DryCreek
03-08-2007, 05:38 PM
http://www.timesheraldonline.com/ci_5383883
Wacky chase led by pit bull in Benicia
By MATTHIAS GAFNI/Times-Herald staff writer
Vallejo Times Herald Article Launched:03/08/2007 06:20:07 AM PST BENICIA STATE RECREATION AREA -
This pit bull didn't want to go to the pound. And, to prove it, he spent nearly four hours in a wacky four-mile chase by land, sea and even mud before being rescued by an air boat.
"This is like a superhero dog. He is so strong," said Jennifer Kaiser, Vallejo Sanitation and Flood Control District spokesperson. An air boat from her agency was called into action to rescue the dog, which eventually got caught in some mud after nearly swimming the entire Southampton Bay inlet.
The strange chase began innocently enough Wednesday around 8 a.m. when Darlene Jelonek, a Benicia Police Department animal control officer, responded to a call of a loose pit bull near Taco Bell, on Military West.
The chase was on.
Jelonek said she tailed the dog, who authorities have been unable to identify. The blue-and-white pit bull made his way around west Benicia, jumped onto Interstate 780 for a brief spell, and crossed all four lanes of traffic before heading back down to Taco Bell.
Around 9:15 a.m., the dog, heading west on West K Street, neared the Benicia State Recreation Area, still with Jelonek in hot pursuit. The pit bull suddenly jumped into Southampton Bay and began swimming across the inlet, toward Dillon Point, hundreds of yards away.
"The amazing thing was the dog ran for miles, miles, and miles and then swam across the water," Jelonek said.
"They have a lot of drive," she said of pit bulls. "I was surprised though. I thought he'd turn around when it got too deep, but he just kept going ` and going ` and going."
Unfortunately, it was too shallow. About 50 yards from the opposite shore, the dog got stuck in the mud.
The chase was over, but as the tide began coming back in, Jelonek, and a backup animal control officer, saw that the pooch needed a quick rescue.
"The water was starting to rise, but I don't know how fast the tide comes in," Jelonek said. "I don't think he would've made it much longer."
No normal boat could navigate the muddy bay, so a call was made to the Vallejo Sanitation and Flood Control District.
"They called us and we came to the rescue," Kaiser said laughing.
Scott Ransford, a district collection systems technician, was writing up some paperwork when the call came in. Needless to say, this wasn't your average sewer district distress call.
"Rescuing wasn't one of the expected parameters for the boats," Ransford said smiling.
Nevertheless, Ransford teamed up with Benicia Vallejo Humane Society animal control officer Richard Romiski, and the pair launched the air boat from Benicia's 9th Street boat ramp shortly after 11 a.m.
It took only five minutes to reach the stranded pooch. They slowly circled. It took two swipes with a control pole to snatch the dog, who jumped into the boat shivering.
"He was tired, cold, but a very nice dog," Romiski said. "He was a very strong dog. I think he was just glad he was out of the water."
The animal control officer dried him off with a towel, and the boat dropped him at a local veterinarian's office to be checked out. The dog had no injuries and avoided hypothermia, Jelonek said.
The dog, which had no tags, collar or microchip, finished the day at the Solano County Animal Shelter in Fairfield, where officials hope his owner will claim him.
Animal control officer Romiski has rescued ducks from a sewer drain. He's had to corral a horse eating grass from a Vallejo front lawn. But Wednesday's rescue ranks pretty high on the list.
"This rates right up there with them. It's the first time I had to rescue a dog from a boat," he said with a laugh.
Sanitation and Flood officials were even more giddy.
"Usually, it's a sewer pipe, so this is pretty cool," Kaiser said.
The district has its two air boats for one simple reason - to reduce the amount of algae in White Slough to control the summer odor. The two boats have been stored away at district headquarters for months, Kaiser said.
By day's end, officials still weren't certain of the pit bull's name, but Ransford offered one up.
"Lucky."
E-mail Matthias Gafni at mgafni@thnewsnet.com or call 553-6825.
• 8 a.m. - Call goes out for loose pit bull near Benicia Taco Bell on Military West. The dog takes off up West 7th Street toward Interstate 780, followed by animal control officer.
• 8:30 a.m. - Canine enters freeway heading west, then crosses four lanes of traffic, and returns east.
• 8:45 a.m. - Pit bull exits at West 7th, but attempts to re-enter the ramp, only to be shooed back down again.
• 9 a.m. - Dog heads down West 7th, past Taco Bell, onto West K Street heading west.
• 9:15 a.m. - Pooch jumps into Southampton Bay and starts swimming. After nearly swimming across the inlet, he gets stuck in mud, as the tide is out. Officials call Vallejo Sanitation and Flood Control District to assist with air boats.
• 11:30 a.m. - The canine is plucked from the water, a little cold and tired, but uninjured
http://extras.mnginteractive.com/live/media/site296/2007/0308/20070308__news_01~1_Gallery.jpg
http://extras.mnginteractive.com/live/media/site296/2007/0308/20070308__news_01~2_Gallery.jpg
A dog that swam out into Southampton Bay in Benicia became stuck in the mud and had to be rescued...
