A lifeguard at Beltzville State Park doggy paddled her way to save a drowning man.

Saturday’s rescue marked the fourth for Kelby, a 2½-year-old Newfoundland dog certified in water rescue.

“A man who wasn’t able to swim ended up past his standing depth and began panicking, which in turn led to an active drowning scenario,” said Kelby’s owner, George Abraham, of Thornhurst.

Abraham said that he and Kelby were patrolling the swimming area from their boat when they spotted the man in distress.

“Kelby and I deployed into the water and were able to bring him back to our boat safely,” Abraham said.

According to Abraham, it was a busy day at the beach. Many were swimming or wading in the water.

“We were near capacity at the park,” he said.

Abraham noted that Kelby “works” at Beltzville with other K-9 lifeguard teams every weekend from Memorial Day to Labor Day.

The dogs — and their handlers — are part the American Academy of Canine Water Rescue. It is an all-volunteer, nonprofit organization where dogs are trained to work side by side with water rescue teams.

Kelby saved her first person at Beltzville when she was just 17 months old. She had only been working on the job for two days.

At the time, Abraham said that Kelby had “all the best attributes that you would expect from a Newfoundland — gentle, kind, intelligent and loves to work.”

She wears dog-sized swim goggles and a life jacket, and is able to tow 50 times her own weight.

When Kelby makes a rescue, she’s given a special treat.

“She gets an ice cream on the way home,” Abraham said