Erin O’Donnel adopted Harper two years ago from the North Shore Animal League. The dog is quite fond of her adopter. But sometimes, Harper becomes anxious and Erin is worried when that happens.
One day, Erin had to leave Harper with a walker she trusted because she had to be with the Brooklyn Dance Company. She was secure that Harper would be in good hands. But she was surprised when she learned that the walker who was with Harper met an accident.
A cab driver didn’t respect the stop sign and that was the cause of the accident. The walker only had minor injuries. But Harper was startled she ran off.
Harper ran without any direction. She had no plans of stopping. She didn’t know what happened and she was frightened. Next thing she knew, she was at the East River. And when she arrived there, the dog jumped right into the water and started swimming.
Many who saw the dog in the water thought that it was an ordinary thing – just a dog going out for a relaxing swim. However, they soon realized that the dog was not there for swimming and it seemed to be in distress.
Gabe Castellanos was one of those who noticed Harper. He was in the area celebrating his birthday. He realized that the dog was in danger so celebration or not, he rushed to save the dog.
Gabe was a great swimmer and he was a graduate of SUNY Maritime College so he knew how to save the dog.
Harper didn’t like Gabe near but later on, she understood that she was getting help so she stopped resisting. Gabe was able to bring Harper to safety.
People were watching what was happening and they were cheering when the two got to dry soil. A rescue team was also waiting for them since the temperatures had dipped that day.
Source: Funky Smile