6 Extraordinary Dogs That Proof That We Don’t Deserve Dogs
Reading Time: 9 minutesDogs are pure love no wonder they are man best friends. And while this may seem unfair to feline lovers, they too can’t argue with the fact that dogs are more loyal compared to other pets.
And if you’re still in doubt that dogs are too good to us, you might just change your mind after reading about the below six dogs and their remarkable, heroic acts of love.
1. Hachiko, The World’s Most Loyal Dog
Top on our list is the remarkable story of Hachiko, a Japanese dog. Hachiko is often referred to as the world’s most loyal dog, and to the Japanese, he is the ultimate hero. This dog is also admired by many internationally, and he has several movies to his name.
So, you may be wondering why this dog is so famous?
Well, Hachiko, or Hachi as he is popularly known in Japan, belonged to Tokyo University, Professor Eizaburo Ueno. This Japanese Akita dog was a loyal companion to Ueno, who also treated him as his son.
The two were inseparable.
Ueno and Hachi had a daily routine where they would walk to the Shibuya Train station in Tokyo. Once they arrived at the train station, Ueno would pat his pet goodbye and board the train to work. Hachi would come back to the station in the afternoon or linger around and wait for his owner so that the two could walk back home together.
Unfortunately, on 21st May 1925, tragedy struck. Ueno suffered a brain hemorrhage at the university and died. Of course, Hachiko never got wind of the tragic demise of his beloved owner. This loyal dog continued to go to the train station and wait for hours for his owner to come back.
Every day like clockwork, when the train appeared at the Shibuya train station, Hachi would be waiting for Ueno’s return. Even when a former Ueno gardener adopted this loyal dog, he continued searching and waiting for hours for his beloved owner’s return until he died ten years later in 1935.
Although Hachi passed on decades ago, his story lives on. After his death from cancer, his remains were cremated and his ashes buried next to Ueno’s grave. His body is also preserved at the National Science Museum of Japan in Tokyo. There is also a Hachiko’s monument next to his master’s grave.
Further, to pay tribute to this loyal dog, a bronze statue was erected outside the Shibuya train station. The spot has become a popular attraction for locals and tourists who come to marvel at the unconditional love of Hachi to his owner. A movie named Hachi: A Dogs Tale was also released in 2009 based on this loyal companion’s true story.
Undoubtedly, Hachiko continues to be remembered by people from all over the globe. Hachi is indeed an accurate display of how a dog can show extraordinary devotion to his master.
2. Figo The Hero Who Saved His Owner By Throwing Himself At A Bus
Figo was a heroic service dog who deserves a standing ovation. Figo, a golden retriever, was a guide dog for his blind owner Audrey Stone.
On a Monday morning on June 8th, 2015, Figo was guiding Audrey across North Main Street in Brewster, New York, when a school bus came on to them at the intersection. The golden retriever leaped into action. To shield her owner, he threw himself onto the oncoming school minibus.
According to John Del Gardo, the Brewster police chief at the time, this wasn’t normal dog behavior and could only be interpreted as the dog putting himself in harm’s way to protect her owner’s life.
The result, Figo took most of the blow from the bus and suffered a severe cut on his leg. The dog’s fur could be seen clinging to the school bus bumper and on the pavement. Unfortunately, Figo’s brave action didn’t stop the bus from hitting Audrey. The impact caused Audrey a fractured ankle and elbow, three broken ribs, and a cut on the head.
But what puzzled the spectators is that Figo didn’t want to leave Audrey’s side even though he was hurt. He kept pulling over to her and was right there with her even as they waited for the ambulance.
Figo was clearly ready to die for his best friend.
The best news is that both Audrey and Figo recovered fully from the accident. Figo was presented the dog of the year award in 2015 by ASPCA.
3. Theo And Tasker: The Inseparable Pair Even In Death
Theo, a springer spaniel, was a bomb sniffling army dog. He and his handler Lance Corporal Liam Tasker, were the perfect combo of a soldier and his expert dog. In fact, these two were recognized as the most successful bomb searching pair in the 1st military working Dog regime unit of the British Army during the war in Afghanistan.
The pair discovered more bombs than any other team in Afghanistan when the war broke out. The two found 14 bombs that could have maimed thousands of civilians and soldiers. According to the British Ministry of Defense, these two had more bomb finds than any other Afghanistan team to date.
They were so good at their job that other soldiers created a video to show off their prowess. And just when Theo was set to go back to the US, the unit decided to extend his stay for one more month in Afghanistan due to how good he was in his job.
Unfortunately, on March 1st, 2011, when Theo was on patrol with Tasker in Helmand province, there was a firefight, and Liam died from a sniper’s bullet during the firefight. Theo was unscathed from the attack, but he witnessed what happened to his friend as he was by his side. And a few hours later, when Theo returned to the British base camp, he collapsed and died.
Although the experts report indicated that Theo died from a heart attack, military officials and Tasker’s family felt that Theo died of a broken heart. He went to be with his friend.
Theo’s ashes were presented to Tasker’s family in a private ceremony. The death of the two was not only mourned by British mourners but by dogs and their handlers as well. Theo was also awarded the Dickin medal for his bravery in the war.
4. Roselle Led His Blind Owner And 30 Others To Safety
The 9/11 terror attack happened almost 30 years ago, and it changed the lives of many. On that fateful morning of 11th September 2001, the New York’s World Trade Centre Twin Towers were engulfed in an inferno, and in it were almost 3000 people trying to escape. Imagine how chaotic and scary the scene was, especially for those in the 90 floors below where the plane had hit.
