Video: Sarasota Police Officer Rescues Florida Chihuahua ‘Tinkerbell’ After She Goes Overboard at Yacht Club

Florida Chihuahua ‘Tinkerbell is back in daddy’s arms after she fell overboard and was rescued by Sarasota Police Officer Michael Skinner.

Sarasota 911 received a call around 7:30 p.m. referencing a man with his dog who fell into the marina outside the Sarasota Yacht Club. Sarasota fire rescue arrived and rescued the man almost immediately. However, the man’s pet chihuahua ‘Tinkerbell’ was missing.

Subscribe to Florida Jolt Newsletter!

The owner’s friends and the local fire department searched for about half an hour without any luck, the water temperature was only about 70 degrees, and now it was getting dark. Officer Michael Skinner of the Sarasota Police Department- Marine Patrol division responded in his boat in search of Tinkerbell.

Tinkerbell

‘We were looking for a little dog in a lot of water,’ Skinner told the Suncoast News Network. ‘You know, with the cool water, small dog, 45 minutes, I knew we were pressed against finding her pretty quickly.’

‘That area is deep, and a lot of the docks there are very high, there’s not a lot of shoreline, there’s a lot of seawalls, so the places for a dog to get out and rescue itself are very limited. Hats off to Tinkerbell for finding a safe spot to hold herself above water,’ said Officer Skinner.

About 15 minutes into the search, Skinner spotted something; as he steered his boat nearer, he saw that it was Tinkerbell, and she was clinging to a piling under a dock. I knew she had probably been under a little bit of stress, so I was a little apprehensive a getting too close, too fast, and come to find out, she was awfully friendly,’ he added.

 

‘I was pretty surprised that I found her; I think she was surprised at the same time,’ he said on the show.

Officer Skinner’s bodycam recorded the entire search and rescue

In the video, Skinner calls Tinkerbell’s name as he scours the darkening marina, scanning the waters with a flashlight.

‘Tinkerbell, hope you don’t bite. Tinkerbell, come on, pup, pup. Hey, Tinkerbell, that’s a lovely name for a Chihuahua. I hope you’re nice,’ the officer is heard saying in the video.

After about 45 minutes in the water, Tinkerbell was back on dry land. The bodycam video captures the excitement and gratitude of the owner’s friends after being reunited with Tinkerbell since her owner was transported to the hospital for a shoulder injury.

‘I don’t know what to say, I just want to hug you!’ a woman who held the dog could be heard telling Skinner. ‘How did you do that? This is just unbelievable; we’ve just been looking and looking and looking.’

‘I don’t know how I found her, to be honest,’ said Skinner told Suncoast News.

He, too, noted how happy everyone was that the dog was safely recovered. ‘I think we had some people upstairs giving us a round of applause and offering us an Oreo milkshake, my partner is still ready for that,’ he joked. ‘I’m sure she’s ready to spend a little time on the land before she does any boating.

Follow Florida Jolt on Twitter

Officer Skinner has been in touch with Tinkerbell and her owner, who has a shoulder injury. They’re doing well, he said.


Other stories you may want to read:

Florida Man Arrested for Cold Case Murder of Pregnant U.S. Soldier in Germany

Al Sharpton’s Half-Brother and Alabama Pastor Pleads Guilty to Tax Evasion in Federal Court.

_Special_interest_friends

 

Comments
Share via
Share via
Thank you for sharing! Sign up for emails!
Making our country Great Again and keeping America First takes teamwork.

Subscribe to our newsletter, join our team of Patriots, and read real conservative news you can trust.

Invalid email address
Give it a try, you can unsubscribe anytime.
Send this to a friend