For many humans, few things compare to a refreshing spa day. But as one harrowing story out of Florida proves, our pets don’t always find pool time quite as relaxing.

Two firefighters were called to the scene in Cape Coral, FL, by a worried neighbor who heard her neighbor’s dog frantically barking. When the worried resident peeked into the yard to see what was wrong, the neighbor could see one dog struggling to stay afloat in the pool while the other dog sounded the alarm.

“They heard a dog barking in distress and when they looked for the source, they saw their neighbor’s dog had fallen into the spa and couldn’t get out,” the Cape Coral Fire Department wrote on Facebook. The second dog refused to stop barking until help arrived.

Fortunately, firefighters arrived just in time to fish the drowning pup out of the water, and then proceeded to dry and comfort the dog after this terrifying ordeal. We especially love the photos firefighters took with the dogs post-rescue. The rescued dog (on the right) is staring up at his rescuer with gratitude and love. Meanwhile, the barking dog (on the left) keeps a watchful eye on his fur sibling, almost as if he fears the pup might fall in the pool again if he dares look away.

Regardless, the fire department used this rescue story as an opportunity to remind pet owners about water and pool safety. “While pools are a lot of fun, they can be very dangerous for children and pets,” rescuers wrote on Facebook.

In addition to teaching your dog how to swim, it’s vital that dogs, kids, and anyone else who could possibly fall into your backyard pool has easy access to an escape ramp or staircase. It’s unclear whether the drowning pup didn’t know how to swim and/or just didn’t have a way to get out of the pool, but either way we’re so grateful firefighters arrived in time to help.

https://www.facebook.com/CapeCoralFD/posts/3436973586367404

“For children, always follow the ABCs of pool safety: A – Adult Supervision. B – Barriers. C – know CPR. S – Swim Lessons,” firefighters wrote. “These apply to pets as well. Swim lessons for pets include making sure they can swim and that you teach them how to exit the pool. If stairs are not accessible, ramps are commercially available that will help aid an animal’s escape.”

Does your dog know how to swim? How did you teach them?