Dog found after falling off boat

CHICAGO (WLS) - A little life vest-wearing dog that slipped off a boat in the Chicago River Sunday is back with his owners after a nearly 24 hour search, and the help of some good Samaritans.

"It's just a horrible feeling not knowing whether your child is lost on the river somewhere," said Mark Lewis.

Five-year-old Tank, a 10-pound Pomeranian, was wearing a life jacket with the word "Gladiator" written on it. The couple immediately began an extensive, 7-hour search down the river several times, looping around Goose Island searching for Tank.

"I was convinced Tank was not in the water or dead in the water and he was not on the shore, because we would have seen him," said Lewis.

The dog was found not far from where he fell off the boat. Katherine Santos was walking her dog in a park when Tank ran right up to them. Santos said she say media reports on the missing dog and contacted the Lewis family.

"My sister and I, we started looking online and then we saw him. He had the exact same vest on and everything. And then we contact the owner and then we told them we had him," said Santos.

The Lewis family offered Santos a reward, but she refused to accept money for reuniting a family.