Dodge County Sheriff's officials rescue 56-year-old man, Labrador Retriever from private pond

DODGE COUNTY (WITI) -- Dodge County Sheriff's officials say a man and a dog had to be rescued from a private pond on County Highway Q near Ranch Road in the Town of Shields -- four to five miles from the city of Watertown.

Dodge County Sheriff's officials were called out to the scene around 6:00 p.m. Sunday, March 15th by a woman reporting her 56-year-old husband had gone into the water after going out onto the ice on a private pond to rescue a family dog.

Deputies from the Sheriff’s Office responded along with Watertown Fire and EMS.

A Sheriff's deputy was first to arrive and deployed an ice/water rescue throw-bag which is issued to all deputies.  The man and dog were both rescued and pulled to shore using the throw-bag.

The man was taken to the hospital. His condition is unknown -- but he appeared to be suffering from symptoms of hypothermia.  He had been in the water for 17 minutes at the time of the rescue, Sheriff's officials say.

The dog, a black Labrador Retriever, appeared to be doing fine.

The pond was a private pond with a maximum depth of about 20 feet.  The victims were about 25-30 feet from shore at the time of the rescue.