Puppy Found in Middle of Ocean Swimming for its Life
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136 comments
Over the Memorial Day weekend, a couple boating in the Florida keys said they could not believe their eyes when they found a three pound puppy swimming two miles offshore.
Geni Hernandez and her husband, George, were returning from a day on the water when they spotted something bobbing in the surf off Big Coppitt Key. At first they thought it was a small buoy, but as they neared the floating object, Geni realized that what they saw was a terrified puppy trying to swim back to shore.
“I can’t believe how big the ocean is, and we just rolled up her,” she said. “My husband said it was a buoy, but I said, ‘No, slow down. Slow down.’ It was a puppy swimming for dear life, and not another boat around. I almost died.”
The diminutive young dog, black except for white tips on her paws, was so small that the boat wake pushed her under. Geni was about to dive in after the dog when she resurfaced. When she did, Geni was able to reach her and pull her into the boat.
The couple said they assumed the pup was a lost pet because it was well groomed, in good condition, and was wearing a collar – but with no name tag. Out of desperation they placed a Craigslist ad…and waited.
Fortunately, a friend of a friend who knew the dog’s owner saw the ad. The next day, Geni and George returned the dog to her grateful guardian, who explained through a translator that she had been boating in the same area, and had not noticed that the dog had gone overboard until after returning to shore.
“They went back out and searched for three hours,” Hernandez said. Dejected and assuming that the dog had drowned, they eventually gave up and went home. Their relief at the return of their dog is to be expected, but this was a special canine – given as a gift.
“The dog had been given to her before a family member died of cancer,” Hernandez said. “She cried all night.”
Ohhhh!!! So happy that someone saved him!!!
omg!
omg!!
OMG..
D:
Wow… how do you not notice the dog wasn’t on board anymore? I smell bullshit.
Woof woof!
8 
2
Me too!!!!!!
Thank Goodness the puppy was saved!!
That is so wild. Thank goodness they were in the right place at the right time
aww poor little pup
x
what a miracle
I’m so happy for the dog and the owner but really…..any dog in a boat in any body of water especially the ocean needs to wear a life preserver! Think of the terror that of poor dog went through for 24 hours! And yes I know it wasn’t intentional but always put a life preserver on.
Woof woof!
11 
0
What???
Happy ending.
People are so careless…
aw…unbelievable!
That’s why they make life jackets for dogs!!!!
Woof woof!
8 
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what an amazing story!
Careless… I hope she learned her lesson and never do so again… poor puppy, but I’m glad they found it and could save it.
can anyone tell me why a little puppy would be on a boat? and if so, why not in a crate/cage? though this family was very upset and made attempts to locate the pup, this is stupidity on their part to bring a little guy aboard…just my opinion…
OMG
Poor puppy! So glad pup was found. I hope this isnt some crazy pub stunt…for sake of pooch
I’m happy the puppy was saved, without a doubt. I however don’t feel the dog should have been returned to the owners who lost it.
Woof woof!
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Man some of you people are harsh, not giving the dog back blah blah blah….people make mistakes that’s how we learn. Thank God the pup was ok and was able to return to it’s owner. Some of you holier than thou “dog lover’s” make me sick. You act like you have never ever made a mistake. I’m glad you are all so perfect that you can criticize someone elses mistake. I hope you never lose your dogs because someone like you may not return it because you were not a “responsible ” pet owner.
I have never made a “mistake” that could have cost my dog his/her life, no I haven’t. So, you can continue to be sick!
How could you not know that your dog went overboard (shaking my head)
Woof woof!
5 
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Accidents happen!
Sure, accidents do happen. Everyone understands that. But a responsible pet owner would put a vest on their loved pet. If they weren’t prepared to take the puppy onto the boat, it should have stayed home.
What part of this story is great? The part where the dog (puppy actually) was over board terrified swimming for its life for god knows when, the part where not one member of its new family even noticed he was missing or the part where the no doubt terrified dog was handed back to the family who lost it OVERBOARD in the first place? Yeah amazing.
Woof woof!
