Fresno firefighters rescue dog trapped in Tower District canal

Fresno firefighters Friday rescued a German shepherd trapped in a Tower District canal, despite the frightened dog’s best efforts to avoid capture.

Firefighters went to the area of Fulton and Bremer avenues about 10:30 a.m. to assist animal control officers who were attempting to capture the young female dog. But the dog was leery of strangers and fled upstream on the canal toward San Pablo avenue.

Firefighters first put a ladder into the water, hoping the hope the dog would climb out, but that idea was unsuccessful. That forced Fire Capt. Anthony Vasconcellos to wade into the water with a pole and lasso to wrangle the shepherd.

After about 20 minutes of pursuit, Vasconcellos got the lasso over the dog’s head and brought the animal to the bank.

Walter Salvari of Central California SPCA said the dog was still “angry and upset” when it reached the SPCA, but otherwise was in good condition. The SPCA was hoping to find the dog’s owner.

This story was originally published January 15, 2016 at 1:33 PM with the headline "Fresno firefighters rescue dog trapped in Tower District canal."