Category: Heroes

How to Honor the Legacy of the Amazing Doris Day

Doris Day, perhaps the “OG” of celebrity animal advocates, peacefully passed away in her sleep this morning. If there’s a heaven, it’s a sure thing there’s a special place reserved for her, where she’s surrounded by lots of angel dogs.

“The world has lost a light today,” wrote T. Robert Bashara, chief financial officer of the nonprofit Doris Day Animal Foundation (DDAF) created by the actress in 1978, in an announcement on Facebook. “Doris was not just a darling of song and screen, but a close friend, an inspiration when the world seemed bleak, and a dear, compassionate advocate for her favorite beings on Earth: the 4-leggers.”

Before she moved to Carmel in Northern California (where she became a pioneer by opening the first-ever dog-friendly hotel), Day was known as “The Dog Catcher of Beverly Hills,” according to the DDAF. If she found a lost dog in her neighborhood, she would knock on doors until she reunited the pet with its owner. She carried around photos of pets needing homes — but before anyone could adopt one of them, she’d personally inspect their home to make sure the pet would be happy there.

To help homeless pets nationwide, Day started what was originally called the Doris Day Pet Foundation. Its mission then and now is to help animals and the people who love them. DDAF provides funds to nonprofits across the country that care for and protect animals.

Along with the Doris Day Animal Foundation, in 1987 Day created the Doris Day Animal League (DDAL). The mission of this nonprofit is to reduce the pain and suffering of animals through legislation, education and programs. Eight years later, Day and DDAL started Spay Day USA, which is now known as World Spay Day. During its first 15 years, the nonprofit provided the funding for 1.5 million pets to be spayed and neutered.

If you’re a fan of Day’s and/or you love dogs and want to do something to honor the memory of this amazing lady, here are some ways you can do that.

There are also many ways to honor Day without spending money. As I wrote for Care2, here are some suggestions:

Share photos of homeless pets on social media. Just like Day once carried around those photos, you can reach a lot more people by using Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and other social media accounts to post photos and information about pets available for adoption. Ask your friends and followers to share the photos so they’re seen by as many potential adopters as possible.

Volunteer your time at an animal shelter. “Whether you walk dogs at your shelter, stuff envelopes for an educational mailing or assist with a fundraising event, you can make a difference in the lives of animals,” says the Humane Society of the United States.

Donate items like towels and blankets to a shelter or rescue. Be sure to call first or check its website for a wish list to find out exactly what is needed.

Spread the word about the importance of spaying and neutering pets. Every year, millions of homeless cats and dogs are euthanized in shelters. This could easily be prevented if people would spay or neuter their pets to prevent unwanted litters. Tell your friends, co-workers, neighbors and everyone you know to be responsible pet parents by spaying and neutering their dogs and cats.

Photo: YouTube

Hero Pit Bull Alerts Authorities to Gas Leak

Home alone Wednesday afternoon, a senior Pit Bull named Sadie sensed that something was very wrong in her Westchester County, N.Y. house. She dug out a wooden block keeping a sliding door shut and ran outside, knocking down a fence as she bolted out of the yard.

Someone a few blocks away called the police when they heard Sadie’s incessant barking. When officers arrived, Sadie ran off and took them “through several streets, and then lead them back to the dog’s residence into the backyard,” Lt. Lawrence Rotta with the Tuckahoe Police Department told WABC.

The officers noticed the broken fence as well as claw marks and blood on the sliding glass door. They also noticed the strong odor of gas coming from the basement. The officers called the Eastchester Fire Department and Con Edison, which arrived at the house and confirmed a gas leak.

Sadie’s owner, Serena Costello, was at work and her 4-year-old daughter was with a sitter when a friend called her and told her about all the activity at her house.

Sadie “is our hero,” Costello told WABC. She said that in 11 years, her dog had never run away before. “It’s just so out of character for her to do. She saved our lives.”

Rotta agreed. “The dog saved the house from a potential gas explosion and gas leak,” he told WABC. “Natural gas inside the house can accumulate to the point where, God forbid, someone would come home and turn on a light switch, and there could be a potential explosion,” he told News12.

The police had to give Costello a summons for having an unleashed dog. But after ConEd determined there was a gas leak, one of the officers “took the summons and ripped it up,” Costello told WABC. The leak has been repaired.

Good girl, Sadie, and many thanks to WABC, News12 and CBS New York for covering this positive Pit Bull story.

Photo via @ABC7NY/Twitter

 

 

Homeless Pit Bull Helps Rescue Kittens Trapped in Storm Drain

Harvey, a Pit Bull with an irresistible smile, has spent too long a time in long-term sanctuary care at Faithful Friends Animal Society, a no-kill shelter in Delaware. Hopefully, thanks to his recent heroic efforts, Harvey will soon find himself in a forever home.

