Category: Heroes

Police Dog Opens Gate to Save Partner from Attack

When a Colorado police dog named Lex saw his partner being brutally attacked on the other side of a fence by the trespassing suspect he was attempting to apprehend, the 3-year-old Belgian Malinois didn’t just sit there and do nothing.

During a foot pursuit of the male suspect in Shaw Heights early on Aug. 6, the deputy had jumped over the fence, leaving Lex behind. So Lex, who’s obviously a very smart as well as very heroic K-9 officer, quickly figured out how to use his paw to open the latch in a gate.

“Then Lex came to the assistance of the deputy and the suspect was apprehended,” the Adams County Sheriff’s Department said in a statement.

The injured deputy was taken to a hospital and treated for his injuries. He’s now recovering at home. The suspect was booked into the Adams County Detention Facility.

“Our deputies view canine Lex as a hero for saving the day,” said Adams County Undersheriff Harold Lawson in the statement. “We appreciate everyone in the K-9 Unit and their hard work to keep us safe.”

Lex has been a K-9 officer with the Adams County Sheriff’s Office since February 2015. The hero dog is certified in narcotics and police patrol through the Colorado Police Canine Association and National Police Canine Association.

Nice work, Lex!

Photo: Adams County Sheriff’s Department

Watch Amazing Bodycam Footage of Police Dog Tracking Down Suspect

A police dog named Blue has nothing to be blue about after tracking down a man for two miles across a river and farmland in England before finally nabbing him. The nearly hour-long chase in September 2016 was captured on the bodycam worn by the German Shepherd’s handler. The team works with the Bedfordshire, Cambridge and Hertfordshire (BCH) Dog Unit.

“Blue’s nose led his handler down a footpath, into thick bushes and across a knee-deep stream,” reports the Hertfordshire Constabulary, which released the footage of the chase this week. “He continued to track over fences, fields and another stream before finding a jacket believed to belong to the driver.”

Blue followed the scent down country lanes and across farmlands before finding Samuel hiding in thick undergrowth.

The chase started after the suspect, Elroy Samuel, failed to stop when officers tried to pull him over. He crashed into another car and then fled into the woods. After his capture, Samuel was charged with six crimes, including aggravated vehicle taking, dangerous driving and failing to stop for police. He was sentenced to two years in prison.

“Our dogs and handlers are highly trained and determined, as demonstrated by Blue and his handler’s prolonged tracking,” said Sergeant Cray Birch from the BCH Dog Unit. “I am very grateful for their work, as they proved to be an invaluable asset at this incident.”

Earlier this month, Blue received a PDSA Animal Award  — one of the most prestigious awards of its kind in the world — for yet another heroic act last year. In December, Blue led his handler to a man who had suffered an asthma attack and collapsed in the woods.

If not for Blue and his handler, “the incident may have had a very different outcome,” Chief Supt. Dales said at the award ceremony. Nice work, Blue!

Photo credit: Hertfordshire Constabulary

Dolphin-Watching Tour Captain Rescues Senior Dog Off Florida Coast

On a typical cruise, passengers aboard Susi Herrington’s sailboat get to see plenty of dolphins off the coast of St. Pete Beach in Florida.

“We go out, look for dolphins, but we actually let the dolphins come up to the boat — we don’t go chasing them or anything because they’re in their natural habitat,” Herrington, who works for Dolphin Landings Charter Boat Company, told Bay News 9.

But as they scanned the ocean for dolphins July 11, Herrington and her passengers were shocked to see a senior Black Lab treading the water, obviously in distress.

Herrington lowered herself down into the water and swam to the dog. Holding his head above the water, she swam with him to a dock. She told Bay News 9 she couldn’t believe she was actually able to lift the large, heavy dog out of the water and up to safety.

“I don’t know how I did it,” she said. “When I pulled him up, his body just flopped out. All his legs were out underneath him. He eventually got up, shook, and I thought, ‘Well, he’s got to live around here somewhere.'”

Herrington didn’t have to try to locate the Black Lab’s owner. The dog lead her to his house — next door to the dock.

“I knocked on the door, and that’s when I asked the lady, ‘Is this your dog?’ and she was just in tears — literally tears,” Herrington told Bay News 9.

The lucky dog’s name is Sam. He’s 12 years old and has cataracts that affect his ability to see clearly. His owner, Mary Doherty, was on the phone when Sam apparently fell over a seawall and into the water.

