After a pair of male and female Pit Bull mixes apparently escaped from their Atlanta yard last week, the female’s back right paw became entangled in the wire of a chain-link fence she’d attempted to jump over. She was left dangling and standing on her front paws.
Her buddy stood by her side, barking nonstop to get attention.
It worked — but the person who saw the trapped dog didn’t bother letting anyone know until 48 hours later.
“We received a call from someone saying there was a dog hanging by her toe on a fence and that she had been there for two days,” Karen Hirsch, of LifeLine Animal Project, told Mashable.
Hirsch and others from LifeLine, a nonprofit that manages Fulton County Animal Services, freed the female, who they named Athena. When they took her inside their trailer to examine her foot, her buddy, who they named Zeus, was beside himself, barking and crying.
“We had to bring him back and put him in the cage beside her,” Hirsch told The Dodo.
Despite her ordeal, Athena only suffered a swollen toe. When Hirsch visited Athena and Zeus the next day, she said Zeus “was busy licking her toe and protecting her from everyone.”
Thanks to Lifeline, Athena received the veterinary care she needed. “It’s important to note that at most municipal shelters, she would be put to sleep or left untreated,” Hirsch told The Dodo. “But LifeLine raises money enabling us to help animals who are in trouble at the county shelters we manage.”
Lifeline Animal Project was intending to adopt the two out together, but according to Fox 5 yesterday, the two BFFs are now back at home with their pet parents.
Tillie Stayed with Her Trapped Buddy, Too
Just two months ago, an Irish Setter named Tillie also proved just how loyal dogs can be. When her best friend, a Basset Hound named Phoebe, fell into an old water basin in Vashon Island, Wash., and couldn’t climb back out, Tillie did not leave her side for days.
“For nearly a week, Tillie stayed by her side with the exception of the few minutes of each day when she went for help,” Vashon Island Pet Protectors (VIPP) wrote on its Facebook page.
A man who lived nearby notified VIPP that a “reddish dog” had approached him on his property a few times, and then would run back into the ravine.
VIPP rescued Phoebe from the cistern. Both dogs were in good condition. The two had escaped from their house during a party when a guest left the front door open.
“Tillie would never leave, even if the gate was left open, but she’s best friends with Phoebe, and so when Phoebe follows her little Basset Hound nose, Tillie always goes with her to make sure she’s okay,” their relieved dog dad, B.J. Duft, told ABC News. “They’re best pals — inseparable.”
For being such a loyal friend, Tillie was honored Oct. 15 as a “Washingtonian of the Day” by Gov. Jay Inslee, who encouraged everyone in the state “to celebrate the bravery and loyalty of this canine companion.”
News Crew Rescued Dog Dangling from Fence
Unlike the person who waited two days to let anyone know Athena was stuck in an Atlanta fence, a news crew in Corpus Christi, Texas, took immediate action in March when they came across a dog who happened to be in the exact same predicament as Athena.
Using a pliers, an unidentified 3News photographer cut the dog loose and the crew called Animal Care Services.
It was not known how long the dog had been trapped or if anyone else had seen him there. He suffered “a little bit of damage to the paw,” a spokesman for Animal Care Services told 3News.
A woman across the street told the animal control officer she knew the dog’s owner.
“When we spoke to the owner, we educated them, told them they needed to go to their primary veterinarian for medical treatment,” the spokesman told 3News. “We’re going to be following up on that in the next couple of days to make sure they did provide that treatment for the animal.”
Video of Police Officer Rescuing Dog Trapped on Fence Goes Viral
In perhaps one of the most famous rescues of a dog trapped on a fence, Plattsburg, Mo., police officer Nick Sheppard rescued a dangling dog in May 2010.
The rescue was recorded on a very shaky video by a camera inside Sheppard’s hand-held radio.
The video — featuring the dog’s unforgettable reaction to being saved — went viral. The dog was reunited with his owner soon afterward.