Dog rescued by lifeboat crew after being swept out to sea

A dog who loves to swim was saved by a lifeboat crew off the Merseyside coast after being swept out to sea. Ten-year-old Golden Retriever Martha was with her owner on Leasowe shore on Wednesday when they were caught out by the strength of the outgoing tide.



New Brighton RNLI’s Charles Dibdin lifeboat was launched together with an RNLI Beach Lifeguard on a jetski after a call from the Coastguard reporting a dog and person in the water. Martha was found cold and shivering half a mile from the shore after a rescue attempt by her owner.


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Senior helmsman Dave Lowe said: “When both crafts reached the scene and after a search we eventually found the dog about half a mile from shore being rapidly swept out to sea on the outgoing tide. Although sea conditions were calm it was still very difficult to spot the dog. When we eventually found her we just managed to get hold of her collar then got her onto the lifeboat.



“Although she had been swimming well she was cold and shivering, we wrapped her up in survival bag and calmed her down then took her to the lifeboat station where we were met by her very relieved owner.” He added: “We understand how much owners care for their pets however we cannot stress highly enough that if an animal does end up in the sea that the owner should not go in after them. In many cases the animal manages to get back on the shore and the human doesn’t.”