:D
Wacky chase led by pit bull in Benicia
By MATTHIAS GAFNI/Times-Herald staff writer
Vallejo Times Herald Article Launched:03/08/2007 06:20:07 AM PST BENICIA STATE RECREATION AREA -
This pit bull didn't want to go to the pound. And, to prove it, he spent nearly four hours in a wacky four-mile chase by land, sea and even mud before being rescued by an air boat.
"This is like a superhero dog. He is so strong," said Jennifer Kaiser, Vallejo Sanitation and Flood Control District spokesperson. An air boat from her agency was called into action to rescue the dog, which eventually got caught in some mud after nearly swimming the entire Southampton Bay inlet.
The strange chase began innocently enough Wednesday around 8 a.m. when Darlene Jelonek, a Benicia Police Department animal control officer, responded to a call of a loose pit bull near Taco Bell, on Military West.
The chase was on.
Jelonek said she tailed the dog, who authorities have been unable to identify. The blue-and-white pit bull made his way around west Benicia, jumped onto Interstate 780 for a brief spell, and crossed all four lanes of traffic before heading back down to Taco Bell.
Around 9:15 a.m., the dog, heading west on West K Street, neared the Benicia State Recreation Area, still with Jelonek in hot pursuit. The pit bull suddenly jumped into Southampton Bay and began swimming across the inlet, toward Dillon Point, hundreds of yards away.
"The amazing thing was the dog ran for miles, miles, and miles and then swam across the water," Jelonek said.
"They have a lot of drive," she said of pit bulls. "I was surprised though. I thought he'd turn around when it got too deep, but he just kept going ` and going ` and going."
Unfortunately, it was too shallow. About 50 yards from the opposite shore, the dog got stuck in the mud.
The chase was over, but as the tide began coming back in, Jelonek, and a backup animal control officer, saw that the pooch needed a quick rescue.
"The water was starting to rise, but I don't know how fast the tide comes in," Jelonek said. "I don't think he would've made it much longer."
No normal boat could navigate the muddy bay, so a call was made to the Vallejo Sanitation and Flood Control District.
"They called us and we came to the rescue," Kaiser said laughing.
Scott Ransford, a district collection systems technician, was writing up some paperwork when the call came in. Needless to say, this wasn't your average sewer district distress call.
"Rescuing wasn't one of the expected parameters for the boats," Ransford said smiling.
Nevertheless, Ransford teamed up with Benicia Vallejo Humane Society animal control officer Richard Romiski, and the pair launched the air boat from Benicia's 9th Street boat ramp shortly after 11 a.m.
It took only five minutes to reach the stranded pooch. They slowly circled. It took two swipes with a control pole to snatch the dog, who jumped into the boat shivering.
"He was tired, cold, but a very nice dog," Romiski said. "He was a very strong dog. I think he was just glad he was out of the water."
The animal control officer dried him off with a towel, and the boat dropped him at a local veterinarian's office to be checked out. The dog had no injuries and avoided hypothermia, Jelonek said.
The dog, which had no tags, collar or microchip, finished the day at the Solano County Animal Shelter in Fairfield, where officials hope his owner will claim him.
Animal control officer Romiski has rescued ducks from a sewer drain. He's had to corral a horse eating grass from a Vallejo front lawn. But Wednesday's rescue ranks pretty high on the list.
"This rates right up there with them. It's the first time I had to rescue a dog from a boat," he said with a laugh.
Sanitation and Flood officials were even more giddy.
"Usually, it's a sewer pipe, so this is pretty cool," Kaiser said.
The district has its two air boats for one simple reason - to reduce the amount of algae in White Slough to control the summer odor. The two boats have been stored away at district headquarters for months, Kaiser said.
By day's end, officials still weren't certain of the pit bull's name, but Ransford offered one up.
"Lucky."
E-mail Matthias Gafni at mgafni@thnewsnet.com or call 553-6825.
• 8 a.m. - Call goes out for loose pit bull near Benicia Taco Bell on Military West. The dog takes off up West 7th Street toward Interstate 780, followed by animal control officer.
• 8:30 a.m. - Canine enters freeway heading west, then crosses four lanes of traffic, and returns east.
• 8:45 a.m. - Pit bull exits at West 7th, but attempts to re-enter the ramp, only to be shooed back down again.
• 9 a.m. - Dog heads down West 7th, past Taco Bell, onto West K Street heading west.
• 9:15 a.m. - Pooch jumps into Southampton Bay and starts swimming. After nearly swimming across the inlet, he gets stuck in mud, as the tide is out. Officials call Vallejo Sanitation and Flood Control District to assist with air boats.
• 11:30 a.m. - The canine is plucked from the water, a little cold and tired, but uninjured
http://extras.mnginteractive.com/live/media/site296/2007/0308/20070308__news_01~1_Gallery.jpg
http://extras.mnginteractive.com/live/media/site296/2007/0308/20070308__news_01~2_Gallery.jpg
A dog that swam out into Southampton Bay in Benicia became stuck in the mud and had to be rescued...
:D