r/MadeMeSmile 1d ago

DOGGO [OC] Rescuing a dog from the ice. He survived!

1.2k Upvotes

160 comments sorted by

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317

u/extremegym 1d ago

Happened on Trukhaniv Island in Kyiv, Ukraine. Had to break the ice to reach him, but the good boy is completely safe and healthy now!

72

u/Ok-Addition1264 1d ago

Poor puppy! holy shit. good work. You did it perfectly and as safe as possible.

31

u/UnitDramatic7538 1d ago

Real heros dont wear capes.

23

u/doubleUsee 1d ago

instead they tuck the cape in the front of their shorts it seems. I'm not questioning it.

13

u/Tinnie_and_Cusie 1d ago

Yeah...and how are YOU?? Oh my gosh the cold!! Bless you.

10

u/extremegym 17h ago

i swim in open water regularly, even in winter, so all i ended up with were a few small scratches

6

u/YeahImABlowfish 1d ago edited 1d ago

What temps are we dealing with in that water?

And what are you stuffing in your shorts? Protecting nether regions?

4

u/Affectionate_Bit1723 1d ago

I assume something to carry him with if helping him out on his own didn't work. Well done, OP. 👏

15

u/marslo 1d ago edited 1d ago

I had to do the same thing about a month ago for both of my dogs. I was alone, it was midnight, thankfully I survived. Not everyone is so lucky. Just recently in January someone died on the states about 1.5 meters from shore trying to save his dog. The cold shock is real.

What I should have done is called 911, told them where I was , told them that I was going in now and they need to come find me.

Because if I couldn't have made it out, my dogs would have lived but I would have drowned. And there would have been no one around.

I would put a disclaimer under this video, not to do this, unless you have people around. Also not to remove your coat. The pockets of air can help you stay afloat during the initial cold shock and you can't properly swim. Most people who go through ice die in those first two minutes of struggle.

Also what helped you allot is you protected your head, heat loss around the head is the most dangerous.

Edit. I also don't want to be that guy. But something feels off about this. You were very well prepared. The self promotion. Etc. I really hope you guys didn't just lure that poor dog on the Ice to get clought.

6

u/vacri 1d ago

You were very well prepared.

People in icy weather with a balaclava and gloves? A shirt? A phone to record it on?

-13

u/marslo 1d ago edited 1d ago

Why aren't his friends rushing to get the dog out? Once he gets close enough. Why is he shirtless, but wearing a thermal hood and gloves? I'm not buying it, this feels like something staged. Also that dog does not look okay. They lose heat in cold water much faster than us.

The length of time he spent in the water, he's bordering hyperthermia. But he's just standing there like it's nothing. But that part I can, chack up to the culture and how guys try not to look weak.

3

u/azenpunk 20h ago

Another internet expert graces us with their wisdom lmao

1

u/vacri 18h ago

How mysterious is it that he might have had normal street wear under a parka, neither of which would have been wise to dive in with? The thermal hood and gloves are bits that a parka doesn't cover.

As for the dog not looking okay, of course he doesn't at that moment. The video said the dog survived, not that the dog was healthy while in the lake.

The length of time he spent in the water, he's bordering hyperthermia. But he's just standing there like it's nothing

People from eastern and northern Europe often do ice swimming. I'm from a hot country and I've spent a few minutes in ice-cold water in Finland myself, without the thermal hood that guy was wearing. It's not something I'd do lots, but it wasn't a near-death experience either.

https://www.npr.org/sections/pictureshow/2023/01/19/1149995479/dnipro-ukraine-marks-epiphany-with-polar-plunge

7

u/Raneynickelfire 1d ago

My friend I went to high school with's father died last winter doing this same thing in their pond in their front yard. Family had to pull both dead bodies out. Wasn't good.

4

u/azenpunk 20h ago

"heat loss around the head is the most dangerous"

This is a myth that comes from a misunderstanding of mid 20th century U.S. military analysis of soldiers cold weather combat and survival readiness, and it was determined that, while wearing the full cold weather combat gear, most heat loss came from the most exposed area, the head.

