Our oldest daughter has two Labrador Retrievers, a chocolate and a yellow. They are both sweet-natured, lovable goofballs, and just to add to that, they are both competent at finding, flushing, and retrieving pheasants. Labs are great dogs; strong, hardy, good-natured, reliable.
In Rhode Island, though, on New Year's Day, a yellow Labrador named Phoenix had that hardiness put to the test when he fell through the ice on a pond. Fortunately, some dedicated human first responders were quickly on the scene.
According to the Misquamicut Fire Department, volunteer firefighters and other emergency officials were dispatched early Thursday morning for a water rescue. Once on scene, firefighters saw a dog named Phoenix struggling and unable to move to shore in the slushy, icy water.
Members from both the Misquamicut and Watch Hill fire departments donned ice rescue suits, which help protect the body from frigid temperatures, to enter the pond and successfully rescue Phoenix. The National Weather Service reported it was 26 degrees Fahrenheit around 9 a.m. on Thursday, with the wind chill dropping the temperature to 14 degrees.
“It was the chillest dog I’ve ever seen in my life,” said Steve Howard, deputy chief of the Misquamicut Fire Department, in a phone interview on Friday. “The dog never made a sound. He was pretty chill.”
Labs are generally "pretty chill," as I understand the term. Phoenix, though, was probably pushing the envelope here where chill is concerned.
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But he's OK - and a good boy. Such a good boy! In fact, it's safe to say he's labradorable. And even better, his rescuers suffered no ill effects from the icy water, either. They may have all had a bit of a ruff day, but all's well that ends well.
While the firefighters were evaluated for possible hypothermia, they did not require treatment. The fire departments described the incident as “a successful first call of 2026,” in a statement posted on Facebook.
“He got a little bit of extra food last night,” Howard said. “And he took a little nap.”
That's the great thing about Labs; even after something like this, a little extra food, a nap, some itchin' and a-scratchin' from their owners, and maybe a belly rub, and they are good as new. As for the brave fire crew that went in after him: It's good that dogs always recognize humans who are there to help them when they need it; it's an uncanny instinct canines have, a sort of collar ID. This should also serve as a lesson: Watch your pets, and yourselves, on ice. Even here in Alaska, where ice in mid-winter (like now) can be strong enough to support full-sized trucks, there are still soft spots where springs or currents can make the ice thin and weak.
But for now, in Rhode Island, a good boy gets a happy ending - and kudos to the brave first responders who went into the water after Phoenix. It just goes to show, with some courage and just a little bit of dash and pluck, anything is pawsible.
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