10 
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No doubt. At best, they are totally irresponsible dog owners. At worst, they are full of BS and were trying to get rid of it
I totally agree, what jackholes!! The thought of the poor thing trying to swim and stay afloat for 24 hours INURIATES ME!!!! The fear and exhaustion it must’ve went through, just horrible! Let them battle waves, cold water, darkness for hours on end, I’M PISSED! PEOPLE SUCK.
I totally agree, what jackholes. The thought of the poor little thing trying to swim and stay afloat for 24 hours JUST INFURIATES ME!!!!!!!!!! The exhuastion and fear it must have went through, how horrible. No way in hell that owner would’ve gotten that poor pup back. PEOPLE SUCK. Let them swim for 24 hours, in waves, cold water, darkness…I’M PISSED!!!!
Thank God these puppies are safe now.
Fisherman use puppies as bait.
If this were a child would it have been handed back to the family? This careless family shouldn’t have a dog period.
Woof woof!
14 
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two miles offshore? Don’t take a puppy with you or ANY dog. What a dumbass.
Awww poor little guy. Glad they found him <3
People should be more responsible with their pets – At least they should have put a life jacket on the dog – they make them for dogs!
searched for 3 hours?!?! I’d be searching until I found my dogs. My dogs also would not be on a boat in the ocean without a life jacket, and would also not be unaccounted for at ANY time during the trip. For something so important to this person, they sure didn’t take any precautions…. The people who found the puppy should have kept it!
Woof woof!
9 
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Talk about needle in a haystack! Or puppy in an ocean… dogpaddling…
Poor little soul with all that water around him, how scared he must have been. So glad he was found! An angel was watching over him.
Woof woof!
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I’ve got a Newfoundland, KNOWN for loving the water and being excellent swimmers, and I might take him to a small lake without a vest but not out in the ocean.
Thank God the dog was saved! Very irresponsible the owners don’t have a life jacket and how do you know realize your dog missing! smh. I wish the couple that found the dog would’ve kept it
Life jackets are so very important for dogs! This baby is so blessed two angels came by!
I’m happy the puppy was saved, but very unhappy it was given back to the owner!! That was pure neglect, to take such a small “puppy” on a boat, then not to hold on to it or have proper protection for it!! How do you not notice, that puppy should not have been out of her site being in an unstable situation where 1 bounce could throw it out of the boat, like it did!!!!!
Dogs don’t belong in boats. They shoulda just not taken the puppy.
life jacket…tether… as we used with our other babies
Aw!
Ouch. That hurts my heart
What a story! What a lucky dog!
Oh My word So Thankful:( somone found that little pupy whats wrong with people
Incredible!
Miracle puppy!
so glad the little peanut had the strength to last that long. A life vest is important because dogs are people, too
miraculous!
they didn’t notice the puppy missing in the boat until they got to shore? WTF? I would never have given them the dog back – irresponsible and stupid to take a puppy on a boat in the first place
What a great story xxxx
Chris has a point what if this person was using this poor Dog as bait;( I hope this case is INVESTIGATED!
just amazing!
How sad!!!
I have a hard time understanding the carelessness of freakin people. WTF… If my dog was ever on a boat he would be tied down in the center so he wouldn’t jump off and he would be with me at all times… People seriously lack common sense it’s scary!! I hope they don’t have any children.
sounds like a fishy story to me. more like they wanted to get rid of it
such a sad story….kudos to the couple for finding and saving the pup, but returning her would have been against my better judgement…poor puppy!!!
It’s amazing that the little puppy survived all night and kept swimming. She sounds like a very strong little dog. So glad she was found.
How could one not know that their puppy was missing on a boat until after they got back to shore….sounds a bit suspicious to me.
Oh My. Poor little thing. How horrible.
Next time maybe the idiot owners will put a life vest on that poor dog. How could they not notice she was missing? I’m so glad those good folks were in the right place at the right time to save the dog!
thats the strength of the pup and love from God. that baby was determined to live.. I hope this family is looked unto. I would’ve kept her… shoot. they must have been drunk not to notice…
Oh my goodness! So glad the little one was found and saved!!!!
