Heroes Archives - Page 20 of 30

After Truck Crash, Colorado Volunteers Help 100 Stranded Rescue Dogs

As about 100 homeless dogs rescued from a high-kill shelter were being transferred from Tall Tails Rescue in Texas to new forever homes in Washington state, the truck and trailer in which they were riding slid on ice and crashed Thursday morning on a Colorado interstate.

Amazingly, no one was hurt — but the truck was severely damaged, leaving 100 dogs temporarily stranded in Eagle, Colo., while it was being repaired.

Eagle County Animal Shelter Manager Daniel Ettinger arranged for the dogs to be taken to the county fairgrounds.

“We took all the animals in, set up the kennels and started providing care,” Ettinger told 9News. “Our staff has been amazing through this, but this is something a little too big for us to handle on our own.”

Using social media, the shelter reached out to local residents for help.

Volunteers immediately responded. Among them were Kristie Bratschie, who helped clean up the kennels inside the truck “that, after a scary accident, needed a lot of cleaning,” 9News reports.

“They are getting back on the transport today so we want to make sure they are going home in clean kennels too,” Bratschie told 9News yesterday.

More than 100 volunteers (one for every dog!) showed up to help by walking the dogs and donating supplies. There was even a line of people waiting to walk the dogs, Eagle County Public Information Officer Kris Friel told the Post Independent.

Michael Wlodarek, who runs Tall Tails Rescue with his mom, told the Post Independent, “These dogs must think they’re in heaven, they’re getting so much attention and love. Every dog has been walked a couple dozen times and held for hours.”

Karen Jarchow of Eagle volunteered after seeing a post about the dogs on Facebook.

“A giant truck full of puppies in Eagle? I thought it was too good to be true,” she told the Post Independent. “Then someone else told me about it, so I went over on Friday morning and there were all kinds of dogs from adults to puppies. So I grabbed a leash and helped walk a dog.”

Among the items donated by local residents were dozens of blankets, cases of cleaning supplies, dog beds, toys, leashes and almost 2 tons of dog food, the Post Independent reports.

Ettinger told 9News it was “one of the most rewarding and exciting days I have ever had in my career.” He said his cell phone never stopped ringing.

Most of the dogs being transported already have new families waiting for them in Washington. The 10 dogs who haven’t yet been adopted will remain at the Eagle County shelter — and several of them already have new forever homes.

Last night, the 90 or so other dogs were back in the truck and on their (hopefully incident-free) way to new homes in Washington.

Photo via Facebook

Hero Saves Pit Bull Dumped on Busy Interstate

Bill Kramer, who owns a towing and hauling business, was driving with his dog down busy Interstate 94 in North Dakota Monday when he saw the unthinkable: Someone pushed a Pit Bull out of a car and onto the busy highway.

The dazed dog sat between lanes as traffic rushed by her at 75 mph.

Kramer immediately stopped and used the 30-foot trailer he was towing to block traffic. He got out of his truck and, crawling on his hands and knees, approached the dog. She was bleeding and had a broken leg.

“At first, I thought, ‘This is stupid. I’m going to get run over,'” Kramer told the Bismarck Tribune. But he knew if he left her there, she would not survive. “I was nervous for her.”

The scared Pit Bull — Kramer named her Celine Dion — wouldn’t budge until Kramer’s own dog jumped out of the truck and succeeded in getting her to follow him back inside the cab.

When Kramer got home, he made a Facebook post about the dog whose live he’d saved.

“That’s when all hell broke loose,” he told the Bismarck Tribune. He got responses from across the country from people wanting to make donations to pay for Celine’s care, or to send pet supplies. Adoption offers also poured in.

Celine was treated for her fractured leg and some facial trauma at West Dakota Veterinary Clinic. She’ll need to wear a cast for a few weeks, but is expected to make a full recovery.

“It was certainly a horrific incident for the dog and for the man that rescued it,” the clinic’s Kim Brummond told the Bismarck Tribune.

