Bachelor party canoers rescue missing dog from muddy riverbank in Carver County
CARVER, Minn. -- A Minnesota bachelor party this weekend ran into a problem they never expected.
Mitch White and his buddies were canoeing on the Minnesota River near Carver when someone heard a bark.
A St. Bernard was buried up to his neck in thick, heavy mud a few feet off the water.
"We were trying to figure out what to do, like what do we do? And I was like, 'My fiancée, Kelly, probably won't marry me if we don't get this dog out of here [laughs]!'" White said.
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They used their oars as shovels and dug for at least half an hour.
"The dog wasn't moving on its own, so we were feeding it and giving it water, but the dog seemed like it had already used up all of its energy," White said.
The group called for first responders, which helped the dog, named Ed, get back home to George Niskanen.
"He likes to roam from time to time," Niskanen said. "He usually comes back."
Niskanen says Ed was gone for about a day when the Carver County Sheriff's Office called.
"He was in a heck of a predicament down there," Niskanen said. "We got him up the hill and now he's brought back to strength, thanks to the Carver County Sheriff's Department and the Carver Fire Department as well."
Niskanen says the people at the bachelor party are heroes, too.
"I'd like to know their names so I could send a card of thanks," Niskanen said.
Niskanen says Ed couldn't walk when he first got back home, but he's been eating and drinking a lot, and is slowly regaining his strength.