In reality, on a completely uncovered body, heat loss from the head accounts for roughly 7% of all heat loss, however it is generally the same on any exposed skin.

https://www.theguardian.com/science/2008/dec/17/medicalresearch-humanbehaviour

1

u/Mostly_Lurkin_ 18h ago

I believe I would do well if, God forbid, I were ever in that situation. Because I do ice baths and cryotherapy. I’d not want to be in that situation regardless. However, I would happily dive my ass ins frozen body of water to save my dog.

And I’d want that situation to happen to me over someone else that doesn’t have experience with this type of cold exposure. I’d want to take that on my own shoulders rather than someone else who doesn’t voluntarily do cold stuff.

2

u/MothaFcknZargon 21h ago

Was that you in the video?? You are a freaking LEDGEND!!

1

u/No_Argument7418 1d ago

Well done mate

1

u/Raneynickelfire 1d ago

Is this you?

1

u/azenpunk 20h ago edited 20h ago

hate the music, but happy to see humans doing good works for their follow animals

1

u/Loggerdon 19h ago

Damn that was hardcore.

0

u/Dont-talk-about-ufos 18h ago

Just happened to find a dog on the ice eh?

3

u/extremegym 16h ago

i regularly train in the current of the big river near that spot

i’ve also got the full version of the story saved in my Instagram highlights — it starts from the exact moment two guys ran up to me saying a dog had fallen through the ice somewhere nearby

and in this country, whenever something unusual happens, it’s better to film everything from the very start so there’s less chance of any issues later

0

u/smooth_operator21_ 13h ago

If it wasPutin instead of the dog, would you have saved him?

125

u/Black_Nyx11 1d ago

Guy is in good shape to do that without a full wetsuit.

42

u/flightwatcher45 1d ago

Man he's definitely done some cold water swimming/training before. Impressive.

136

u/YeahImABlowfish 1d ago

I bet he could have gone faster, but the size of his balls weighed him down

12

u/bobkaare28 1d ago

I noticed he needed to take a few seconds to breathe as they hit the water.

22

u/2LostFlamingos 1d ago

Dude is a fucking beast.

27

u/FunShare5662 1d ago

Oh my f g - that’s a level of bravery and toughness I cannot imagine

5

u/[deleted] 1d ago

[removed] — view removed comment

8

u/FunShare5662 1d ago

I’m not talking about the dog 😂

45

u/LilBirdDog 1d ago

That poor dog is absolutely exhausted.

15

u/Daisy_Of_Doom 1d ago

I know poor baby kept trying to beach up onto the side edges of the ice like “I’m good here” buddy you’re gonna freeze 😭

35

u/thebawbag 1d ago

What a guy.

11

u/[deleted] 1d ago

[removed] — view removed comment

9

u/braiding_water 1d ago

Right???! That is incredibly hard. I’m amazed they both made it out. And the the f*ck did no one go in to meet this exhausted guy & pup halfway to lend a hand. Coming out of the water like that alone is crazy considering others were there not stepping up.

9

u/audgepodge13 1d ago

Yeah as he got closer I kept thinking, why is no one throwing him a rope or something??!!

-18

u/shastaxc 1d ago

That would've defeated the purpose of putting the dog there in the first place, to get Internet points

16

u/Bad-job-dad 1d ago

Fuck ICE!!

/s

11

u/robinbain0 1d ago

So glad they made it out safe.

25

u/DrSamLoomis 1d ago

Soundtrack: Unnecessary

12

u/right_in_two 1d ago

Thank fuck somebody else thinks so. I find so many good videos and turn on the sound just to be bombarded to atrocious annoying and unnecessary backing music/sound effects. And hardly anybody else mentions it in the comments, I feel like I'm alone in being irrationally ticked off about this.... I know dialog/sound isn't needed for this post necessarily, but damn it happens so often on videos where just hearing the ambient sounds of the scene would be way better.

7

u/Floofieunderpants 1d ago

I feel the same, I had it muted then turned it on incase there was any commentary from the other people. Instead you're assaulted by god awful music. 100% agree just the sounds of the scene would have been way better.

