Watch As Wisconsin Firefighters Rescue Dog That Fell Through Ice

ARGYLE, WI — A local fire department got some unexpected water rescue experience just before Christmas when a German shepherd that thought it was safe wandering out onto some thin ice fell through into the water.

Members of the Argyle-Adams Volunteer Fire Department were called Saturday to a partially frozen pond in Argyle on a report of a dog that was trapped, half-stuck, in ice.

Authorities learned that Pepper, an 8-month-old German shepherd, wandered out onto the pond in his owner's backyard before the calamitous breakthrough.

The department's water rescue team took to the pond, with two firefighters plunging into the water while others manned rescue ropes, eventually saving the dog.

"You don't realize how cold that water is and the effect it has on you, along with trying to rescue your animal and trying to get out of the ice," Argyle Fire Chief David Soper said in a WKOW report. "The cold water will definitely take its toll, and you're definitely risking your own life trying to save your dog."