A United Parcel Service driver stopped in the middle of his route to save a dog trapped in an icy pond.
Ryan Arens was on his route around Christmas when he heard the dog screaming and yelling in distress, the Great Falls Tribune reported.
"I could see the dog trapped about 10 to 15 feet off of shore, with ice all around it," he told the Tribune.
A man in a rowboat was on the pond, chipping at the ice in an attempt to reach the dog. Arens, who has his own dog and a weakness for animals, ran out to help.
"I stripped to my boxers and got the guy out of the boat. Then I slid the boat out onto the ice, using it to distribute my weight," Arens told the Tribune. "I shimmed out to where the ice was thin."
Then he crashed through the ice and swam to the dog, which had started to go under the water. He grabbed the dog by the collar and slid her across the ice to the shore.
"We took the dog inside the older guy's house and got in the shower together to warm up," he said.
Animal control took the dog, and Arens, who still had 20 packages to deliver, finished his route.
After the incident, Arens found the dog’s owner and incidentally had a package to deliver to him.
He found out her name is Sadie and she is a 2-year-old wirehaired pointing griffon.
"She was freaking out, and when he let her out, she ran to me," Arens told the Tribune. "She must have remembered me. It sure made me feel good."
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