Kramer received about $850 in donations to help pay Celine’s vet bill. “That was kind of cool how people banded together to do something,” he told the Bismarck Tribune.

A friend of his has adopted Celine, and Kramer said he’ll post photos on Facebook of the lucky dog’s progress.

Until he rescued Celine, Kramer said he had only heard negative things about Pit Bulls.

“She’s a sweet, sweet dog,” he told the Bismarck Tribune. “It definitely tugs at my heartstrings.”

Photos via Facebook

Dog Thanks Firefighter for Rescue from Texas Floodwaters [Video]

A man and his German Shepherd from McKinney, Texas, have a lot to be thankful for this weekend.

When they became trapped in chest-deep floodwaters under a bridge around 4 a.m. Friday, the man called 911 on his cell phone, hoisted his big dog up onto his shoulders and waited for help to arrive.

The McKinney Fire Department managed to pinpoint the man’s location by ‘pinging’ his cell phone off nearby towers.

Professional photographer Michael O’Keefe, founder of First Response Photography, was also on the scene.

“I poked over the guard rail and saw a dog. That’s literally all I saw at first, was the dog standing on water,” he told NBC DFW. “Turns out he was standing on the shoulders of the gentleman that was his owner.”

Using what spokeswoman Stacie Durham told the McKinney Courier-Gazette was a long-angle rescue, firefighters maneuvered the ladder over the water from the fire engine parked on the bridge. Swift-water rescuers were lowered to the man and his dog, who were lifted to safety.

“It was a pretty lengthy rescue process,” Durham said.

The rescue was caught on video by O’Keefe. “I don’t think [the man] was going to leave the dog,” he told NBC DFW. “I think they were going as a pair.”

Soon after the man and dog were on dry land, the German Shepherd showed his appreciation to his lifesaver, as you can see in the photo above.

“His feet hit the ground and he almost instantly went towards the firefighter that had saved him, jumped all over him, licked all over him,” O’Keefe told NBCD FW. “It was real touching to watch.”

On the First Response Photography Facebook page yesterday, O’Keefe wrote, “We have received numerous messages and calls from all over the globe, people wanting to share their appreciation to the McKinney First Responders that rescued a man and his dog from the flood waters early Friday morning.

“These folks train hard and work hard, and we think they deserve the recognition.”

Photo via Facebook

Hero Pit Bull Stabbed While Protecting Dog Dad from Home Invaders (He’s OK)

Around 10 p.m. Thursday night, Aubrey Christopher was awakened by the growling of his usually docile 1-year-old Pit Bull, Blue.

When Christopher got up to see what was the matter, he saw three strangers standing on the porch of his Kansas City, Mo., home. One man had a gun, and another was holding a knife.

Christopher ran to his kitchen to find something to protect himself with. In the meantime, Blue burst through the screen door.

The Pit Bull scared off the criminals, but was stabbed in the neck in the process.

“I didn’t know what to do,” Christopher told KCTV. “It was terrible. I called the police and wrapped a pillow case around his neck to try to stop the blood.”

With help from the Kansas City Police Department, Christopher rushed Blue to Union Hill Animal Hospital.

“He’s such a sweet dog,” Dr. Christina Belew, the veterinarian who treated Blue, told KCTV. “He was licking the hospital staff as they were treating his wounds. Everyone fell in love with him.”

Blue is now recovering at home with his grateful dog dad.

“If it wasn’t for him, I’d be a dead man,” Christopher told KCTV. “I’m just so glad he’s going to be okay.”

The Union Hill Animal Hospital offered a discount for Blue’s emergency treatment. The $600 bill was paid by the nonprofit Frankie’s Friends, according to KSHB.

To make a donation to help Frankie’s Friends help save more heroes like Blue, click here.

Photo via Frankie’s Friends

Pit Bull Mix Stays by Buddy Trapped in Fence for 2 Days

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.

Photos via Twitter; Facebook; Facebook