Fishing Crew Rescues Over 3 Dozen Dogs Treading Water in Mississippi Lake: 'We Rescued Every Dog We Saw'

The 38 hounds were stranded in Grenada Lake "for at least 45 minutes to an hour”

A fishing crew caught more than what they bargained for during a recent trip to Memphis.

Bob Gist of Jonesboro, Ark. was at Grenada Lake in Mississippi with his friend Brad Carlisle of Covington, Tenn., when the pair made a startling discovery, local news station Action News 5 reported on Wednesday, June 19.

According to the outlet, the duo was also joined by fishing guide Jordan Chrestman as they headed out in their boat.

Shortly after they left the shore, their tour guide noticed an unusual sight — more than three dozen dogs in Grenada Lake.

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The canines were hounds, and all 38 of them were "wearing expensive radio collars and white paint on them," Action News 5 reports. The three men realized the dozens of dogs were stranded, treading water as they were unable to make their way back to land.

Action News 5 reported that “the dogs were at least a mile offshore” before the fisherman and guide spotted them, and the animals seemed to be lost.

Springing into action, Chrestman cut the excursion short and quickly drove the boat to the distressed group of animals — filling their boat up with as many canines would fit.

Gist also spoke to Jonesboro KEGI radio station about the rescue, saying the animals were swimming in all different directions once their boat arrived.

“They were lost. The dogs were at least a mile offshore. The way their heads were in the water there’s no way they could see the shore. They were dog paddling and completely lost,” Gist said.

The men first loaded 27 dogs into their boat. Once that group was safely dropped off, the guys went back for the remaining 11, both the radio station and news station reported.

Their heroic efforts were anything but easy.

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“When we first started there was this white one that Brad tried to reach for and the dog bit at him. He moved closer to me, so I tried to reach for him, and he tried to bite me, so we left him.” Gist told the radio station. “When we came back for the second load it was probably 30-45 minutes later. By that time, he was ready to get in the boat. He wasn’t biting anybody.”

The canines were reportedly part of a fox hunt, but got distracted by a deer that they chased into the Grenada Lake.

“The dogs jumped a deer; the deer ran and jumped in the lake and ran off and left the dogs. The dogs kept trying to follow the deer and got lost," Gist continued.

He added that he didn't know if any of the dogs in the group had drowned before they were able to rescue the 38.

“We were scared to ask. All I know is we rescued every dog we saw. Dog paddling and treading water for 45-60 minutes in the middle of the lake is a long time.”

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The dogs’ owners reportedly told them they were unable to rescue the pets because they did not have a boat.

The owners reportedly tried to show their gratitude by giving the three money, but the trio declined the offer, saying they just happened to be in the right place at the right time, according to Action News 5.

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