Luxury is not always in the things you buy but the ones you choose to share your life with. Animals have become part of people’s family and we wanted to feature some of the most heroic dogs to date. If you’re skeptical about the courage of dogs and their determination to save their loved ones in danger, get ready to change your mind.
1. Tommy the German Shepard that attended church.
In San Donaci Italy a German Shepherd named Tommy attends mass everyday. When Tommy was a stray, a kind hearted lady named Maria Lochi adopted him. Tommy would walk to church with Maria everyday and was allowed to sit at her feet during mass. When Maria died Tommy followed the mourners into the church attending her funeral, and followed behind the casket after. Since then when the bell rings signalling the beginning of mass Tommy attends mass waiting for his master to return.
Father Donato Panna the priest of the church has said Tommy attends every mass without making a sound, and that he is well behaved. After the mass he lets him out and the whole village has been feeding, and watching out for the dog. The loyalty of this animal is so bittersweet, hopefully by this time someone has adopted him and given him a home like maria did for him.
2. The Loyal Pit Bull Terrier that refused to leave his owner’s side.
A loyal bull terrier refused to leave the side of his deceased owner late last week, choosing instead to endure the scorching-hot Oklahoma temperatures to stay with his master’s remains. “The dog kept wanting to pull back to go back to where the remains of where the deceased owner was,” said animal shelter officer Sheridan Lower. The bull terrier was only a short walk from the Canadian river, but he didn’t leave, ignoring temperatures near 100 degrees to protect his deceased owner, who is thought to be a transient.
“We have found animals inside residences with owners literally lying on the body next to the body because they are family, they’re sad,” Lowery told KFOR. “Their owner is deceased. They don’t know what is going on. They don’t know how to act. They don’t know how to react.” According to Lowery, the dog is now depressed and mourning, refusing to eat or drink. “Head lowered, ears laid back, tail you know, between his legs,” he said.
3. Capitan the dog sat by his owners grave for 6 years.
For six years, a dog named Capitán has stayed by his owner’s graveside in Villa Carlos Paz Cordoba, Argentina. Every day at 6pm, he lays by Miguel Guzmán’s headstone, on faithful vigil. The dog’s remarkable story of loyalty began on March 24, 2006, when Miguel, who was Capitán’s owner, passed away. As soon as Capitán realized Miguel was no longer at home, he left to search for him and miraculously managed to find Miguel’s grave in the nearby cemetery. Since then, the dog has stayed by his deceased owner’s side and refuses to return home. Miguel had brought Capitán, a German Shepherd mix, home as a surprise for his son Damián in 2005. His wife Veronica said that when Capitán disappeared just after her husband’s death, she and her son searched for him, but were unable to find him. They thought he may have died or been adopted by another family.
But soon after, when Damien went to visit his father in the cemetery, there was Capitán! No one could explain how Capitán had discovered where Miguel was resting, but he had. The family had a joyful reunion but when they tried to bring Capitán home, he refused. Veronica and Miguel tried several times, but Capitán would not leave. He would sometimes follow them home for a short time, but then Capitán would always return to the cemetery.
The cemetery is now considered home for Capitán. According to cemetery director, Hector Baccega, the dog has earned the affection of precinct workers and cemetery caretakers, who make sure he is fed and kept up-to-date on his immunizations. At one point, Capitán had broken his front leg, so a vet was called over to give Capitán care.
4. One dogs loyal friendship to its kin.
This was recorded in the aftermath of the earthquake/tsunami in Japan. One dog shows incredible loyalty to another injured dog, refusing to leave his side. This is so sweet to see in such a time of disaster. An AP reporter on board a helicopter spotted these dogs. At first they were mistaken as humans.
One witness stated that eventually the dogs were rescued and taken cared of by animal rescue organization. There were lots of dogs and cats that were rescued and reunited with their owner. Thank you for the rescuers who did their job despite of this very hard situation.
5. The dog who lead rescuers to owner’s fatal accident scene.
A faithful dog led rescue crews a quarter-mile down a dark Florida highway to the scene of his owner’s fatal car accident. Gregory Todd Travers, 41, lost control of his vehicle on State Road 84 near Davie, slamming into a bridge support and rolling into the stretch of road. While first responders searched for the wreckage, a dog came limping toward them. Led by Simon the German Shepherd, the group was able to find the wreckage. Simon circled and then licked Travers before jumping into the car next to his owner and waiting.
6. The dog who guarded a two-year-old who went missing in the Australian bush for fourteen hours.
A missing toddler was found safe and well in the Australian bush after being guarded from harm by his family’s faithful pet dog for 14 hours. Dasher the German Shepherd was found by two-year-old Dante Berry’s side when rescuers tracked them down in a woodland more than four kilometers from his mother’s home in Mildura, Victoria.
