cute man, cute dog...this is just so sad.

Dog in SoHo hit with 100-volt jolt

Socha, an 11-year-old Labrador retriever, lies stunned in pain after being shocked by wet manhole cover on Thompson St. in SoHo yesterday. The dog didn't sustain any serious injuries.
Poor Socha suffered quite a shock.

The lovable Labrador retriever stepped on a wet manhole cover in SoHo yesterday and got zapped by 100 volts of electricity.

"It turned my whole life upside down for 10 seconds," said Socha's owner, John Doran, 36. "There is no reason why little Socha felt 100 volts of electricity ripping through her body this morning."

Doran and his 11-year-old yellow Lab were crossing Thompson St. near Spring St. to grab a cup of coffee when the pooch stepped in a puddle around 10:30 a.m.

Socha let out a series of blood-curdling yelps - and collapsed near the curb.

"I never heard a noise come out of her like that before," Doran said. "She was screaming and yelling and fell on her side."

The cuddly 80-pound dog lay stiff in the water until a panicked Doran pulled her out. "I was freaking out, trying to get her out," he said. "She was stiff like a dead weight."

As a good Samaritan dialed 911, Doran frantically warned neighbors about the danger lurking beneath their feet.


"I turned into a crazy New Yorker, shouting, 'No, don't go in there,'" he recalled. "I was afraid for them. ... There are kids around here."

It took three 911 calls and over two hours before authorities showed up at the scene and started investigating. By then Socha seemed no worse for wear, although Doran planned to bring her to the vet.

Con Ed spokesman Alfonso Quiroz said the stray voltage was caused by a cable touching the manhole cover and workers were fixing the problem.

He said the manhole was last tested two months ago, and workers detected no problems.

The utility giant came under fire in 2004 after Jodie Lane, 30, was electrocuted by stray voltage while walking her dogs in the East Village.

Con Ed already spends $100 million a year to curb stray voltage and test its system