PUP-LIFTING FEATS: Ontario dogs honoured after saving owners’ lives

Published Sep 12, 2024  •  2 minute read

Bear, a Siberian husky and golden retriever mix, and Maggie May, a red fox Labrador retriever, were honoured for their quick thinking and inducted into the Purina Animal Hall of Fame. Photo by Purina Animal Hall of Fame /CNW

Bear and Maggie May are good doggos.

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That’s because their quick thinking helped save their owners’ lives.

Bear, a Siberian husky and golden retriever mix, and Maggie May, a red fox Labrador retriever, were honoured this week by being inducted into the Purina Animal Hall of Fame’s class of 2024.

“These incredible animals remind us that the bond between humans and their pets goes far beyond companionship — it’s a partnership of trust, loyalty and sometimes life-saving bravery,” Jenn Terra, a marketing vice-president at Nestle Purina PetCare Canada, said in a news release.

“As pet people, we are proud to share these inspiring stories.”

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Last October, Bear abruptly woke his owner Janice around 4 a.m. by howling and jumping on her in bed at their home in Bonfield, Ont., east of North Bay. She noticed that her husband of 35 years, Darren, was not in bed with her.

She followed Bear downstairs, where she found her husband unconscious in the family room with Bear jumping on his chest. She immediately called paramedics and Darren was rushed to a hospital, where doctors discovered that he had suffered a heart attack.

Once Darren woke up in hospital, doctors told him that he was likely unconscious for three hours and Bear’s repeated jumping on his chest was an effective form of CPR that kept him alive.

Bear, the offspring of two former service dogs, has always been Darren’s closest companion and he now calls him the family’s furry hero who was born to serve.

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Meanwhile, Maggie May also came to the rescue of her owner Martin at the family’s home in Guelph in March 2023.

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After suffering heart failure months earlier, Martin spent his days recovering at home with Maggie May by his side.

To help manage his new condition and lack of mobility, Martin had to take heart medication and his wife Amy arranged a main-floor bedroom for him.

Then on a cold March night, Maggie May alerted Amy, who was in the upstairs part of their house, and guided her downstairs, where she found Martin out of his bed and the back door unlocked and wide open.

Amy followed Maggie May outside and found her husband in the middle of a snowdrift in a catatonic state.

After calling 911, paramedics informed Amy that Martin’s new medication likely caused hallucinations and made him disoriented, which caused him to go outside.

Martin was stabilized at a hospital and doctors said if Maggie May did not quickly alert Amy, Martin may not have survived the elements.

Martin and Amy said they are grateful for their nine-year-old furry companion.

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