A dog has been rescued after being swept out to sea and swimming four miles in five hours.
Ziggy the Labrador was eventually found by a kind hearted tourist.
His owners Marco Ceccon and Marinella Giaretta were on a boat trip when the pooch dived into the water.
They joined their dog in the sea, but were quickly separated by the strong currents.
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The couple struggled to get back on the boat and could only look on as their black Labrador vanished from view.
They quickly posted on a Facebook group: “Due to the currents and wind, we lost sight of him.
“Please, whoever finds him, call this number.”
The dog disappeared off the coast of Pellestrina, a small island located south of Venice, Italy, last Saturday (6 Jul).
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Marco later explained: “It was around 12.30pm, there were seven of us on the boat, including several kids and Ziggy.
“The dog jumped in, but we never imagined, even though we knew the area well, that the currents were so strong.
“Despite all my attempts, using all my strength, to stay close to the dog, the currents were stronger.
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“They got the better of us and our Labrador disappeared from view.”
Five long hours passed without a word on the eight-year-old pooch.
Then, at around 5.30pm, Marco received the message he had been hoping for: “The dog has been found.”
An Italian tourist named Ksenia spotted the dog swimming to the coast in the area of San Pietro in Volta.
Ziggy had apparently swum a distance of 3.7 miles (6km) in five hours.
She said the Labrador looked exhausted so she dried him off, gave him some food and water, and took him back to her hotel room to rest.
Then she saw the social media buzz and realised she had found Ziggy.
The dog was reunited with his owners shortly afterwards, as reported on What’s the Jam.
Marco said: “Luckily, he wasn’t scared by his misadventure.
“In fact, two days later, I took him for a walk near our home in Vicenza, he wanted to go in the water again.”
He added: “I’d like to thank everyone involved in his rescue.”
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