Several members of the public came together for an impromptu rescue operation at a Jurong West car park.
The target? A brown dog. The location? Well, somehow the dog had gotten wedged in the gap between a car’s tyre and the vehicle itself.
The poor pooch appeared to be entirely off the ground, head facing outwards. All that was missing was a record scratch, a freeze frame, and the dog going, “Yep, that’s me. You’re probably wondering how I got into this situation.”
To the people who found the dog, the bigger question was how to get it out of the situation.
Rescue Attempts for Dog in Wheel Well at Jurong Car Park
In a post on the Facebook group Dogs Singapore, Facebook user Chiam Zhi Lin posted the photo at 7:04 pm, identifying the location as Blk 684 Jurong West Street 24, a multi-storey car park.
Ms Chiam’s colleague spotted the dog stuck in the car. A Chinese couple attempted to free it, but the dog was “medium-sized” and stuck fast.
Ms Chiam contacted ACRES for help, but they were unable to assist, presumably as they handle wildlife and not pets. With no other choice, she sent out an appeal for anyone available to lend a hand.
By 7:14 pm, several people answered the call to aid. Arriving at the Jurong West car park, they tried to figure a way to get the stuck dog out of its peculiar predicament with the wheel.
A commenter on the post called the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) for help but was told to ask the SPCA instead, which they did.
The police also made their way to the scene of the operation. They contacted the car owner and received the okay to jack up the car with a car jack at 7:30 pm.
Operation Free Doggo Successful
Minutes later, the rescue operation concluded with a resounding success, the dog freed from the wheel well at last.
A further update from Ms Chiam came at 7:40 pm. A kind dog owner even showed up with food but the liberated dog refused to eat or drink. Perhaps it wanted to stay thin to avoid getting stuck again.
Those present were waiting for SPCA to arrive to handle the dog, whose owner remained a mystery.
At 8:00 pm, a man showed up to claim the dog, saying it was his friend’s dog which he was caring for. According to him, it just ran out of the house and eventually ended up wedged in a car.
One can only imagine the odyssey the dog went through in between.
The SPCA took down his particulars and attempted to verify his statements, according to Ms Chiam.
That ended the saga of the Jurong West Dog Rescue, with the dog safe and sound, although the dog sitter probably had a tough explanation to give his friend afterwards.
One commenter pointed out the luck of Ms Chiam’s colleague having spotted the dog stuck in the wheel before the car’s owner came and drove off.
Indeed, a very fortunate break for the dog, and a great display of compassion and community spirit for those on hand to help.
The good Samaritans present handled the situation about as well as they could have.
If you spot a pet in danger, you can help by calling the SPCA helpline at 6287 5355.
If the animal in distress is instead wildlife, you can dial 9783 7782 for ACRES Wildlife Rescue. The helpline operates from 7:00 am to 1:00 am daily, having dropped from 24 hours last month due to lack of funding.
In either case, listen carefully to the instructions given on the call to aid the animal in need.