The Gray, Raymond, and New Gloucester fire and rescue departments all responded with their cold water rescue teams to 24 Inlet Pond Road in Raymond on Notched Pond on Wednesday at 10:30 a.m. At the time of the call, it was reported that a dog was in the water, through the ice, approximately 150 feet off shore.
According to New Gloucester Capt. Scott Doyle, Gray’s team arrived on scene first, donned their suits and entered the water. Within minutes the team retrieved the dog and had her ashore. New Gloucester’s team took the dog from the shore to their heavy rescue truck to warm up the dog.
Personnel had to navigate steep 50-foot embankments covered in ice and snow in water rescue gear to retrieve the dog and to get the dog to rescue vehicles, Doyle said. Once the dog was brought to the heavy rescue vehicle, Raymond Fire & Rescue took over the care of the dog; wrapping her in multiple towels and blankets, along with applying warm heat packs. Raymond’s team kept the dog warm until the owner’s family could bring the dog to a local veterinary hospital.
Doyle said the dog’s name is Mishka (pronounced Meesh-ka) and is recovering fine. Her temperature was coming up and she was reported to be stable.
The neighbor who found the dog and called emergency personnel had heard an odd bark prior to finding Mishka, Doyle said. The neighbor was led by Mishka’s sister, Senga, to locate the bark, which was Mishka barely surviving the strenuous work and cold waters.
“This is the second call that we have been on, in a couple weeks, where a dog led someone to an emergency,” Doyle said. “Our EMS personnel assisted an elderly man recently, where his dog got the attention of a home keeper. The dog led the home keeper to the barn where the elderly man was injured.”
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