SAN DIEGO — A German shepherd mix found trapped between two boulders in Valley Center has been adopted by the parents of a firefighter who helped rescued her.
The dog, appropriately named “Rocksann” by her rescuers, has a new forever home with the family of firefighter Jeremy Randall, the county announced Wednesday. “The best fit out of nine applicants turned out to be the parents of the firefighter who carried the dog out of the ravine,” County Animal Services said.
“We’re very careful with her being new,” said Randall’s father, Rick, of helping the pup settle in. “We thought she’d be pacing or something, but she’s sprawled out on her bed, not one issue from her.”
The Randalls added that Rocksann always likes to make sure someone is near her and hates the dreaded “cone of shame.”
A local couple first alerted the county’s Department of Animal Services the dog was stuck between the boulders in a ravine near their property April 12. The couple recognized Rocksann as a stray they had fed in the past.
Firefighters with the Valley Center Fire Protection District were able to shift and chip away at the rocks to free the pup. They took her to the county’s Carlsbad Animal Shelter to recover until she could be adopted.
“She probably went in after a rabbit or squirrel but when she got in there, got her head stuck,” said county Animal Control Officer Denise Gove. The dog had been trapped for days, county officials said.
Rocksann was treated for crushing injuries she suffered while stuck between the rocks, and animal care staff said she likely would have died due to dehydration within another day or two if she hadn’t been found.
“She was stuck in an unusual location and being a black-and-tan shepherd, looking from a distance you couldn’t see her,” Gove said.
