Australian Shepherd Archives - i Still Love Dogs

Firefighters Rush Dog Injured in Car Crash to Animal Hospital

If you’re going to be involved in a rollover crash with your dog beside you in your vehicle, one of the best places to end up would be near firefighters in a fire station, right?

That’s exactly what happened to a man who was driving with his Australian Shepherd in an SUV along a road in Canyon Country, Calif. He apparently somehow lost control, and the SUV crashed and rolled over. It landed on its side on the lawn of Los Angeles County Fire Station 128.

The firefighters ran out, pulled the man from the wreckage, and rushed him to a hospital in an ambulance.

Meanwhile, the Australian Shepherd had managed to jump out a window and was trying to hide near some stairs. The firefighters were able to successfully coax him onto a stretcher and took him, in another ambulance, to a nearby animal hospital in Santa Clarita. Their compassionate efforts were captured on video.

Both the man and his dog are in critical condition, according to the firefighters. If the car hadn’t ended up where it did, neither of the accident victims may have survived.

“Three of us worked together not only to provide care to the hurt Australian Shepherd but to also provide timely transportation to a local veterinary clinic,” Los Angeles County Fire Battalion Chief Nick Berkuta told CBS Los Angeles. “To have fire resources available immediately allowed for us to provide him with the best possible that we can.”

According to CBS Los Angeles, the dog wasn’t restrained inside the SUV. Being tossed around so violently during the crash probably contributed to his injuries — an important reason why it’s never a good idea to leave your dog unsecured in your vehicle. But do be aware that most car restraints for pets failed crash tests in a 2011 study by the non-profit Center for Pet Safety, perhaps because there currently are no government or industry standards for these safety devices. Still, it’s safer to use a restraint since it can prevent your dog from becoming a projectile, not only injuring himself but other passengers in the vehicle.

Here’s wishing the man and the Australian Shepherd speedy recoveries. Many thanks to the heroes at Los Angeles County Fire Station 128 for making sure they were both quickly treated for their injuries.

Photo: CBS Los Angeles/YouTube

12-Year-Old Aussie Shepherd Survives Being Picked Up by Tornado

The dog’s name is Duke, not Toto, and he lives in North Carolina, not Kansas — but the tornado this 12-year-old Australian Shepherd experienced was a little like something out of “The Wizard of Oz.”

When the tornado passed through Davie County three weeks ago, Duke was “picked up in the mass of the swirling wind, picked up and tossed just like a rag doll,” his dog dad, Lewis Vannoy, told WREG.

Duke was thrown about 1,000 feet, landing in a pasture. Miraculously, the senior dog survived the ordeal. He did have major injuries, including a broken leg and damaged retina, but the lucky guy is expected to make a full recovery. (Amazingly, so is Vannoy’s horse, who was also picked up by the twister.)

Vannoy is thankful to still have Duke and his horse, although his house was pretty much destroyed in just 35 seconds, he said.

“I’ll build another house and we will make more memories,” Vannoy told WREG.

Keep Your Dog Safe During a Tornado

Vannoy urges everyone to take cover, with your pets, when there’s a tornado warning, which seems like really solid advice.

Here are more safety tips from the Humane Society of the United States:

Bring your dogs and other pets inside your house.
Keep emergency pet supplies in a tornado-proof room or basement.
Make sure your dog is microchipped and wearing a collar and identification tag at all times.
Practice getting your dog into a tornado-safe area.
Make sure that the area is dog friendly by removing dangerous items like tools or toxic products.
If you have to evacuate, take your pets and their emergency supplies with you.
After the tornado, take special care of your dog and other pets. Keep your dog on a leash and don’t allow him to roam.

Photo via YouTube

After Car Wreck, Dog Survives 7 Weeks Alone in Yellowstone

As they drove along a road in Yellowstone National Park July 23, David Sowers and Laura Gillice’s SUV was hit head-on by another vehicle.

Sowers’ dog Jade, an 18-month-old Australian Shepherd, ran off after a park ranger opened a door of the wrecked SUV.

“I was convinced she was gone,” Sowers told 9News. “I thought she’d probably gone three or four miles deep into the woods.”

Sowers and Gillice, who were both seriously injured in the crash, posted signs around the park, set traps using their clothing and food, and created a Facebook page.

The couple returned to Yellowstone several times from their home in Denver to try to find Jade, with no luck. About 25 people helped them look for the missing Aussie, playing recordings of Sowers calling to Jade on their cellphones.

Sowers and Gillice refused to give up hope, although they were worried about Jade being able to survive on her own.

“The wolves were a concern, of course,” Gillice told 9News. “And just the wildlife and the bears.”

As the weeks passed, several Jade sightings were reported in the Canyon Village area.

About a week ago, Sowers and Gillice (who is an agility trainer with the American Kennel Club) returned yet again to Yellowstone. This time Gillice brought her Australian Shepherd, Leila, along. Leila and Jade are good buddies.

Early each morning, Gillice took Leila for a walk around the Canyon Village area, encouraging her to bark and hopefully attract Jade’s attention.

While walking Leila Friday morning, 43 days after the car accident, Gillice passed a couple who had stopped to take pictures.

“Out of the corner of my eye, I saw this black-and-white movement,” Gillice told the Missoulian. “I asked the couple, because they had binoculars, ‘Is that a deer or a dog?’ She said, ‘It’s a dog.’”

Gillice called Jade’s name. “She just came running to me, like, ‘Where’ve you been, mom?’” she said.

She leashed Jade and walked both dogs back to the hotel where she was staying with Sowers. When the dog dad saw his long-lost Jade, it was a “hugfest,” Gillice told the Missoulian.

“I saw Jade running in the front door and I just lost it,” Sowers told 9News. “She just got up on me and bawled and cried for a long time.”

Sowers said Jade is “skin and bones,” and she has a small cut on her lip, but otherwise she seems to be perfectly fine — which is pretty remarkable considering that she spent seven weeks on her own in the wild.

“She was self sufficient,” Gillice told 9News.

Sowers told the Missoulian he was grateful for all the volunteers who tried to find Jade. “A lot of people have just dedicated their weekends to looking for her,” he said.

“It’s amazing. We didn’t think we’d ever see her again.”

Photos via Facebook

Australian Shepherd Shows Baby How to Say ‘Mama’ [Video]

Nine-month-old Sam Giovanini of Cedar Hills, Utah, couldn’t manage to say the word, “Mama,” even though he was prompted with a yummy food treat by his mom, Andrea.

“That week he had been saying ‘Dada’ a lot, and so we were trying really hard to coax him to say ‘Mama,’” Andrea told KSL.

The baby may have been speechless, but Patches, the family’s 10-year-old Miniature Australian Shepherd, had no problem showing little Sam exactly how to say the word.

Patches had been trained to say “Mama” when he was about 2 years old, so naturally he thought the treat Andrea was offering was for him, not Sam.

A home video of Patches “stealing the show (but not the food) with his ability to speak” was posted on YouTube June 30. It’s gone viral, with more than 1.7 million views.

[Aug. 7 Update: The video is now private for some reason — perhaps because some people left negative comments complaining that making Patches wait for a reward was kind of cruel.]

Rest assured that Patches did indeed get that treat he’d assumed was for him, as a subsequent video shows.

Patches isn’t the only dog who’s been seen helping a baby in a viral video. A Border Collie named Dakota showed a baby how to jump. And when another baby crawled for the very first time, the family’s big, black Lab gave her a sweet little reward.

Photo via YouTube