On closer inspection, he realized it was a dog and immediately felt that something had gone wrong. It was not natural for the dog to swim in freezing temperatures. The drowning dog was crying out for help.
The driver noticed that the poor dog was holding a piece of ice and did not want to make things worse. Another good man in a rowboat was also trying to rescue the drowning dog. The driver undressed, put on his underwear and kept his socks on, determined to help the dog.
He got on the boat and then onto the ice that was steadily thinning. He could see the dog struggling to keep his head above the water level. Arens thought for a moment that he might slip and die, but when the ice broke, he fell into the water.
In the midst of this situation, Arens’ priority was rescuing the drowning dog. Swim and hold the dog’s collar. He then he pulled her over the ice block and brought her ashore. Meanwhile, the poor dog was trying to climb the block but her legs had given up, the water was freezing.
Once they reached shore, Arens ran for help. A neighbor handed him a towel that had wrapped the shaking dog. Another resident had a wood burning stove and invited the duo to warm up a bit. The generous resident even provided warm water that could be used to help the dog recover from the cold stroke.
Arens rubbed his stomach with lukewarm water and slowly pulled himself out of danger. The resident checked the dog’s body temperature and, since he was a veterinarian, he can comment on the seriousness of the situation. If Arens hadn’t gotten the dog out of the freezing water in time, he would have had a heart attack within minutes.
But Arens did not forget her duties. He suffered a few cuts while rescuing Sadie, but after handing it over to his owner, Arens went to his work and delivered 20 packages that day!
Later, Arens met the dog again while he was out for delivery. Fortunately, Arens made a delivery for owner Sadie and the dog ran straight for him. The owner thanked Arens with all his heart and Sadie greeted him enthusiastically.
