.....heck.....
.....i even make sure mine doesn't get cold when we hunt!.....
Posted on 11/13/2005 3:22:26 PM PST by girlangler
Thanks to his Lab, hunter avoids death By Bill Wundram
BRENT Teel was going down for the fourth time in deep water. His waders, filled with water, kept sucking him deeper into the cold Mississippi River. Wader straps were tangling around his neck. Water was up to his nose.
“I knew I was going to die. I was choking, but could yell for my dog, Junior. He had been circling me in the water. That black Lab knew that I was in big trouble. He swam to me. I grabbed onto his collar and he pulled me at least 20 yards to the bank of a sandbar — that’s 60 feet — a long way.”
Brent Teel is telling about his close call with death by drowning a weekend ago while duck hunting near his hometown of Buffalo. His voice is still hoarse from a cold, suffered from his struggle in the 45- degree water. He says:
“My dog and God saved me from dying.”
His mother, Pat Teel, speaks up, “When I saw Brent after all that, he was shaking like in a convulsion. His lips were white. He could hardly talk.”
Brent, 29, a big-time outdoorsman, set out in his boat for duck hunting with Junior. He was in a boat blind, anchored at the point of an island near Linwood, upstream from Buffalo. It was a spot where he had often hunted for ducks.
“A flock of mallards flew over and I fired. I watched one come down and walked onto a wing dam to get the duck that was floating away. After 30 yards, I slipped off that wing dam into the water. It was deep. It can be 35 feet deep in some spots. I tried to get up, but my waders kept filling with water.”
Brent kept his cool. If he could get his waders off, he’d probably be all right. He stiffly held out his 12-gauge shotgun as a prod to help, but it went straight down into the deep water. As any outdoorsman knows, waders full of water can be deadly anchors.
“I was getting weak, went down three times before finally getting out of my waders but the straps tangled around my neck. When I went down the fourth time, the water was up to my nose. I was freezing cold and drowning. I knew that I was gone, but somehow, could see Junior thrashing around me.
“I yelled and he came close enough to grab his collar. He pulled me through the water right up to land, all those 60 feet, at least. He’s a young dog but strong and weighs 75 pounds.”
Exhausted and barely able to move, Brent remembers stretching out on the island’s shore, shaking and gagging. He crawled on hands and knees to reach his boat and shakily call on his CB to his dad, Steve Teel Sr.: “Dad, I need help.”
Steve says, “He could hardly talk. We didn’t know what was going on, but moved fast to where we knew he was hunting.”
Brent’s family called the Buffalo Ambulance Service to wait on the shore. Brent and Junior were found huddled in the boat. The dog was close against him, as if to keep him warm.
We sat in the living room of the Teel home, listening to the family describe the ordeal. Brent brought Junior — a rambunctious Labrador — inside from his kennel. Brent hugged the big dog and said:
“If it wasn’t for this dog, I wouldn’t be here to talk to you.”
Bill Wundram can be contacted at (563) 383-2249 or bwundram@qctimes.com.
I bet I know where she sleeps and with whom.
When I'm good to him, my dog will let me have about a third of the bed.
Kolbe knows who saved him!
lab ping.
My niece always says if there is reincarnation, she wants to come back as one of my pets, because they live in the absolute lap of luxury. I have three kitties and Penny, and they all follow me around like ducks. I wouldn't have it any other way.
Your boys are just majestic. You should be very proud.
Every once in awhile, though, she's overwhelmed by an access of affection and belly crawls up between us so she can kiss us both and beat us to death with her tail . . . then she flips over on her back, puts her head on a pillow, and grins at us.
Then of course the cats are highly offended and start an assault to re-take the pillows from the interloper . . . which is why she doesn't sleep in the bed if we have to get up in the morning!
.....heck.....
.....i even make sure mine doesn't get cold when we hunt!.....
You got that right. My dogs are taught to get the duck, not get the dumb A%$. But "good on ya"
If I'm ever accused of "treating someone like a dog," my "victim" will be one of the best treated humans in the world.
Wonder Bra, to the rescue :)
I couldn't resist.
Beautiful dog.
Actually, my toy poodle pointed birds.
Standard poodles were used for hunting before they were turned into people.
Penny refuses to be in any other room besides the one I am in, so she will not leave the bedroom at night. She sleeps like the dead, so I don't have to worry about her roaming around. She did sleep in a crate for the first two years of her life, though. When she was younger, she would just wait until we fell asleep and then find something to chew apart. Now that she is three, she doesn't tear anything up, so the crate is permanently in the garage.
"A flock of mallards flew over and I fired. I watched one come down and walked onto a wing dam to get the duck that was floating away. After 30 yards, I slipped off that wing dam into the water."
Yes, I thought that strange. My Black Labs watch for the birds to fall and they are after them before they hit the ground/water. It could be the news paper article got the story wrong. Almost every news story I have read where I knew what happened was reported incorrectly.
Answer to: teenyelliott
Yes. Tide is Bart's son. We have a breeder who handles Bart breeding. She is very fussy about pedigrees and selecting genetics for quality Labs. Here is the link:
BAYSIDE LABRADORS
Bench Bred Working Field established 1983
Good Hunting... from Varmint Al
LOL!
That would be my choice, but I understand if a dog is used to being outdoors all the time, it's not good for them to bring them inside unless you do it a little at a time.
Carolyn
He's a beaut. Lucky you.
Good doggy!!
Al, thanks for that link. I'm not into having puppies flown to me, as I prefer to meet them and pick out my own. But your dogs faces are really pulling at my heartstrings. Really striking dogs.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.