Well, now imagine trying to maneuver the chaos while blind.
Michael Hingson was a computer salesman who worked on the 78th floor of the World’s Trade Centre. He and his guide dog Roselle were in the office on the fateful day of the terrorist attack. The loud boom from the building’s impact being hit by the hijacked American flight 11 is what woke Roselle up.
Michael trusted Roselle, and he knew he could only get out of the building if he followed his dog’s lead. He followed Roselle’s guide to the door and down the stairs as other people, unsure of what to do, followed them.
It turns out that Roselle was not only guiding his owner Michael down the 1463 steps but some other 30 people who were having trouble seeing due to the burning jet fuel and debris that filled the air.
The confident heroic Labrador descended down the building finally reaching the lobby. Roselle didn’t panic amidst the noise and the screaming. He only stopped once to lick a distressed woman on the way down. Once they reached safety, Roselle guided another woman who couldn’t find her way to safety.
If you think Roselle was the only heroic guide dog during the 9/11 terror attack, you’re wrong.
Salty was a yellow lab guide dog whose owner Omar Rivera worked on the 71st floor on the World Trade Center’s South Tower. Salty, who, according to Rivera, has a notable ability to navigate through crowds, refused to leave his owner behind during the terror attack.
Rivera, an engineer at the New Jersey Department of Information Services and Technology Port Authority, knew that he and salty were in danger when he felt the building was shaking. When Rivera realized that getting out would be next to impossible due to his blindness and the numerous people trying to exit the building, he decided to save his loyal companion. Rivera let go of his dog’s leash and commanded him to go on ahead without him.
But Salty was having none of it. After going on ahead for a few minutes, Salty ran right back to his owner and led him down 70 floors. The two exited the building after more than an hour and minutes just before the tower collapsed.
This beautiful retriever, who was trained by the Guiding Eyes for the Blind Foundation, went on to guide his owner for a few more years before passing on in 2008. Salty heroic action was recognized on several occasions, and he also was awarded the Dickin medal by the People’s Dispensary for Sick Animals Veterinary Association.
5. Killian Who Saved A Child From An Evil Babysitter
Benjamin and Hope Jordan needed a babysitter for their baby when they moved to Charleston, South California. Like most parents, the couple did a background check before hiring the new family babysitter Alexis Khan. Alexis was responsible for taking care of the couple’s newborn boy Finn when the two were at work.
And while the family’s dog Killian a black German shepherd and Labrador retriever mix, adored baby Finn, he was highly aggressive towards Alexis.
Killian, the peaceful, loving and calm dog, was always overly protective of Finn whenever Alexis was around. He would constantly put himself between Alexis and the baby. Benjamin and Jordan noticed this odd behavior and wondered what could be the problem.
They even came up with a few theories, one of which was that maybe Alexis was constantly mean to Killian. To find out why Killian was behaving strangely, Hope came up with a genius idea. She would put a recording app on her phone and leave the phone under the couch so that it could record what was happening in her home when the couple wasn’t around.
The next day before Alexis arrived to babysit baby Finn, Hope placed her now recording device under the couch. For almost eight hours while the couple was away, the device recorded everything that happened in the living room.
When Benjamin and Hope returned home from the office in the evening and listened to the recording, they were horrified.
The tape picked up cussing and slaps. And it got worse. Finn’s pained cries could be heard in the recording, and at one point, the couple could hear the babysitter vigorously shaking Finn.
You would think that this evidence was enough to charge the cruel babysitter with child abuse charges. But no, according to wiretapping law, secretly recorded audio cannot be presented in a court of law as evidence.
So, how would the Benjamins prove that Alexis was a child abuser? Well, since the police didn’t have to tell Alexis that the secret recording couldn’t be admissible in court, they confronted her with the recorded evidence.
After being presented with the evidence, Alexis confessed and admitted to battery and assault. She was jailed for three years, but the real joy for Benjamin and Hope was that her name was placed in a child abuse registry, ensuring that she never abused another child ever again.
Killian was labeled a hero by the local media, and he was even featured in some celebrity appearances.
6. Oddball The Maremma Who Protected Middle Islands Little Penguins
If you thought penguins are cute, wait until you come face to face with little penguins. These small penguins are referred to as fairy penguins in Australia because of their cuteness.
These little fellows aren’t endangered when it comes to their population but, predators are known to reduce individual colonies to just a few penguins.
Middle Island is known as a home for little penguins for many years, but by 2005 marauding foxes had reduced the penguins’ population in the island to less than ten birds.
Swampy Marsh, a chicken farmer on the island, thought of protecting the tiny penguins’ population. He had trained Maremmas, who defended his chicken from predators, and he felt he could use the same tactic to protect the little penguins from the foxes. He chose Oddball, his Maremma sheepdog, for the job.
Oddball did the job so well that in no time, the penguin population increased. And although Oddball got lonely after three weeks on the island and swam ashore, his role as the penguin protector didn’t go unnoticed.
The dog’s excellent job attracted the interest of international conservationists and also inspired the movie, Oddball. Oddball pioneering role in protecting the penguins’ population also led to the dispatch of other sheepdogs to protect their penguin pals.
Oddball went on to live a long life, and according to his owner Mr. Marsh, she was 105 in dog years when she died of old age in 2017.
