Bowie home safe with Jette Saunders after wild peninsula police chase
A border collie named in honour of David Bowie put the boys in blue under pressure during a mad chase. But did it all turn out hunky dory?
South East
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A dare devil dog is lucky to be alive after leading police on a wild chase that ended in a dramatic rescue on Port Phillip Bay.
Bowie the border collie almost drowned on Sunday after getting into trouble in waters off Schnapper Point on the Mornington Peninsula.
The pooch ended up in the bay about 2pm after spending the morning dodging police.
First Constable Travis Perkins and Senior Constable Michael Davies spotted Bowie “running amok” while patrolling in Mornington.
“She was super quick. We couldn’t catch her,” Constable Perkins said.
Later in the day the pair heard reports of a dog in trouble in waters off Schnapper Point.
The description matched that of the dog they had been pursuing earlier so they went to help.
By the time they arrived Bowie was about 200m from shore and struggling to keep her head above the waves.
Constable Perkins alerted a nearby fisherman to the distressed canine.
“He was great; swung into action straight away and headed towards the dog,” he said.
Meanwhile, Constable Davies had convinced the owner of a fishing trawler docked at nearby Mornington pier to head back out.
Neither vessel could get close enough to Bowie for those on board to pluck her from the water but they managed to usher her back to shore.
Once on land the Houdini hound was collared using a lead offered provided by a local dog walker.
Bowie’s owner Jette Saunders was “hugely grateful” to everyone who helped save her beloved dog.
“I was at work and had no idea what had happened until my Mum rang and told me a council ranger had just dropped Bowie off at her place in Dromana,” Ms Saunders said.
“I felt sick when I heard about what she’d been up to.”
Ms Saunders, who now lives in Kew, had left Bowie in a Mornington backyard with her other dog.
“My partner’s family live there and it has a shoulder high fence but Bowie must have jumped it,” she said.
Hormones are believed to be behind the two-year-old’s escapades.
“I was told she was on heat and that’s what made her crazy,” Ms Saunders said.
“It won’t be happening again. We’ve now got her booked in to be spayed.”
