CASA GRANDE — A five-year-old Golden Lab named Bo is thrilled Wednesday to be reunited with one of the people who helped save his life two weeks ago in Casa Grande.
“He’s a wonderful dog, he’s very well behaved,” said Julian Rodriguez petting the rambunctious pup.
As cute as he is, one thing Bo can’t stay away from is water. His owner Rick says whether it’s a creek, lake or pool, if it has water, Bo can’t help but jump in. The K-9’s love for swimming however recently got him into a sticky situation. One that would lead to an unlikely group of heroes.
“When we got here, this was full of water, the water was running pretty good,” said Julian pointing at a wash leading to a cattle crossing.
Julian and his grandfather run a welding company nearby and got an odd call from Bo’s owner Rick that day. Telling them Bo had jumped into a fast-running wash and was quickly swept under an iron cattle guard.
“Water was up to at least to the bottom of these iron bars, right here is where Rick was laying on his stomach holding on Bo through the bars,” said Julian.
Bo’s owner Rick called 911 but was told there was little they could do. The incident taking place in a rural area off Highway 84 and Montgomery. That’s when Julian says he and his grandfather did what they do best.
“So, we got here, got the torch out, realized we’re gonna have to cut something off in order to make a hole big enough to get Bo out, Bo’s not a small dog,” said Julian.
The crew quickly went to work cutting out a small portion of the bars while Rick kept hold of Bo’s collar to prevent him from submerging in the water.
“You know if we lost his collar, wouldn’t have been very good, wouldn’t have been able to get him back,” said Julian.
Bo’s owner says he’s eternally grateful for the quick actions of Julian and his grandfather, calling it a perfect example of neighborly actions that define this community. Even dropping off a newly framed photograph from the day of the rescue. Writing in the corner of the frame a personal message to Julian Rodriguez Welding. One that said, “thanks for saving my buddy Bo."