm so grateful to everyone; the Morrisville Police, the Morrisville Fire Department, the Johnson Fire Department. It seemed like everyone helped out," Edwards said.
Trapper and Polo seem no worse for wear-- and like their owner-- should sleep well tonight.
"It's wonderful," Edwards said. "You get so close to your dogs that anything like this is quite traumatic."
