Dog Missing Since July 4 Found Swimming Half a Mile Out in San Francisco Bay

A small dog that disappeared after being frightened by Fourth of July fireworks has been reunited with its family following a dramatic rescue from the middle of San Francisco Bay.

The dog, identified in some reports as Prieta, vanished from her East Palo Alto home during the Independence Day weekend. Her owners spent nearly two agonizing weeks searching shelters and hoping someone had found her.

Then, on July 16, somebody called 911 after spotting a small black dog enter the water near the Dumbarton Bridge.

Instead of turning around, the frightened animal simply kept swimming.

The Menlo Park Fire Protection District launched an unusually large rescue operation involving two fire engines, a rescue boat and an airboat. Responders initially located the tiny animal through binoculars before launching a drone to follow her movement from above.

By that point, Prieta was reportedly nearly half a mile from shore.

Video from the operation shows the exhausted dog paddling through the gray bay water as seagulls circle and swoop around her. East Palo Alto police later described the scene as resembling an action movie.

Firefighters approached in a boat and managed to pull the shivering animal from the water. Back on land, rescuers wrapped her in towels and dried her off before transferring her to the Peninsula Humane Society & SPCA.

Shelter employees scanned the dog and located her owners, finally ending a search that had lasted nearly two weeks.

Prieta’s owner later thanked the rescuers publicly, describing the preceding days as a period of agony and saying the family would remain forever grateful for the dog’s safe return.

Exactly where Prieta spent the days between her disappearance and her plunge into San Francisco Bay remains unknown. But after surviving nearly two weeks alone, a lengthy swim, cold water and an airborne escort of aggressive seagulls, she was reportedly resting safely at home.

The rescue also serves as another warning about the effect fireworks can have on animals. Dogs frightened by explosions may bolt through doors, climb fences or continue running long after the noise has stopped.

In Prieta’s case, her Independence Day adventure nearly carried her out to sea.

Fortunately, one observant witness made the call—and firefighters were willing to launch practically everything but a Coast Guard cutter to bring her home. Menlo Park-area news report, ABC7 San Francisco