When Ken Wiesner’s two pit bulls went into the water, they didn’t just go for a quick dip. Instead, Kaylie and Ellah proved that they were adept at pursuing a very unusual kind of prey.

Dogs often like to go frolicking in water when they are out for a stroll – whether their owners want them to or not. But while many canines don’t typically bring back gifts after dips in the depths, Ken Wiesner’s two pets buck that trend. Indeed, on one occasion, the animals delivered some rather unusual presents to the human filming them on the bank.

Wiesner, from British Columbia, is the owner of two pit bulls named Kaylie and Ellah. The Canadian man wasn’t with his dogs when they displayed their quite surprising and remarkable skill, however; the animals had been left in the care of a friend instead. What’s more, that individual filmed Kaylie and Ellah’s escapades, with Wiesner later sharing the footage online.

But even if the pair of pit bulls behaved rather unexpectedly on camera, some of their character traits are entirely in line with those for which their breed is known. Pit bulls are recognized for their self-assuredness and enthusiasm, for example, and Kaylie and Ellah displayed both of these qualities during their watery adventure.

And like other types of dogs, pit bulls are incredibly intelligent and pick up any commands relatively quickly. Despite a reputation as being aggressive, the breed is also rather affectionate. Pit bulls aren’t known for doing exactly what Kaylie and Ellah did on their walk, however.

Yet when the two dogs were released to play in the water, there’s no inkling of what they would do next. The footage begins with Kaylie happily running into a river and splashing about adorably – so far, so normal for canines. Then, it appears, the animal is chasing something lurking beneath the surface.

And as Kaylie turns around, it’s clear that she’s finally caught her prey: a wild salmon. But while the fish is a large one and is seen to be flapping about with some vigor, the pit bull nevertheless manages to keep a firm grip on the creature in her mouth.

Then, perhaps tired from hauling the weight of the fish, Kaylie momentarily lets go of the salmon to have a much-needed shake. Naturally, the salmon takes this opportunity to escape from the crafty canine – but to no avail, as Kaylie neatly scoops it up yet again and takes it towards the bank.

Even after her prey is safely stowed on the rocks, however, Kaylie wastes no time in pursuit of the next catch. She trots around in the shallows for a few moments before heading further into the river. Then a commotion in the water catches her attention – and in virtually the blink of an eye, the pit bull has caught another enormous salmon.

In less than a minute, then, Kaylie has caught two fish – a feat that even humans would envy. This time, though, the brown dog does not let go of her latest victim. And with care, she mounts the bank and lays the salmon next to her first catch before treating herself to another satisfying shake.

And it’s not just Kaylie who can boast of a flair for fishing: her canine counterpart, Ellah, also seems to be skilled in that arena. The white pit bull appears to take a much more considered approach when scouting for fish, though. Before she has even left the bank, she knows where she is headed –and, sure enough, she finds what she is looking for.

Keeping her head under water, Ellah gets a comfortable grip on the salmon before pulling it out of the deep. Luckily for her, her prey is not struggling like Kaylie’s was, and she is able to carry it to the bank with relative ease. But the question still remains: which of the dogs is the best fisher?

Well, judging by the video, Kaylie is seemingly the most passionate about her pursuit. And by the time the clip begins to draw to a close, the pit bull looks to have her fish-catching technique down pat. There’s still room for error, though, as Kaylie finds out to her chagrin.

After the brown dog clinches her final salmon, she leaves it on the bank – exactly as she had done with the others. On this occasion, however, after Kaylie has let go of the fish, the salmon flaps energetically and ends up back in the water. Still, all is not lost, as Kaylie manages to recapture the escape artist before it evades her entirely.

And on the whole, both Kaylie and Ellah excelled at being fisherdogs for the day. Wiesner evidently thought that the video was worth sharing, too, as he would later post the clip to YouTube. In the description to the post, he wrote, “A friend took my dogs to the river and they spotted salmon in the river. They instinctively started chasing and catching the fish.”

Perhaps anticipating any questions or controversy as to the fate of the salmon, however, Wiesner added a statement to the end of the footage. This explained, “All the salmon in this video had finished their spawn and are at the end of their life cycle. However, they were still placed back in the water to die naturally and feed the wildlife in the area.”

But even if the fish were technically at the end of their lives, it didn’t stop some from criticizing. One YouTube user, for example, adopted a sarcastic tone to comment, “Good dog saving poor fish from drowning.” Another individual, meanwhile, bluntly wrote, “Shoot all pit bulls.”

Others, however, were more complimentary and openly admired the dogs’ intuition and hunting skills. One commenter said, for instance, “Why are people even hating? This is awesome, the dogs look happy as hell. I for one enjoyed the video.” Another poster even seemed inspired by the footage, writing, “When can I get a fishing dog? I need him!”

And Wiesner defended his decision to share the video, outlining that he did so in order to warn other dog owners not to let their own pets do the same thing. He wrote, “I would not have let them do this as it’s best to leave the fish to their natural life cycle. But what’s done is done, and it will never happen again. So here is a video of the event to be remembered.”

Wiesner also responded to some negative comments that had been posted, adding, “I don’t recommend [teaching] or allowing your dogs to do this. I was not there that day. A old friend was sitting them and treated them to a river swim. She videoed it and, well, it looked cool. And since it will never happen again, I posted the event on YouTube.”

But whether Kaylie and Ellah’s actions were acceptable or not, the footage of their river visit may very well have opened some eyes. After all, while we’re used to seeing dogs working alongside the police and as guide dogs, not many people would ever anticipate canines being equally as handy at catching fish.