How do you safely help a dog out of water?

If your dog jumps into water, and has trouble getting out due to rocks or a steep shoreline, what's the proper safe way to help it out? I saw a girl grab her lab by the collar to help him out of a pond, but was wondering if this hurts the dog at all. He was a pretty big dog, and I don't think she could have picked him upOf course it's best not to let your dog go into water that it can't get out of, but sometimes dogs will find a way in no matter what.

my dog is a Japanese Akita and one day she went for a swim in the duck pond and couldn't get out and i put one of my arms just behind her arms and sort of helped her up, making sure her head kept up

During rescue, anything goes. The main thing is that everyone survives to go home. If there's no other way, any way will do.Dogs have massive muscles in their necks that provide protection to the windpipe, big blood vessels, spinal cord, etc. Not like people. People have fragile necks and we instinctively defend that area. Dogs can take quite a lot of force in that area. As long as it's brief and necessary, it's fine.

Anytime a dog has trouble getting out of the water it is because it's back feet are not touching something. They have to "push off" with their back feet anytime they can't just walk out. So the ideal solution is to find a spot where their back feet will touch bottom.I have jumped into the water to help a dog get out, BUT only when I knew that my feet would touch bottom. And, yes jumping into a hole in the ice is cold.