Dog rescue at Umdoni Point
It was at this point we considered our alternatives, which of course, were limited, and we began to think of the unthinkable - euthanasia.
Friday, October 21, was an emotional day.
I arrived for a meeting at the Beach Café in Pennington at approximately 10h15, to hear a young man named Brendan asking Viv Sandwith for help.
He was walking his mother’s dogs, Tyler and Daisy, on the beach when Daisy had become stuck in a cave at Umdoni Point, and he was desperate for help.
I left everything with Viv Sandwith and Linda Stead, kicked off my sandals, and hurried after the distraught young man and the dog Tyler.
It was an extremely hot day, and clambering over the rocks was not easy.
If one has ever walked across the rocks at Umdoni Point to the King’s Tidal Pool, one will know exactly what I mean! (It is a long way from the Pennington main beach to Umdoni Point beach!) I could not keep up with Brendan, and despite my anxiety about Daisy, I continued slowly and carefully, keeping him in view.
At this point, he was a dot on the horizon! I saw 5 or 6 men coming towards me over the rocks, and typical South African angst kicked in.
I turned back and hopped, skipped, and jumped along the rocks back to the beach. Unbeknown to me, Viv had called Paul Tedder of P&G Construction, and as usual, his response was quick and decisive.
One of the men got close enough to call out, “Where is the dog?” Paul had sent them to look for me and Daisy.
When I arrived, Brendan had crawled into the cave on his third attempt at rescuing Daisy, but he could not get in far enough to get a good grip on her.
He came out hot, wet, muddy, and very discouraged.
Two of the P&G helpers, Khumalo Sduduzo, followed by Nswayibani Mhlangabezwa, went into the cave, and although they all tried extremely hard, they had no joy.
They were followed by Jake Tedder, who spent ages in the cave, but could not reach Daisy.
We could hear him talking to her, encouraging her to get out on her own, hoping that since she had got her head into the hole, surely she could get it out, but that was not to be.
Someone went to fetch a chisel and hammer, and Pieter from Gladiator went to get a torch which helped, but the space was too small to use the chisel and hammer effectively.
At this stage, we were becoming dehydrated, including Daisy and Tyler.
We called Rynardt Crous of Umdoni Park and asked for some water, which he delivered in no time. It was welcome. We were now becoming very discouraged and concerned for little Daisy, who must have been terrified.
It was at this point we considered our alternatives, which of course, were limited, and we began to think of the unthinkable – euthanasia.
Jake Tedder was having none of that and decided that we needed a generator and equipment to cut through the rock.
Three deep-sea divers arrived on the scene.
They volunteered to help.
One of them entered the cave, then the second, followed by the third, but still no joy.
Everyone was totally committed to rescuing Daisy, but we were becoming tired and disheartened, and for those crawling into the cave, the situation was somewhat worse, and so I decided, on behalf of the Pennington Conservancy, to offer a reward to the person who managed to rescue Daisy relatively unharmed.
Peter, one of the divers, re-entered the cave.
Bear in mind that he could only go in lying flat on his stomach and had to leopard-crawl into the dark with his body completely disappearing from sight! He was in there for a very, very long time, but after a while, we heard him shout, “I’ve got her!”
I am not sure who was the happiest or the most relieved, but Daisy’s joy was heart-warming.
Bernadine, the owner of Daisy and Tyler, called later that day to thank all those involved.
In alphabetical order: Duncan Bowker, Rynardt Crous, Nswayibani Mhlangabezwa, Morgan Pillay, Khumalo Sduduzo, Jake Tedder, Paul Tedder, Peter, Bheki and 3rd diver Pieter of Gladiator and the members of the Pennington Crime Watch.
A big thank you to Mary McKenzie, who did not hesitate to abandon her online meeting with the FNB head office, and her sandals, to rush down the beach to rescue a Daisy in Distress.
She does not mention the tears she shed on the beach when hearing that euthanasia had to be considered.
Thank you to Brendan for asking strangers to assist him when his mother’s dog was in trouble. The world needs more compassionate people like this. Viv Sandwith
