One golden retriever lived a real-life Homeward Bound after getting tossed overboard in a boating accident. He went missing for two days afterwards in Charleston.
Meet Rocky the golden retriever and his parents Jeff and Kim Wiseman. They took to social media to thank the Charleston Animal Society and the makers of his doggy life jacket fo this safe return. The family was cruising up Ashley River on June 23. Speaking with Fox, Jeff recounted the incident that caused the golden retriever to go missing.
He said, "We ran down the river, jump in the water, and swim around a little bit."
He continued, "And then on the way back, I was taking pictures of him with my phone and just drifted further right than I realized — it was careless — and hit a concrete structure like this old pier that is just down the river... I went into the water, pretty sure Rocky was in the water, too. By the time I got back in the boat, he wasn't there."
Golden Retriever Survives
The golden retriever was gone. Jeff was also injured. Jeff explained, "He was nowhere to be seen, and I broke seven ribs and, you know, lots of other injuries, but they said seven ribs. When E.M.S. showed up, they kinda forced me to go to the hospital."
Emergency responders searched for the golden retriever, but their search didn't turn up anything. That's when Kim took things to social media.
She said, "By the next morning when I went back up to the site, there were already people in the water looking for Rocky. I could never have imagined when I just posted an hour after the accident that the community response would be what it became." Fast forward two days, and a family discovered the golden retriever in their backyard.
Kim said, "It felt like a miracle, honestly, because two nights had passed with him missing and we didn't know if he was injured in the crash. Jeff obviously was, so to find out. That not only had he survived the crash and the days swimming in the river. And the two nights — one of which is storming — just, it felt like a miracle."
"We were overjoyed. We were, just incredibly overjoyed. And so, so grateful to everyone who helped search for him and helped spread the word," Kim added.
