Between 9 December and 9 January, Exmouth Crew volunteers have been tasked to five separate incidents concerning dogs in difficulty on the coast and issue community safety advice to dog walkers.                         

• On 9 December, ‘Luther’ was lucky when he fell 30m from the highest point at Orcombe Point, suffering just a cut to his paw. He was being walked off lead when he went to investigate the view.
• On 27 December, another dog wasn’t so lucky when he fell from the same location and Crew volunteers were tasked to recover the body to the boathouse, where his owner was waiting.
• On 31 December, Crew volunteers were tasked to a dog stranded on an isolated beach below Langstone Rock, Dawlish Warren. Local coastguard teams recovered ‘Boyde’ successfully whilst the Crew stood by for safety cover as sea conditions could have put themselves at risk.
• On New Year’s Day, Crew volunteers were returning from exercise when they were tasked to locate a vulnerable lady and her care dog, thought to have been in the sea. Both appeared on scene, (dry) just as Shannon class lifeboat R and J Welburn and a coastguard helicopter were preparing to launch.
• On 9 January, inshore lifeboat George Bearman II launched to a dog stranded below Langstone Rock – a repeat of the New Year’s Eve incident, with a different dog. Coastguard teams from Teignmouth and Exmouth retrieved ‘Till’ the Labrador successfully and Crew volunteers stood by for safety cover.

Exmouth RNLI is asking dog owners to consider the dangers that may not be immediately noticeable when walking by the coast. Prevention is key for the charity – helping people by providing communities with the skills and knowledge to keep themselves and their pets safe around water and when they visit the coast.

Exmouth RNLI Community Safety Officer, Dave Littlefield commented:

‘While we will always answer the call for help, we would like to see people thinking more about their safety before and during their visit to the coast. By following a few simple steps dog owners can help reduce the number of these types of incidents and keep themselves from further danger.

‘RNLI advice is to always keep dogs on a lead near the edge, and if the worst happens owners should not attempt a rescue. We would not encourage people to enter water or scale cliffs to save pets. More often than not, the person can get into danger. Instead, people should call the Coastguard on 112 or 999.’

For more advice on staying safe whilst dog walking, please see the RNLI website here: https://rnli.org/safety/choose-your-activity/coastal-walking/dog-walking