Fishermen in Mississippi Heroically Save 38 Dogs from Drowning in Lake

Three men fishing in Mississippi were in the right place at the right time.

Bob Gist and his friend Brad Carlisle met in Memphis to travel to Grenada Lake for a fishing trip. They expected to catch fish, not a massive pack of lost dogs.

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Three Dozen Dogs Found Treading Water

Gist, from Jonesboro, Arkansas, and Carlisle, of Covington, Tennessee, met up with their fishing guide, Jordan Chrestman, and set out for their day of fishing on Grenada Lake, not anticipating making such an incredible discovery.

The fishing crew had not been out on the water long when they noticed movement in the distance. When they got closer, much to their surprise, they realized it was dozens of dogs. The first thought was, why are all these dogs out here swimming so far from shore without anyone in sight?

The fisherman noticed the hound dogs were all wearing matching expensive radio collars with white paint on them. It was obvious to Gist that the dogs were clearly lost and had been treading water for a while. The dogs couldn't see the shore and were at least a mile away from the shore.

Right Place At The Right Time

Quick thinking from the fishing crew is what saved the dogs. Without hesitation, the fishing guide, Chrestman, guided the boat close enough so Gist and Carlisle could pull each dog out of the water. The only problem was, there were over 30 dogs and they were not able to fit them all on the boat and would need to take multiple trips.

Gist told Action News 5 that they loaded 27 dogs on the boat, went to shore, and then turned around and went to save the remaining 11 with the help of a man with a GPS tracker that could easily locate the others still treading water. That's over three dozen dogs, 38 to be exsact.

Fox Hunt Gone Wrong

So, how did 38 dogs end up in the middle of a lake? It turns out they were part of a fox hunt and got distracted by a deer that went to the lake. The dogs had been treading water 'bobbing for fish' for 45 minutes.

The dog owners wanted to compensate for the heroic actions of the fishing crew, but they turned it down and were just happy to be in the right place at the right time.