Great Dane Stuck In Tree Rescued By Firefighters: Why Did the Massive Pup Climb 20 Feet Up?

A Great Dane stuck in a tree found out something that many cats know but few dogs ever learn: It’s a lot harder to climb down a tree than it is to climb up one, and sometimes it’s just doggone impossible to leave your perfect perch once you’ve reached it. The petrified pooch didn’t have nine lives, so she refused to take the risk of simply leaping out of the tree and hoping that she landed safely on all fours. Luckily, some friendly firefighters helped the Great Dane fulfill her feline fantasy by playing along with it and rescuing her from her leafy prison.

According to CBS News, the Great Dane that is going viral for scrambling up a tree like a monkey is a 125-pound Louisville, Nebraska, native named Kora. The adventurous dog managed to shimmy 20 feet up a tree near her yard before getting stuck and giving up on climbing any higher or getting back down on the ground. Kora’s human, Wes McGuirk, told NewsNet5 that he and his roommate, Jack Armstrong, discovered the Great Dane stuck in the tree after hearing her crying outside.

“We kept hearing her whimper over here somewhere,” Armstrong said. “Then all of the sudden we realized it was coming from up there.”

The Great Dane likely discovered her cat-like climbing ability after giving chase to a critter that is a little more comfortable hanging out high above the ground. According to McGuirk, Kora also had to leap over a five-foot fence before following a raccoon or squirrel up the tree. McGuirk realized that he wouldn’t be able to rescue the Great Dane in distress himself, so he had to call the local fire department and convince them that his massive dog had really managed to get stuck in a tree. As 13NewsNow reports, members of the Plattsmouth Fire Department initially thought his call was a joke.

“We kind of looked at each other… they can’t be serious,” said Lieutenant Jon Hardy.

Luckily for Kora the Great Dane, the dispatcher didn’t hang up on McGuirk, and help was on the way. Kora’s concerned owner climbed up the tree to keep his poor, whimpering pet company while she waited patiently for someone to get her un-stuck.

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“She stayed put, she was not going to move from that spot,” McGuirk told WOWT. “When I even crawled up to her she was not going to move from that spot. So I just kind of held on to her and calmed her down and was like, okay honey, they’re going to be here shortly. We’ll get you out of this tree.”

Members of the Plattsmouth Fire Department quickly showed up at McGuirk’s residence ready to help. They were joined by members of Elmwood Volunteer Fire and Rescue and the Cass County Sheriff’s Office.

According to KETV, the rescue team’s first plan was to see if they could simply get Kora to follow a friend of her owner back down the tree. Unfortunately, she was too frightened to make the rescue effort an easy one. The second plan was to lower her down to the ground slowly using a long leash and a chest harness. However, it soon became clear that this method wasn’t going to work, likely because Kora was so large and heavy.

Firefighters finally decided to gently nudge the Great Dane off of the tree branch that she was cowering on while she was still wearing her harness and leash. A group of rescuers stood beneath the tree holding a tarp, and Kora fell into the safety net after she was lowered about halfway down from her perch. She escaped her adventure without a scratch, and she reportedly “ran into her house like nothing happened.”

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“I’ve been doing this 12 years and this is the first dog we got out of a tree,” Hardy said after successfully rescuing the Great Dane.

McGuirk said that he has his “fingers crossed” that his Great Dane will decide to keep her paws firmly on the ground from now on.

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[Image via Plattsmouth Volunteer Fire Department Facebook]