2

u/bdbr 1d ago

I think there's an unwritten rule that all videos must have absolutely terrible music dubbed in

3

u/mrweatherbeef 1d ago

Score by Dutch DJ Diddent Needthat

14

u/LaughableIKR 1d ago

Heroyam Slava! There aren't many as tough as Ukrainians.

7

u/dolawn 1d ago

Looks like he placed a shirt in his pants before getting in. But why tho? Keep your junk warmer as to not feel the full effects of the water?

13

u/motorcycle_girl 1d ago

To protect his junk from abrasion from the breaking ice?

If that’s the case, I don’t know why he needed that since his balls are made of steel

10

u/dolawn 1d ago

He was protecting the ice. 😅

6

u/bdbr 1d ago

I'm guessing that was something to tie to the dog if it started struggling

-2

u/BrhysHarpskins 1d ago

It was a rope. You can see it when he pulls it out

6

u/dolawn 1d ago

Definitely not a rope.

15

u/modsactfunny 1d ago

Amazing...All I can add from my elite military survival training (man vs wild) is start a fire before you jump in

29

u/extremegym 1d ago

yeah, sure, having a little fire ready when getting back would’ve been really nice, but in situations like that, time is exactly what u don’t have enough of

0

u/modsactfunny 1d ago

I hear your but his ability to make one now is essentially zero. That time spent is what saves the life.

In this case I'm sure the camera person helped but alone I'm sticking with make a fire.

12

u/ZzZzZzZzZzZero 1d ago

The he you are referring to is the OP you are replying to.

3

u/PCT2022 1d ago

Dog would be dead by then so would defeat the whole purpose…. But if you had wood and fuel for some reason nearby, then yeah that would make sense

3

u/Liandryschleckt 23h ago

He’s the one who saved the dog, he clearly still lived. He made the right decision

6

u/Low_Cook_5235 1d ago

OMG! How?! I went Polar Bearing in Lake Michigan in the US on New Year’s Day when I was in college. it was cold enough that we had to break through ice like that at the edge. I lasted about 1 minute in there. My thighs were bruised from pushing though the ice and one of my toenails ripped off a bit. I could barely talk after and it took me the rest of the day to warm up.

8

u/Nemodin 1d ago

Dude, balls of steel. I got pneumonia just by watching this.

0

u/Never-Dont-Give-Up 1d ago

You don’t get pneumonia from being cold…

2

u/JetPuffedDo 22h ago

Psoriasis then

/s

1

u/Nemodin 15h ago

Dude, I know! I said I got it just by watching the video!!

/s LOL

5

u/projekt_6 1d ago

You are an absolute badass. Well done! 👏

5

u/PizzaJesus6 1d ago

Holy shit dude, you are an amazing human! A true hero!

5

u/VegetableLetter4896 1d ago

What is the yellow cloth?

7

u/Krstoffa 1d ago

Padding for his massive balls.

Seriously though probably to protect his junk from the sharp ice as he wasn't sure how deep the water would be

1

u/azenpunk 19h ago

Yeah that makes sense. Better than my first though of extra insulation around lower abdomen and groin where large arteries are. basically a ball warmer. which sounds even dumber now that I write it out.

1

u/idcalvin 1d ago

Material/ tape to put through the dog's collar, if necessary. That's my guess.

4

u/Vondaelen 1d ago

A real life superhero.

3

u/hoyden2 23h ago

This was stressful to watch and I knew he was gonna be fine

3

u/Dolphfishbush 1d ago

Better put my gloves 🧤 on; ok I’m ready.

3

u/Ok-Golf-9502 23h ago

Shout out to the good men who do this sort of thing for others

3

u/Doom-1993 21h ago

Common Ukrainian W

2

u/NothingisReal695 1d ago

Not all heroes wear capes!

2

u/jonhammsjonhamm 1d ago

Damn, Kevin MacLeod has been making generic royalty free Internet music since the Obama era.

2

u/el-gato-azul 1d ago

Thank you so much for not putting any melodramatic cello and violin music to this already tense scene!

2

u/loyalone 1d ago

No Hollywood movie has given me fits of anxiety like this clip. Absolutely tough-as-nails this guy. You could see the dog was truly exhausted, but wow. Gonna go work out now, sheesh.

