Teen Thought He Lost His Dog in Texas Flood—Then Heard Whimpering From the Washing Machine

A high school senior who helped save his family from the deadly Texas floods was devastated at not being able to save his dog—but returned home four days later to find him alive. The dog had miraculously survived the flood by climbing inside a washing machine.

Cody Vlasek from Hunt, Texas, told local outlet KENS 5 that his family had just minutes to escape to higher ground after floodwaters poured into their home in the middle of the night.

Cody and his dad went out in the dark to survey the flooding and realized they had to evacuate right away but their dog had run off. The water reached Cody’s waist in a matter of minutes, leaving no time to search for his dog before he and his parents rushed out of their house and uphill to a neighboring home. Within minutes water filled up their home. They heard the desperate cries of neighbor as they fled.

When Cody came back to survey the wreckage, he broke into the house and heard a noise. “I had to break my window, and when I climbed through, I heard scratching and a whimper. I turned my head around the corner and saw him just floating in the washer,” Cody told KENS 5.

He is both happy and relieved to be reunited with his dog, but the family is trying to cope with the loss of several people they knew. “You can replace a house, but you can’t replace lives,” Cody said.

Cody talks further about his experience in his interview below.