TREACLE the Jack Russell did not realise just what thin ice he was skating on when he ventured on to a frozen pond.

The tenacious terrier ran on to the ice-covered pond at Quarrington Hill, in east Durham, yesterday morning following a night of sub-zero temperatures.

But as he made his journey to a clump of weeds, the temperature began to rise, causing the ice to melt around him.

The fire brigade was alerted when it became clear that the dog was stranded on the melting ice and in danger of being drowned in the deep water.

Firefighters arrived at the scene and summoned the help of a tender from Durham, which is fitted with water rescue equipment. A second engine from Bishop Auckland was also dispatched with a specialist team and a rescue boat.

A spokesman for the Durham and Darlington Fire and Rescue Service said: "We first used the boat to break the thin ice and rowed across the pond and picked up Treacle. He had been on the pond for sometime and was suffering from hypothermia.''

Treacle's owner, a local farmer, was on the scene and helped the terrier to warm up.

"Other than being very cold and frightened from his ordeal, he was otherwise uninjured,'' said the spokesman.