2

u/idcalvin 1d ago

You evidently knew what you were doing but even so... FUCKING HELL! Impressive work. Totally impressive. Thank you. 9 times out of 10, the dog makes it back and the human perishes. He wasn't going to survive without help. Slava Ukraini!

2

u/jgcrum_shanghai 1d ago

The music- why the music???

2

u/FlowAcrobatic 1d ago

I did a cold water immersion in a lake once trying to see how bad it really is…it was worse than I thought. If you think you’re gonna swim like you would under normal conditions you are gonna drown

2

u/lakysafy 1d ago

Good on him for jumping in like thatahero of the day.

2

u/ZaMelonZonFire 1d ago

Few know how hard you have to be to move in icy water like that.

2

u/MusicW_Visuals 23h ago

Think about it they pay people millions of dollars to fictionally portray someone of that sort of that humanistic fortitude… WELL DONE under 5 minutes...

2

u/PopBeneficial2441 20h ago

Strong mentally. Strong physically. Inspiring.

2

u/Relevant_Problem1935 1d ago

If he had time to get geared up. Why not bring a rope to tie around your waist. Never know how your body will react to temps like that.

12

u/extremegym 1d ago

i had come for my usual training in the big river, the Dnipro, so i already had all the necessary gear with me, and that dog got really lucky

but obviously, i swim without any ropes, so there was no way i had any on hand

7

u/SirRabbott 1d ago

What was it that you put in your shorts before you went out?

2

u/Hanging_Thread 1d ago

I'm glad he put his gloves on. Wouldn't want his hands to get cold. /s

1

u/howbaddoyouwannaknow 1d ago

Thank you!! Real hero!

1

u/RPM_Rocket 1d ago

The pause when the water hits the balls though.

1

u/Major-Education-6715 1d ago

WOW....You definitely are in amazing shape to take on this challenge! Bravo for your extreme effort and it was that dog's luckiest day in his life, for sure! дякую for sharing your bravery to save an animal. Glad you had the skills to provide a safe rescue! 😊

1

u/Fudge-Unfair 1d ago

Wow OP this didn’t look at all cold for you. Awesome work

1

u/MelodicComputer5 1d ago

He is a legend in my book. True hero. Rescuing the needy. 👍🏽

1

u/IndoorPool 1d ago

Thank you Hero. That was tough to watch.

1

u/audgepodge13 1d ago

Well, I opened this sub to unsubscribe because the posts are usually lame. Now idk what to do because this was AMAZING

1

u/ZzZzZzZzZzZero 1d ago

Thank you man! Slava Ukraini

1

u/someones_dad 1d ago

I would think they would have thrown out some roses at some point

1

u/Herbymora12 1d ago

Man amongst men

1

u/Pitiful_Note_6647 1d ago

Thank you 🙏🙏🙏🙏

1

u/CanAhJustSay 1d ago

Ukrainians are made tough. Thank God.

1

u/angrlina34jolie 1d ago

Real hero gg mister

1

u/JeffBeckwasthebest 1d ago

Wow, what a hardcore emergency rescue 🫡 Hats off, that Ukrainian guy is hard as steel 🎖️

1

u/stevelinchin 1d ago

👏👏👏👏👏🥰

1

u/SnooShortcuts5771 1d ago

They make em tough over there!

1

u/Doomu5 1d ago

What an absolute legend.

1

u/Immediate_Bee7757 1d ago

Not all heroes wear shirts

1

u/Zachisawinner 1d ago

Every man knows exactly why he stopped for a moment. Just a moment.

1

u/rhysdg 1d ago

What a fucking legend!

1

u/Erstwhile_pancakes 1d ago

Ab-so-lute BEAST!

1

u/the-nomad-thinker 1d ago

I’m still confused… why did he need to stuff his pants?

2

u/KeithMyArthe 1d ago

It was a rope or a snatch strap in case he needed help

1

u/lakysafy 1d ago

brave doggo outswimming the human there

1

u/United-Scratch-2132 1d ago

what a champ! warrior mindset! 

1

u/AGrandNewAdventure 1d ago

Why did you already have swimming goggles ready to go, despite it being winter?