Where is PETA!!! Why was his dog handed back to the careless and reckless owners!!! # 1 why did his dog not have a life vest on? # 2 if NO life vest the dog should have stayed on shore! #3 were any animal cruelty charges filed? #4 I hope to God that these people have no children.
Amazing!
awwwww so glad they saved the baby
How unbelievably careless. A puppy in a boat? OFFSHORE?!????? Really??? Glad it was found, no way in hell should it remain with those that “lost” it in the first place.
Obviously they didn’t know any better about how to take care of a dog. I’m sure they will be more cautious and attentive.
where is the dislike button? Kudos to the Hernandezs!
Florida seems to be the state I read most about..whats up with that? I read a story about a starved pup…now this
Oh, sweet Jesus!!!! What happened to that poor puppy?!?! Thank God he was saved!!!!
There is a god.
There is a god….
sounds like they tried to get rid of the puppy. dont believe their story for one minute. sorry she was given back to them!!
People are asses
That poor little guy deserves better than those worthless louts who let if run loose and fall in. They should NEVER have animals at all. Would they let their child do the same thing???? As far as I’m concerned, my animals ARE my family and I treat them as such.
These dog owners are worthless…how do you not notice your dog isn’t in your boat?
This really pisses me off!!!!!!!!!!
Sorry- the owners sucked and should not have gotten her back.
thank God they found him!!!!!!!
Dogs have life vests also. Hope they get one if they bring him out again. Poor thing. Glad it turned out good.
Jeez.
Thank god pup still fight to live ! The loser owner seem rid of the pup! I glad the pup still live …
HOPE HE IS OK
omg your stories are all so depressing and make me cry
I wouldn’t give back to the them . The owner is dum ass !
My hubby & daughter were on a Sea Doo a few yrs. ago and found a small dog swimming in the bay in FL. As they got closer, the saw a Dolphin swimming around it. They pulled it out of the water and brought it back to the house. It’s eyes were beat red from salt water, so we gave it a shower and cooked it some hamburger. Father in law went on ship to shore radio on his boat and announced we’d found it and gave our number. Got a call from the owner and it had fallen from their boat about 90 min. before we found it and it was 13 yrs old. She came to get it and just cried because she was so happy to have her back. It was so cool.
Pisses me off…….the so called owners have no right to have him back!!!!
You have got to have the best stories ever!!!!!! I love reading your site…..
OMG, so amazing, I would have never endangered my babies like that, its a miracle he didn’t get eaten by sharks, bless his little heart );
First thought was live shark bait. Asshole fisherman use live puppies as bait for big game fish. Glad this puppy story has a good ending.
Ahhhhhhhhh. That’s all I can say! Thankful for the GOOD people out there!!
Horrifying! Amazing how people ditch their animals. ANd a puppy!!
I would not have given that dog back.
That poor little thing. :’( The idiot owners should have had him on a leash, so something like that wouldn’t have happened.
The thought makes me really nauseous. Poor pup.
People suck …..
Gods miracle…
She could not have been that heart broken or she would have made sure that the dog/pupppy was by her side at all times… neglect…. i am happy that the dog was rescued but the owner needs to really pay more attention…
that is a terrible thing to say, you or i can’t know what is in her heart.
I think we can guess at what is in her heart just by the fact that her dog was lost in the ocean and they didn’t even notice ( supposedly). I’m pretty sure they did this purposely cause I can’t imagine how else it could have happened. Imagine yourself in a boat in the ocean. Can you see any way that if you brought your puppy with you that you would let it out of your sight for even a second? I can’t either. No way. No how.
How do you even LOSE a dog on a boat? I can’t lose my dog in my house and it’s much bigger than a boat! Now a cat? A cat I could see not noticing. A dog? Nope, can see not noticing your dog was missing unless you are one of those too-stupid-to-live ppl
Bless those who found the puppy, and maybe in the future, puppy should stay at home when the family goes boating…duh.