10 minutes from retrieving to "should be dead"

[Troy B]

Holy smokes, I can't even begin to imagine. I'm glad he's doing well and hope his full recovery is quick.

[Jason E.]

Talked to Matt a little bit ago and ACE is doing great. He has eatin this morning and should be going home today . Blood work and urine tests all look good.

[johnp]

Glad to hear that Ace is doing well. It took a lot of guts to post that and it reminds us all that even when we think everything is alright sometimes we need to listen to our dogs. Hoping for a complete recovery of Ace, and sending prayers your way.

John

[Scott Adams]

Matt,
I don't think you should be faulted at all for what happened. When the dogs situation became obvious, you responded.
You deserve credit for what happened afterward. You saved Aces' life.
Your response was impressive.
Hope all is well.

Scott

[Eric Fryer]

Thanks for sharing the incident with us, what an eye opener!! I am thrilled that he is on the rebound.

This past weekend we were hunting on a frozen lake for geese and mallards. Jax marked a winged greenhead that went down 4-500 yards out and broke. It was all I could do to get her to stop. The ice was not good out there and it would have been fatal had she kept going another 80 yards or so. There was a high wind and she could not hear the whistle and the remote on my collar was not holding a charge. Luckily she heard one last ditch effort sit whistle and I called her in. It did not look good at all there for a couple of minutes though...

Thanks again for sharing, I know I learned something from it.

[thunderdan]

Matt,

How is your pup doing today?

[DUCK DGS]

Thanks, Jason, for the update from Matt! So happy to hear that Ace is on the mend. Positive thoughts and prayers are sent from Maine for a continued and full recovery!

Sue

[Bustin']

The fact that you posted this is greatly appreciated. I hope it is ok for me to print it off for all my hunting buddies? I am not sure about temps in TN but North Dakota gets pretty cold and icy in late October. Hope all is well, and good luck!

[Finn McCool]

Matt, I can't imagine the rollercoaster of emotions you must have gone through in the last few days. I also have been criticized for using a vest, but i could not care less. The devotion we get from our dogs is worth every measure of safety. Good wishes to you and Ace, and please send some of those ducks to South Louisiana. My poor boy's got nothing to retrieve!

[Kristie Wilder]

Wow, what a story... I'm so sorry you had to endure this, Matt.

I think the BIGGEST lesson here, more than anything, is that our dogs will push and plod through the worst conditions to retrieve. It's just like we normally don't know they have cancer until they're eaten up with it... They are just so happy to work and live, they don't let us know when they're in pain or sick. And by the time they do... As in Ace's case, it's close to the end.

It's a great story and I hope one with a 100% happy ending. Thanks for having the guts to post it on here, Matt, as a lesson to everyone and as heartwarming miracle that we can all appreciate for many reasons...

I will pray for a full and healthful recovery. I would think if he had DIC (disseminated intravascular coagulation -- Joie had it when he got sick in 1993 and lost his legs as a result), he would have had it by now? Or at least I hope he's out of the woods for it...

Thanks again for sharing. HAPPY NEW YEAR!!! Here's to healthy dogs and safe hunting!

-Kristie