NATION

'A race against time:' video shows New Jersey firefighters freeing dog from tire rim

James Powel
USA TODAY

There is a cliche about cats and curiosity but one dog's day was disrupted when it put its nose (and head) where it didn't belong.

The Franklinville Fire Department in southern New Jersey freed Daisy — an 11-month-old dog — after the pup got its head stuck in a tire rim.

Department officials said in a Facebook post Friday that Daisy's owners had attempted to release the dog using soap and water before calling in the volunteer firefighters.

"I figured it would be pretty easy to get it out, obviously not. Tried everything to try to move her head in there, then we made the decision to call the fire department," Austin Delano, Daisy's owner, told NBC affiliate WCAU. "It was, like, unreal, like is this really happening, like, does the dog really have her head stuck in a tire right now?"

"We had to make a move fast"

When firefighters arrived, it was clear that Daisy was in distress.

"We tried some soap, water; we tried plastic bag, we tried some oil," Franklinville Fire Company assistant chief Joe Szwed told WCAU. "We realized it started turning into a race against time. Her eyes were turning red, she was kind of gasping for air a little bit. That’s when we started to realize we had to make a move fast."

The dog was eventually freed when lieutenant Brandon Volpe used his personal plasma cutters on the rim, according to the Facebook post. Daisy was unharmed in the incident.

The ordeal lead Delano to join the volunteer fire department.

"Gonna be going in on Monday, put in an application for a firefighter," Delano said. "It will be good to help other people and hopefully nobody’s dog gets its head stuck in a wheel again."