Two men set out to fish when they spotted over 3 dozens of radio collars glimmering in the lake — soon, their quiet trip turned into a wild rescue

A fishing crew comprising two friends and a guide was hailed as local heroes after their adventurous trip transformed into a wild rescue in Mississippi. They had set out on their boat to fish at a lake when they spotted three dozen radio collars floating in the water. As they drew closer, the men were shocked to discover a chilling situation that forced them to jump into rescue mode. Soon, the men found themselves rowing to and from the shore to make sure their rescue attempt was successful.  

Bob Gist of Arkansas and his friend, Brad Carlisle of Tennessee, had planned a trip to Grenada Lake to catch fish after a long time. The duo met up in Memphis and traveled down to the lake with a local fishing guide, Jordan Chrestman, with high hopes for the day. Little did they know it would go beyond their expectations. Soon after they reached the spot, the crew sailed out on the lake and noticed the water was oddly glimmering. A closer look revealed that they were not fish but dogs, dozens of them, wearing expensive radio collars and white paint, as reported by WLBT3. 

There were about 3 dozen hound dogs treading water continuously to survive. Gist first witnessed a few of them, but soon the group discovered it was no ordinary situation. As their radio collars shone in the sunlight, the fishing crew found more and more dogs at least a half mile offshore. From the way their heads appeared in the water, Gist figured the dogs could not find their way back to the shore and were lost. Therefore, the group of men got to work, pulling the boat toward each dog and rescuing them one by one.

Chrestman steered the boat while Gist and Carlisle loaded them onto the boat. They managed to rescue 27 dogs on their first trip and transported them back safely on land before returning to rescue more. Their second load included 11 more, bringing the tally to 38 dogs. The dog owners arrived with hopes in their hearts because none of them had a boat to rescue the poor animals. It was found that the dogs were part of a fox hunt held earlier that day, during which they had chased a deer into the water and swam half a mile offshore. 

Gist hated to think what would have happened had they not arrived on the rescue boat. The dogs would not have survived for long, as they had been treading water for at least 45 minutes. The dog owners were kind enough to offer some money to the fishing crew as a reward, but Gist and his friends turned it down, claiming they simply did what they had to do to make sure the dogs were safe and alive. While many breeds of dogs are natural swimmers and may enjoy a splash every now and then, breeds like Basset Hounds, Boxers, Maltese, and Dachshunds, among others, dislike water. Hence, it is not safe to assume that every dog would easily survive in water, per PetsCareRx.