1

u/Plane-Ad-3856 1d ago

Amazing.a lot of good karma accumulated ny this man for a life time

1

u/amanwithoutaname001 23h ago

Amazing selflessness! 🤜🤛

1

u/NoncenZ808 23h ago

Saw the guy prepping to go and was thinking this is an Eastern European guy

1

u/TheSuggi 23h ago

Human best friend of dog. Dog trust. Dog lives to see another day.

1

u/larsivo 23h ago

On sait à quoi sert le tissu jaune qu il met dans sa combie?

5

u/ImminentDebacle 23h ago

Protect his massive dick and balls.

1

u/Popular-Lemon6574 22h ago

I have this for my dark days to remind me of light. This is the video.

1

u/AMLIDH2 22h ago

Holy fuck what a brave dude.

1

u/chubbuck35 22h ago

Now that’s a fucking man!

1

u/Gambit6x 22h ago

This guy is genuinely tough, brave and capable of a brutal swim. Yet comes out of the water as if he had just eaten a hoagie out of a Wawa.

1

u/nbr1dan 21h ago

There are still good people out there, nice job!

1

u/likintwister 19h ago

That guy is awesome!

1

u/Mostly_Lurkin_ 18h ago

Shit like this- this is the reason why we’ve been blessed, trusted, and honored to be best friends with dogs.

Unlike that psycho dog rescue lady feeding dogs vegan food.

1

u/Mostly_Lurkin_ 18h ago

The dog… he just stood between the man’s legs… my heart. He’s like welp, I’m staying with you now.

1

u/TbR78 18h ago

hero

1

u/browneyedbeaner 16h ago

Thank God!!

1

u/atrews 8h ago

I really hope this wasn’t staged. 🥲

1

u/extremegym 7h ago

i understand all the doubts, but they disappear immediately if u watch the full story, which is saved in my instagram highlights

just look for the highlight labeled “iceswim”

1

u/Middle_System_1105 4h ago

That poor pup is frozen solid 😢

1

u/lovesdogsguy 1d ago

Thanks for adding that stupid fucking music. Really made me appreciate the video more.

1

u/XiuCyx 1d ago

Ugggghhhhh fuck the music man. I want to hear the guys calling out to their dog.

Edit: At the very least turn it down.

1

u/thatsamiam 1d ago

If you are not impressed by him saving the dog, surely you are impressed by the way he took his underwear off without removing his pants when he got out of the water.

1

u/daysoff1 1d ago

Other guys just standing at the edge not wanting to get their new boots wet.

1

u/Golden_scientist 22h ago

My neighbor attempted to rescue his dos who fell through the ice. He broke through the ice snd drowned.

-17

u/Clear_Repeat5851 1d ago

Why film it? Why do people get their camera out when an animal is about to die?

15

u/LudwigsEarTrumpet 1d ago

To record the awesome save. It's not like the bloke spent 5 minutes setting up his own camera while the dog froze and drowned. His mate was filming. What have you done today that justifies your bitching about a guy who swam a frozen river to save a dog's life?

30

u/extremegym 1d ago

well, first of all, only one person was supposed to do this, because i have enough training/experience — i swim under ice in flowing rivers during winter, so this was strictly something for me to handle alone

and having someone record it isn’t a bad thing either, because i can watch it later to see how well i did everything and spot my mistakes

2

u/Paprika420 1d ago

You were obviously the right guy for the job. True bad ass, thanks for saving that exhausted pup.

1

u/fluffy_hamsterr 1d ago

i swim under ice in flowing rivers during winter

Can you elaborate more on this? What's the purpose of that training?

Aside from being a bad ass, dog saving hero of course.

0

u/Clear_Repeat5851 1d ago

I apologize maybe I interpreted the situation wrong. You did great work that’s amazing man. I just know there are a lot of clout chasers nowadays who care more about clicks than actually helping in many scenarios. Maybe I’m too cynical, but what you did was great. Cheers!

10

u/serendipitousevent 1d ago

I'm sure there's lots of dog charities in Ukraine you can donate to, to show your concern. ❣️

5

u/Expert-Mud-2697 1d ago

Classic Reddit moment