“I couldn’t believe it, because our dog, he won’t even leave the yard,” Doherty told Bay News 9. “He will not jump into the pool. He’s never jumped into the water, so this was pretty shocking for me, and needless to say I was pretty upset about it.” She said she is forever indebted to Herrington for preventing what could easily have been a tragedy.

Like most heroes, Herrington is downplaying her life-saving actions. “I was just doing my job,” she told Bay News 9. “Just doing what I’ve been trained to do all these years of working on boats.”

Photo credit: Barbara L. Hanson

TV Reporter Reunited with Tethered Dog He Rescued in 2016 Texas Flood

March 2021 update: Before Phil Archer retired as a KPRC reporter, he was once again reunited with the dog he rescued in 2016.

Just over a year ago, as KPRC reporter Phil Archer, Sheriff Troy E. Nehls and three others rode an airboat down a flooded street in Rosenberg, Texas, Nehls was shocked by what he spotted.

Someone had tied their dog to their front porch and left her there. She was now struggling to keep her head above the rapidly rising water.

Archer and Nehls were accompanied in the airboat by photographer Jeovany Luna and volunteers Richard Allen and Jeff Shimek.

With Luna’s camera rolling, Archer and Shimek jumped out and rescued the poor dog just minutes before she would have drowned.

“This is infuriating,” wrote Sheriff Troy E. Nehls, who was also on the airboat, on his Facebook page. “These residents will get a visit from me when they return.”

The heroes took the dog to the Houston Humane Society, which named her “Archer” in the reporter’s honor. Then the heroes returned to their airboat and rescued even more stranded dogs.

Archer’s owner, Mario Gallardo, told KPRC he didn’t realize how high the water would rise when he tied his dog to the porch and left her there — and he didn’t bother to tell authorities that he’d left his dog behind. Tragically, hundreds of pets and other animals died in the devastating flooding last year caused by the historic rising of the Brazos River.

Sheriff Nehls officially adopted Archer not long after the rescue. “I am happy to say the only water this girl will be in now is the swimming pool in my backyard!” he wrote on his Facebook page at the time.

Yesterday, for the first time since June 2016, Archer was reunited with her namesake rescuer.

“One year after the devastating Brazos River floods, Archer the dog continues to be a ray of light to all she meets,” Archer (the reporter, that is) wrote in a KPRC article about their reunion.

“Her survival was a small ray of good news in a bad time, and after almost dying, she is now thriving as a cherished member of Fort Bend Sheriff Troy Nehls’ family.”

Grab a tissue or three and enjoy their happy reunion.

Protect Your Pet During Floods

Monica Schmidt, with the Houston Humane Society, told KPRC it’s as important to prepare your pets for big storms as it is to prepare yourself. She offered these helpful tips:

  • Make sure your pet is microchipped and your contact information on it is up to date.
  • Have a pet first aid kit.
  • Have a “go bag” with extra pet food and toys in it.
  • Have a crate and make sure your pet is trained to go in it “so that they’re not going to freak out,” Schmidt said.

Photo via YouTube

Thanks to Kentucky Troopers, Dachshund Rescued from Tree Trunk

It’s not that unusual for firefighters to rescue cats who become stuck in trees, but yesterday they met the challenge of freeing a Dachshund stuck inside a tree trunk in Salem, Ky.

Apparently little Rocco had managed to get inside the tree via a groundhog hole.

He’d probably still be stuck there if two off-duty Kentucky State Troopers hadn’t heard his barks as they mowed the lawn at a nearby cemetery.

Sergeant Michael Williams and Trooper Gerick Sullivan searched a wooded area until they spotted Rocco sticking his head out of his strange location. Unable to free the Doxie themselves, they called the Salem Fire Department.

Firefighter Daniel Newcomb carefully cut out part of the tree so Rocco could be removed from it and reunited with his grateful owner. The tree opening was also made larger just in case another dog ever found themselves in the same predicament.

“That’s awesome,” wrote Scott Allen Bacon in a comment on the Kentucky State Police Facebook page. “Guessing it wasn’t a…dogwood tree?”

“Never seen a tree with so much bark…?,” wrote Sophie Bourdeau.

Hats off to Williams, Sullivan and Newcomb for saving Rocco. I’m betting that little Dachshund won’t be going anywhere near another groundhog hole for a long, long time.

And speaking of dogs stuck in trees, last year rescuers saved Kora, a 120-pound Great Dane who’d managed to climb 20 feet (!) up a tree in Nebraska.

Photo via Kentucky State Police Facebook page

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