HARMAR TOWNSHIP, Pa. — Hypothermia can affect Pomeranians in about 90 minutes. So it’s unclear exactly how Bam Bam, a 6-pound Pomeranian, was ok after being stranded on the frozen Allegheny River for 12 hours on Monday.
Kathy Claus is an animal lover who works with Paws across Pittsburgh, so when she saw a social media post Monday morning saying Bam Bam was missing in Harmar Township, Claus was on alert to find him. She started putting the pieces together on Monday afternoon when she received a photo from a neighbor who was taking pictures of the frozen river because it rarely happens here.
“And then he sent me this really blurry picture and said ‘does this look like a dog in this picture’ and I said ‘it does,’” Claus said.
There, Bam Bam was standing on the frozen parts of the river in front of 12 Mile Island, which you can only get to by boat.
“There’s nobody on the island either. You can’t get over there, so there’s no one over there to say ‘oh, I’ll take this dog in for this night,’” she said.
Bam Bam’s owner called Harmar Township Police, who brought in the Allegheny Valley Volunteer Fire Company and the Blawnox Volunteer Fire Company, which sent their water rescue technicians.
Right as crews set up a boat to go out onto the ice and get him, Bam Bam started making his way towards his owner, who was calling his name.
“Slide across the ice somehow, and the dog ended up walking back across here, and he came down this way, and she picked him up at the bottom of the ramp and brought him up the ramp,” Claus said.
It was an emotional reunion some 12 hours after Bam Bam disappeared from their house, more than a half mile away.
“I was bawling, bawling... He was shivering and cold, and turns out he didn’t have any frostbite, didn’t have hypothermia, like was perfectly healthy and it’s a miracle,” Claus said.
Claus says she’s grateful to the emergency responders for going out of their way on a bitter cold night to save Bam Bam.
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