Fort Worth officer rescues dog from freeway

A Fort Worth police officer went beyond the call of duty to rescue at dog running loose on the freeway.

Officer James Shiderly may be used to chasing criminals but Tuesday afternoon, he was after a different kind of perp.

“How am I going to get this dog off the freeway without it getting run over or myself run over?,” said Shiderly.

The officer chased the dog about a mile down Interstate 30 before it lost steam.

“Got off my bike and tried to chase it down,” said Shiderly. “And picked it up. It tried to bite me.”

The officer and other drivers were able to corner the dog and get it to safety.

"One, I'm a dog lover. Two, if that's somebody's dog, I would hate to have to find that dog and say, 'Hey, your dog's dead on the freeway,’” explained Shiderly. “I know some people look at dogs as parts of the family.”

But not long after that, another dog was running loose on 287 at Wilbarger. 

“We heard this horrifying crunch and we thought for sure the dog was dead,” said driver Tamara McMeans.

The dog was hit by a car and then jumped off the bridge, landing about 20 feet below. Fort Worth fire and police stepped in to help. Rescuers named the pit bull mix ‘Bridget Rose' after her escapades.

“The elbow is out of joint. But it's so out of joint, it has to be put back in surgically,” said Danielle Stewart with Apollo Support and Rescue Group. “And the back femur is busted.”

Despite the injuries, rescuers expect Bridget Rose to be okay.

“If it was my dog, I would want somebody else to go out there and try to save my dog for me,” said Shiderly.

Bridget Rose is scheduled for surgery on Thursday. Apollo Support and Rescue says they're still trying to raise money for her surgery. After that, it'll be at least six weeks before she can be put up for adoption.