Baltic, the Polish dog rescued from the frigid Baltic Sea after a long journey on an ice floe, is again braving those waters — this time safely onboard the ship that saved him.
Wearing a bright-orange lifejacket, Baltic embarked recently from Warsaw, Poland, on a three-day mission alongside his new owner, Adam Buczynski, a seaman who pulled him to safety from an ice sheet in the Baltic Sea in January.
Buczynski said the dog seemed stressed by the commotion of preparing for the trip. In footage shown on Polish TV, Baltic sat on his lap, his head nestled between Buczynski's legs.
Ewa Baradziej-Krzyzankowska, spokeswoman for the Sea Fisheries Institute in Gdynia, co-owner of the ship, said the crew had anti-nausea pills for Baltic in case he gets seasick.
She said the crew is also taking other precautions to keep the dog safe and comfortable during the voyage, whose purpose is to collect samples of fish and sea plants for an aquarium in Gdynia.
As for answering the call of nature while at sea, Baltic quickly learned that he was to only use one spot on an outdoor deck that gets hosed down regularly, Baradziej-Krzyzankowska said.
Buczynski and other crew members spotted the dog Jan. 25 floating 15 miles from land. The rescue was difficult because the frightened, shivering dog kept falling into the icy water.
Baltic was first seen two days earlier on the Vistula River, 60 miles inland, drifting on ice past the city of Grudziadz, where firefighters tried but failed to save him. It remains unclear where or when the dog's odyssey started.
A vet has declared him to be in remarkably good shape considering his ordeal. Still, she put him on a special diet because of stomach problems resulting from the long stretch without food.
But he isn't really sticking to it because the crew members love to sneak him treats, the spokeswoman said.
"Everybody loves him. All the crew spoils him terribly," she said. "Just imagine — a crew of seasoned sailors who have experienced a lot in their lives, all crazy about a little dog."
Baradziej-Krzyzankowska said since his rescue, Baltic has shown a fear of water. Several days ago he resisted getting a bath that he badly needed to remove crusted salt from his thick fur.
So Buczynski took him in his arms and carried him into the shower.
"They showered together," she said. "This lifted the dog's confidence."