Dante’s mother Bianca Chapman raised the alarm after the pair disappeared from her front garden. They were eventually discovered when two police officers heard a loud cry in knee-high scrub several meters from the track.
7. The dog who prevented owner from committing suicide.
A pet owner in France was reportedly prevented from committing suicide by her dog after it decided it was not yet ready to see her go. The 63-year-old female decided to end it all in her backyard in Sorgues but her German shepherd apparently had a different idea. In desperation, the loyal pet reportedly did what anyone else who loved her would have done and collided with the elderly woman in an attempt to get her to drop the gun. “[The dog] probably sensed things and knocked into her to save her,” a police officer said. The woman suffered a chest wound but was not seriously hurt and should make a full recovery.
8. The dog who stood guard over dead friend’s body in China.
This is one of the most powerful photos of friendship we’ve ever seen. A male dog in Zhangzhou, China was photographed standing guard over his female companion after she was hit by a car and killed. The male dog braved oncoming traffic in order to stay by his friend’s side. Once in a while, witnesses would see the dog nudge the female’s body, as if trying to wake her. Although it is an incredibly sad story the loyal companion stood guard for more than 6 hours and this shows you the strength of their bond with each other. Xiao Wu, a local butcher, said that he had often seen the two stray dogs playing together.
9. The loyal dog who waited 30 minutes for master to be rescued from freezing river.
As if there wasn’t enough evidence that dogs are just plain awesome, now comes the news that a man’s loyal dog waited and watched for 30 minutes as the fire department rescued his owner after he crashed through thin ice on the Colorado River. The unidentified 60 year-old-man and his canine companion were out on the banks of the river for an afternoon of duck hunting. The man fell through the thin ice when he walked onto the ice to retrieve a duck.
Nearby hunters witnessed the accident and called 911. But while they waited for help, the man’s dog refused to leave the scene. Like a worried relative in the waiting room, the dog paced back and forth, trying to reach the man, who repeatedly waved the dog off, fearing for its safety.
10. The guide dog who come back to save his owner during the WTC attack.
On Sept. 11, 2001, Omar Eduardo Rivera, a blind computer technician, was working on the 71st floor of the World Trade Center with his guide dog, Dorado. When the hijacked plane hit the tower, Rivera knew it would take him a long time to evacuate the building, but he wanted his Labrador retriever to have a chance to get out so he unclipped his leash in the crowded stairwell. “I thought I was lost forever — the noise and the heat were terrifying — but I had to give Dorado the chance of escape. So I unclipped his leash, ruffled his head, gave him a nudge and ordered Dorado to go,” Rivera said.
Dorado was swept downstairs by the mass of evacuating people, but a few minutes later Rivera felt the dog nuzzling his legs — Dorado had come right back to his side. Dorado and a co-worker then helped Rivera climb down 70 flights of stairs, which took nearly an hour. Soon after they escaped the tower, the building collapsed, and Rivera says he owes his life to his faithful dog.
11. Katrina, the dog that saved a drowning man’s life.
Hurricane Katrina was a miserable occurance for everyone down south, but inspiring stories of heroism have helped give victims something to smile about. That’s certainly the case with Katrina, the ironically named black labrador who saved a drowning man before rising flood waters claimed his life. The dog, who was later rescued herself by rescue teams, was honored at that year’s Genesis Awards with a standing ovation.
12. Shana fought through snow to save a couples life.
In a Fox News story titled “Half-Breed Wolf Dog Hero Rescues Elderly Owners From Snowstorm”, readers learn the heroic tale of Shana, a half wolf dog/half German shepard who saved an elderly couple from a treacherous snow storm. When Shana found Norman and Eve trapped by snow, she went to work, diligently digging out a tunnel through which she would pull the couple back to the safety of their home.
13. Honey saved her owner from a horrible car accident.
Honey was the 2006 Dog of the Year, an award she earned by saving her owner from a violent car accident. When she and Michael Bosch found their SUV rolled over and stuck upside down in a deep ravine, Bosch was trapped and knew that Honey was his only hope. With all his strength, he managed to release the dog and hope that she would somehow find help. Sure enough, the then 5 month old English Cocker Spaniel got the attention of a man about a half-mile away and brought him to the scene of the accident. Rescuers concluded that had it not been for this, Bosch would have died.
14. Napoleon the English Bulldog that saved a bag full of kittens drowning in a lake.
Cats and dogs are always made out to be enemies, but this not always so! English Bulldogs are notoriously bad swimmers. With a giant head and chest compared to a lighter tail end, they have a tendency to go bottoms up in the water. So this doggy is EXTRA brave. Napoleon, an obedient and well behaved two year old white English Bulldog in Michigan abruptly left his master’s side yesterday and raced out across a road and into a nearby lake. Napoleon’s owner met him in the driveway as the bulldog came back up out of the lake dragging something in his mouth. It looked like a burlap sack, and Napoleon appeared determined to drag it up from the shore and back to his master’s side.
