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Don't jump! Kansas cops save dog from highway ledge

One Kansas pooch had an eventful Fourth of July.After a German shepherd found himself perched on a highway ledge on Friday, four Wichita police officers made a daring rescue to get the dog back on safe ground. A photo of the rescue, tweeted out by the Wichita Police Department, has since gone viral. Two officers were completing a traffic assignment under a U.S. Highway 54 overpass when "one of th
Wichita Police Department via Facebook
Wichita Police Department via Facebook

One Kansas pooch had an eventful Fourth of July.

After a German shepherd found himself perched on a highway ledge on Friday, four Wichita police officers made a daring rescue to get the dog back on safe ground. A photo of the rescue, tweeted out by the Wichita Police Department, has since gone viral. 

Two officers were completing a traffic assignment under a U.S. Highway 54 overpass when "one of the officers looks up and sees there is a dog looking back down at him," Daniel East, Wichita’s public information officer, told TODAY.com. East estimated that it is a 30-foot drop from the ledge to the road below.

The two quickly went on the overpass and approached the dog, who East said was about 6 months old, while another pair of officers joined in to help. With one man standing on the ledge, another holding on to the dog's collar and two other officers focused on holding onto both the policemen to keep them from falling over, the dog made it back to safe ground. 

But the dog wasn't quite done with the evening just yet. Once rescued off the ledge, he made a run for it.

“The officers shut down traffic and finally were able to recapture the dog,” East said. One officer offered to take the dog home for the night. In the meantime, the police department posted a picture of the rescue on its social media pages and Craigslist in hopes of locating the owner. The alarming photo quickly went viral not only within Wichita, but throughout the country. 

East reported that the wild child was reunited with his family the next day thanks to the circulating photo. While he couldn't confirm how the dog escaped in the first place, he said the holiday fireworks may have played a role.

"They noticed when the fireworks went off, they felt the dog flinch," East said. “That’s what the officers observed.” 

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