Rescuers Save Dog Trapped in L.A. River and Help Return Her to Family in Arizona!

We have seen the Hope for Paws dog rescue team go to some pretty incredible lengths to save animals in need. This L.A.-based organization is known for their incredible knack at gaining the trust of scared dogs, many of which have grown to fear humans in their lifetimes, and getting them to safe and loving homes – no matter what.

Given their amazing track record, when a group of concerned citizens came across an injured dog trapped in the L.A. river outlet, they knew exactly who to call. Once founder Eldad Hagar was alerted to the dog’s situation, he called his assistant Lisa Arturo and they set out to work.

The dog was situated right near the outlet, only 100 yards from where the river spills into the Pacific Ocean. 

Lisa and Edgar had a ladder and managed to get down into the river to help the pup. 

At first, the dog was scared of her rescuers and set off to run away – but seeing as the only alternative was the ocean, she had no choice but to turn back.

Eldad managed to catch her, but his snare closed too quickly, only capturing her muzzle. Knowing this wouldn’t hold long, he called Lisa for reinforcement.

The pup finally settled down as the sun started to set and the team got ready to arrange a trap and pulley to get her back on land.

Knowing the trap would startle her, Eldad took a few moments to make her feel safe.

Up she goes!

Firefighters came to help pull the pup out.

Finally safe on land, the dog was loaded into the rescue van for a proper evaluation.

The swelling in her injured leg was pretty bad, so Eldad carried her all the way inside. 

When they scanned her microchip, they discovered this sweetie had a family! Turns out her name is Tinkerbell and she is from Arizona. 

Tinkerbell got startled during the 4th of July fireworks and jumped the fence. She ran 25 miles from where her family was visiting in California. 

Thankfully, this happy pup will be reunited with her family soon. Doesn’t she look happy! 

Thanks to the Hope for Paws team’s awesome work, this dog is finally on her way home. This story is a great example of why it is so important to have proper identification for our pets in the case of the emergency. We hope that Tinkerbell’s leg recovers quickly and she never thinks of running away again!

All image source: Hope for Paws/Flickr