In August 2018, Mark Cowing, his wife Emma, and their 12-year-old blind Border Collie Fly went on a vacation to Lepe Beach in England. At first, the couple and their pup had a great time hanging out on the beach together.
But then, things took a dramatic turn when Fly nearly drowned.
Fly was wandering around the beach, sniffing the sand and playing on the shoreline. Then, the dog decided to go farther into the water. Mark kept a close eye on him, and at first, everything seemed okay. But then, a wave crashed into the dog, carrying him out to sea.
Soon, the pup was struggling to keep his head above water. If Mark didn’t do something, Fly was going to drown.
“When he got 20 or 30 feet out I had to strip off, down to my underpants, and go and rescue him,” Mark told the BBC. “He disappeared out of sight so I presumed he drowned. I tried to wave for help but I thought I was a goner.”
Mark immediately burst into action. He ran into the water and swam after his beloved pup.
Unfortunately, the current was too strong for Mark, and he also struggled to keep his head above the water. A 71-year-old kayaker saw Mark drowning and pulled him onto his boat. He brought Mark back to the beach. Mark was grateful to be alive, but he couldn’t relax until he found Fly.
Mark called the Coast Guard and the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) and told them about Fly, but he didn’t have much hope that Fly was still alive. The pup had been in the water for a long time.
The Coast Guard went out in a helicopter, and the RNLI went out in a rescue boat. After searching for a while, the helicopter spotted Fly about half a mile out from shore.
The helicopter pilot told the RNLI boat captain where Fly was, and the captain rushed over to the pup. The captain pulled the dog onto his boat. Fly was scared and exhausted, but thankfully, he was okay!
The RNLI captain brought Fly back to shore, where he was reunited with his grateful owners.
“I was in tears when I saw him, he’s my boy. I just felt a complete and utter idiot for what I did,” Mark said.
That night, Mark gave Fly all his favorite foods—he was so happy that the pup was okay.
“When we got back to the caravan he had four packets of dinner and a pork pie and went to sleep,” Mark said.
Mark’s wife Emma posted about their ordeal on Facebook. Everyone was amazed by the way so many people came together to help Mark and Fly.
https://www.facebook.com/emma.a.cowing/posts/1805203616201435
Mark and Emma were both terrified they would never see their beloved dog again. But thankfully, many good people came together to save both Mark and Fly. We’re so glad Fly is okay!
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