It was then that Napoleon’s owner heard the meowing and realized that there were abandoned kittens inside the bag! Six kittens in total, although two of them didn’t survive and the remaining four were in bad shape. Napoleon’s mom cared for the survivor’s for the next two weeks until they could be taken in to the city pet adoption center and found new homes. Napoleon got a much deserved hero’s welcome at the adoption center as crowds gathered to praise the brave bulldog and cuddle the rescued kittens.
15. Belle saved a man from a seizure.
In a nearly unbelievably story titled “Dog Makes Cell Phone Call to Save Owner’s Life“, readers learn about Belle, a beagle who literally bit “911” into Kevin Weaver’s cell phone after the diabetic man collapsed from a seizure. Said Weaver, “there’s no doubt in my mind that I’d be dead if I didn’t have Belle”, who became the first canine to win VITA’s Wireless Samaritan Award. Evidently, the pooch had been trained to bite down on the phone’s keypad in the event of an emergency!
16. Kaze located a missing woman who was trapped in a coma.
Kaze earned top honors from the Contra Costa Sheriff’s Department for saving the life of a woman in her late 20’s, reported missing a few days earlier. On his first-ever rescue mission, Kaze located the missing woman under a bridge, in a coma that authorities later reported that would have killed her within the hour if she had not been found. Luckily, the woman was rushed to a hospital, where she recovered after a week’s time.
17. Killian, the dog who saved his 7-month-old human from an abuser.
Earlier this year, a babysitter was arrested for child abuse thanks to their loyal family dog. The babysitter had been working for the family for five months when Killian, their normally friendly dog, became volatile around her. This roused the parents’ suspicions, so they decided to leave an iPhone under their couch to record what happened when they were gone. Unfortunately, the iPhone confirmed their suspicions: the woman had been verbally and physically abusive to the child. Thanks to the heroic dog, the baby is back in safe hands (and paws).
18. Babu the Shih Tzu saved his owner from the 2011 tsunami in Japan.
Twelve-year-old Babu became restless according to his now-85-year-old human, Tami Akanuma, insisting they go on a walk. When she opened the door, the dog pulled toward a hill, the opposite direction of where they usually would walk. Tami found it odd and followed suit as the dog rushed her up the hill. When she looked back, she witnessed the tsunami that had just taken over her town, destroying everything including her home.
19. The rescue dogs that helped with the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks.
Above, a police rescue dog is done for his day of physically and emotionally exhausting work at Ground Zero in NYC. Many dogs helped tirelessly, trying to find people lost in the rubble. Like humans, these dogs suffered from post-traumatic stress from these circumstances, and had to go through their own therapy after their work was done. In 2009, Trackr, the dog who found the last remaining survivor in the rubble of the World Trade Center, was chosen to be cloned.
20. Yogi the valor dog of the year.
The Humane Society of the United States named Yogi, a golden retriever, the 2011 Valor Dog of the Year for saving his owner’s life after a bicycle accident. Paul Horton of Austin, Texas, went over the handlebars on his mountain bike and landed on his head. When he regained consciousness, Yogi was by his side. Horton whispered for Yogi to get help. The dog, reluctant to leave, finally went to the main road and barked at neighbors who were walking by. Bruce and Maggie Tate know Yogi and had never seen him act so frantic, so they followed him back to the place where Horton lay immobile. Doctors found that Horton’s vertebrae had pinched his spinal cord, leaving him paralyzed from the chest down. They credit Yogi with saving Horton’s life. Horton has since regained some sensation, and has limited use of his arms. And Yogi is still his best friend.
21. Pitbull saves owner from domestic abuse.
When Diana Walbert’s boyfriend assaulted her, her pitbull Lily didn’t stand for it. While holding a samurai sword and threatening Diane, Nicholas Clark felt Lily’s teeth sink into his leg. He left his girlfriend alone and took the only escape route he could find, out the window.
But as he hid between two mattresses in the backyard, dogs helped the cause of justice again: A police canine team found him without difficulty.
22. Greyfriars Bobby – Symbol of Loyalty in Britain
Greyfriars Bobby was famous for his loyalty to his master. When his master died he was buried with out a gravestone. Still the dog found the burial site and guarded it for 14 years, leaving only when he was hungry.
When the dog died a Countess had a fountain made in honor of his loyalty. He became a symbol of loyalty for Britain because of his continued service to his master even in death.
Did this make you want to hug your dog? Are you looking for a dog to add to your family? You can visit your local animal shelter to help save a dogs life and one day they may save yours.
Click HERE to help find a dog or cat OR click HERE to search for more options of available animals to add to your family.
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