NOTHING lifts my spirits quite as much as coming across amazing true-life tales of animals doing wonderful things for human beings. I saw on TV once how a family pet dog – a Golden Retriever – had suddenly turned vicious when it was confronted by burglars in the house.
The Golden (frequently known for its gentle behaviour with children) had no qualms when it came to fulfilling its paramount duty in protecting its human family.
I have also read of incredible stories about much smaller creatures doing similar things.
Cats and even birds, for instance, have astoundingly saved their owners by alerting them – often in the nick of time – to gas leaks; and even fires at home through their constant meowing or screeching.
However, it always seems that such stories on animal heroism only take place outside our country.
Until a fortnight ago.
A most extraordinary news item appeared in most of the English dailies that left me stunned and speechless!
A woman from Seremban was reported to have been miraculously saved from a watery grave in her village by her pet dog.
This was after her wooden home had been struck by flash floods from the heavy rains we have been experiencing lately.
How was she saved? Her dog’s nonstop barking apparently had drawn the attention of the fire and rescue team nearby who rushed to her aid.
The other villages who managed to escape had not noticed her. When the rescue team found the woman, she was said to be “shivering, helpless and barely able to keep her head above the flood waters.”
And it was only after the firemen had rescued the victim, did her dog swim to safety. According to the report, until then, the dog simply refused to leave her side, despite the rising waters.
There were many significant points about the woman that made her particularly vulnerable in the situation.
First of all, she was a woman and not a man. Thus, she was in a more disadvantaged position in being able to help herself out of the crisis.
Second, she was an elderly person said to be in her 60s. And third; she suffered from chronic asthma.
All this made her three times more handicapped.
It is not uncommon for elderly people to get unnoticed in rescue missions.
They can get trapped and separated from crowds more easily because of their conditions.
And had her canine companion not been with her throughout her ordeal, she would not have clung on to life and hope for as long as she did.
The account makes me recall my own harrowing experience when I was caught in a flash flood situation a few years ago.
I was in stuck in a traffic jam in the city with my three dogs in my car. We were all headed home after a routine visit to the veterinarian.
Suddenly all hell broke loose. I could see muddy waters gushing in my direction from all sides.
The able-bodied drivers abandoned their vehicles and ran for cover in the nearby high rise buildings.
The waters swallowed several cars. I had to think fast.
If I was alone in my car, I would have probably been a nervous wreck.
However, because I had three large animals under my care, I had to think of their safety above my own.
Although my pets seemed to completely understand the seriousness of the situation by the way they kept looking around the surroundings, they amazingly remained calm.
They even offered me a lick every now and then as if to calm me down too.
Taking their cue, I realised that there was no time to panic. What I needed to do instead was to quickly and carefully think of ways to make our escape.
One way was to open the doors and let them swim out to safety as dogs are naturally excellent swimmers.
As for me, I could swim too.
However, there was no way to say how strong the water currents were and the possibility of it dragging me to further danger.
In any case, as service dogs, I had full confidence that my dogs would come back for me. One of them did exactly that during his training in a pool.
Fortunately for all of us, the reckoning moment did not materialise. Where I was parked, the water levels did not rise to a crisis level.
Back to the elderly woman and her pet, they are apparently both safe now.
However it seems to me that such an outstanding act of derring-do on the part of the canine for its disabled and elderly owner should never go unnoticed.
The Seremban Municipal Council, for instance, should seriously consider bestowing a bravery award for the exemplary canine for its heroic and selfless deed.
Don’t you agree?
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