十位護主有功的寵物英雄
Belle
Back in 2006, Belle, a 17-pound beagle was the first ever canine recipient of the VITA Wireless Samaritan Award. This award is given to a person - or in this case, dog - who uses a cell phone to help in an emergency, prevent a crime or save someone’s life. Belle was trained to to get help in the event that her owner, Kevin Weaver had complications with his diabetes. In her award-winning incident, Weaver’s blood sugar had dropped to a dangerous level, causing him to have a seizure and collapse. Belle then bit down on his cell phone, contacting 911. Even still, she will paw at her owner if she feels anything is off with his blood-sugar level.
Chance
A 2010 Purina Hall of Fame inductee, Chance, a nine year old Dalmation/Fox Terrier mix is from Nova Scotia. In the winter of 2009, Chance was playing in the backyard with his owner, Veronica Fraser and her seven year old autistic son, James. When their rolling motor home drew Veronica away for a moment, James and Chase wandered off into the surrounding wooded area. When she could not find them, she immediately contacted family and police but two days passed before Chance emerged from the woods. The search and rescue team was able to follow his paw prints in the snow, leading them straight to James who was hypothermic but still alive. All attributed him surviving to Chance being by his side the whole time, keeping him warm.
Gepetto
Part of the Sjogren family since he was a small kitten, Gepetto was inducted into the Purina Hall of Fame in 2010 for his life-saving act. On a cold Alberta morning, the normally quiet Gepetto let out what Phyllis Sjogren called, a “terrible sequence of yowls”. Confused and with a terrible headache, Phyllis went down to comfort Gepetto and call her husband who advised her to leave the house immediately and call the gas company. As it turned out, the Sjogren home was filled with 70% carbon monoxide and Phyllis was already showing signs of stage two carbon monoxide poisoning - the third stage being death. The family credits Gepetto with saving his owner.
Great Dane
Last year, a Kansas woman was protected and ultimately saved by her Great Dane. While being beaten by her boyfriend with both ends of a hammer, he leapt in front of her to take most of the blows. They were both thrown out of a second-story window when the assailant was fed up. Because the woman and dog are now under the protection of the Rose Brooks Center, their names both remain anonymous, but the act of valour this Dane displayed was heard worldwide, most importantly with the shelter world. Many shelters are now re-thinking their no-pet policies thanks to this brave dog and his relationship with his owner.
Lily
In Bournemouth, England, 14-month old Lily instinctively knows whenever her owner, Nathan Cooper is about to have a seizure. At only 19 years old, Nathan suffers from weekly epileptic fits, but having Lily helps his parents keep him safe during these events. They say that normally, Lily is quite a quiet cat, but when Nathan has a fit she will run up and down the stairs and meow loudly to notify them. The family even credits Lily for saving Nathan’s life when, after one seizure, he stopped breathing. She remained by his side, licking him until he began breathing again.
Moose
A 2011 Purina Hall of Fame inductee, Moose was brought home by the Sararas family at 6 weeks of age. In 2010, Jolene Sararas was in the kitchen when her three year old daughter, Alexis was playing in the fenced-in backyard with Moose. Within minutes, Moose ran into the house and looked strangely at Jolene then ran back outside. He repeated this and then began barking and jumping in the backyard - uncharacteristic behaviour for him. Jolene ran outside to find Alexis was stuck by the neck in the backyard wire gate. Jolene freed Alexis who was barely conscious at the time and called 911. The family believes if it hadn’t been for Moose, their daughter wouldn’t be alive today; they now call him “Moose the Wonder Dog”.
Nellie
Trained as a hearing dog, Nellie was named Heroic Hearing Dog of the Year for 2008 by the charity that trained her. It is an award that is given to hearing dogs who act above and beyond their call of duty which is exactly what Nellie did. She and her owner, Gill Houghton were staying together with Gill’s children in a hotel room. It was the middle of the night when Nellie jumped on the bed to wake her owner and then dropped to the floor in her emergency position. Houghton woke up to find the door to her room was open and a man was standing in the doorway. Nellie placed herself between the man and the family and then man eventually left. Houghton agrees that if Nellie had not been there, that night could have had a very different outcome.
Pudding
In February of this year, Amy Jung and her son, Ethan stopped into their local Humane Society in Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin and left with Pudding and his feline friend, Wimsy. Mere hours after being adopted, this laid-back 21-pound cat saved his owners life by waking her from a diabetic seizure she experienced while asleep. When sitting on her chest to wake her didn’t work, he nudged and nipped at her face until she came to consciousness. When Jung’s son didn’t hear her call to him, Pumpkin ran to Ethan’s room and woke him up enabling him to call for help. Jung and her doctors agree that she wouldn’t have made it through the night without the help of Pudding who is now being registered as a therapy animal.
Toby
Toby, a Golden Retreiver saved his owner, Debbie Parkhurst who began choking on an apple in their home in Maryland. When Debbie began to choke, Toby leapt onto her chest, dislodging the apple from her throat. For his incredible action, Toby was awarded by the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals with their Dog of the Year award in 2007.
Willie
A Quaker Parrot, Willie was recognized for his amazing heroic act back in 2008. His owner, Meagan Howard, volunteered to watch her roommates two-year old daughter Hannah, and left the girl in the living room for a brief moment. That was all it took for Willie to begin flapping his wings and screeching, “Mama, baby!” repeatedly. Howard ran to the living room to find Hannah blue in the face, choking on a piece of food. She was able to administer the Heimlich maneuver and dislodge the food from the young girl’s throat. The amazing part of this event was that Willie had never before said the word “baby.” He and Hannah continue to be the best of friends.
|