'She's a real Michael Phelps': Dog rescued from water on Lake Michigan reunited with owner

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Tuesday, July 30, 2019
Lost dog rescued from water in Montrose Harbor reunited with owner
A dog was rescued by police Monday from Lake Michigan on the North Side was reunited with its owner two days after it went missing.

CHICAGO (WPVI) -- A dog was rescued by police Monday from Lake Michigan was reunited with its owner two days after it went missing.

Chicago Police Officer Ordaz Jiminez and FTO Terzich received a call for a dog in the water at the Montrose Harbor, according to a tweet by CPD.

Around 10 a.m., they called the Chicago Police Marine Unit and the Chicago Fire Department for help.

"I just wanted to make sure that the dog was still alive and was going to be able to reunite her with its owner," Terzich said.

Police rescued the dog, named Laila, from Lake Michigan, about half-mile offshore. They took the dog to a veterinarian and reported that the dog was in "good, tail-wagging condition," a police spokesperson said.

The dog's owner, Charles Bogenberger, said he was at the Montrose dog beach Saturday when Leila ran out of a gate that had been left open.

"My first thought was, 'Is she alive?' I didn't think she was going to make it through the weekend but this girl is a fighter, she can survive," Bogenberger said.

Laila was safely reunited with Bogenberger Monday afternoon.

"I had no idea she could swim until yesterday, but apparently she's a real Michael Phelps," Bogenberger said.

Bogenberger said he adopted Laila from a shelter in Denver, Colorado.

Sun-Times Media Wire contributed to this report.

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