As he was being taken for a walk, Harvey ran up to a storm drain and started barking. Checking to see what Harvey was barking about, his handler discovered a kitten trapped inside the drain.

That kitten was rescued thanks to Harvey, and within two weeks the Faithful Friends team was able to save two other kittens that were stuck in the same drain. The three kittens — Beta, Brie, and Brewster — are now in foster homes and will be ready for adoption soon.

In the meantime, the hero dog whose barking saved the kittens’ lives is also more than ready for adoption. Harvey enjoys outdoor activities like running and hiking, as well as indoor activities like cuddling and watching TV, so it seems like it won’t be too difficult for him to find the perfect home. While he does have some dog pals at the shelter, Faithful Friends says Harvey would do best as the only pet.

According to Laura Elizabeth in a comment on the Faithful Friends Animal Society’s Facebook page, Harvey had been adopted but was returned to the shelter in 2014 when his owners broke up or divorced and couldn’t keep him. “He takes some time to get used to new people, but he is such a love bug and oh so goofy!” she wrote.

The Faithful Friends Sanctuary Care Program “provides a place for animals who are harder to adopt due to terminal illness, medical conditions or behavior challenges,” according to a post on its Facebook page. 

If you’re interested in adopting Harvey the hero dog (yay, you!), email taylor@faithfulfriends.us. And please visit the Faithful Friends Animal Society website to make a donation to help them rescue more awesome dogs.

Photo: Faithful Friends Animal Society/Facebook

 

86 Puppies Rescued from Pet Store Fire

 

Firefighters and dozens of good Samaritans showed plenty of love for puppies this week by forming a human chain to rescue 86 of them that were trapped inside the Puppy Love pet store as a fire burned behind it in Danbury, Conn.

When they heard someone yell about a fire around 9 p.m. Thursday night, Danbury residents Eric Walsh and Jonathan Jimenez, who were having dinner at the pizzeria next door, were the first heroes to break in and start saving lives. Other customers, employees and passersby quickly joined them, including people driving by who stopped their cars in the middle of the street and ran in to help. Firefighters arrived on the scene within just a couple of minutes.

The puppies were quickly wheeled out of the store in crates that were attached to pallets. Amazingly, none of them were injured, thanks to the quick action of all those heroes, who were also unharmed.

“All the restaurants emptied. People worked together to save these dogs,” Danbury Mayor Mark Boughton told WABC. “It was an amazing sight to see.”

A veterinarian called it a miracle. “All the puppies were out on the street, every one of them safe,” Jeffery Hubshur told WABC. “It gives you faith in people. What a place Danbury is.”

The fire started in a storage shed connected to the back of the store that’s owned by a utility company, Puppy Love owner Sean Silverman told the News-Times.

“All of our puppies are safe, warm and happily ate an extra dinner tonight!” Puppy Love later posted on its Facebook page.

According to the Puppy Love Facebook page, the store is family owned and has been in business since 1996. The puppies it sells are “from very reputable breeders located all over the country. Many of which have dogs in their breeding programs that are OFA [Orthopedic Foundation for Animals] certified,” meaning they have been checked for hip dysplasia and other health issues.

Across the country in California, a new law went into effect Jan. 1 that allows pet stores to only sell dogs (as well as cats and rabbits) from animal shelters or nonprofit animal rescue organizations. Unfortunately, many pet stores sell animals obtained from puppy mills, breeding facilities in which the dogs are usually kept in horrible conditions. California is the first state to enact a law like this, and it hopefully won’t be the last.

Photo: Eyewitness News ABC7NY/YouTube

 

Best Neighbor Ever: Hero Risks Life to Save Dog from House Fire

Everybody needs a neighbor like Chase Thomas. When a fire suddenly started Thursday night in a house on his street in Charlotte, N.C., three family members made it safely outside, but their dog was trapped inside.

Thomas, 20, was driving by the house when he saw the flames. Using his cellphone as a flashlight, he accompanied the homeowner into the smoky, burning house. They both called the dog’s name, but got no response. “I checked one room and I checked another, covering my mouth, searching the room, and I heard some scratching,” Thomas told FOX 46. “I brushed around and I felt for fur, and I got the dog.”

Moments after they emerged from the house, the roof collapsed and the fire spread, Thomas told WCNC.

The homeowner was treated at a hospital for smoke inhalation. The house is a total loss, but its occupants are grateful to be alive — and to have Thomas living nearby.

Like most heroes, Thomas insists he’s not one. “I was just doing anything that anyone else would try to do,” he told FOX 46. “I had a dog at one point and that’s a family member to me, so going back in was doing what I could to help.”

Photo via @Fox46News/Twitter

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