# Has your dog ever saved your life? Rescue story



## Caitydid255 (Aug 28, 2010)

I know this story is not about a GSD but I hope it will compel others to adopt. My family received Teddy from an abusive situation, he came to us with many scars, both emotional and physical. I was in second grade. We worked with him through his issues, and I admit as a child I sustained physical scars (on my arms mainly from grooming issues) from this dog, but I never told my parents. He bit my sister and I remember discussions whether they should put the dog down. I remember hugging his neck and crying that he was "my dog" and nobody else could touch him. Fortunately for him, and us, my parents held back on that decision.

One day while walking through the woods, Teddy pushed past me and started attacking a rock. Biting and jumping. I thought he went crazy and ran home and told my parents. My father discovered a dead copperhead body on the rock that he attacked. That rock was right in my normal path. When I was 9 years old, Teddy possibly saved my life. 

Years later I remember playing on my culdesac street when three dogs approached me growling. I remember a strange tan dog attacking me and when its jaws were inches from my face, I saw a brown blur. Teddy had come through his electric fence, and attacked the three dogs, not only saving me and my sister from bodily harm, but possibly further harm. From my mother's recount and the police report, the three dogs were pit-bull mixes that were trained to attack. He later re-created this action by attacking a neighbors pit bull that came into our yard and was sneaking up behind me. I personally know my neighbor was training this dog to attack people.

Rescues will come to you with a variety of issues. Working through those issues will test your patience and sometimes you may question whether you have bit off more than you can chew. If you stick it out the rewards will be much greater than you ever could have imagined. I still miss my Teddy Bear, he slept with me every night and got me through many tough times. I know many people on this forum have adopted and some have questioned that commitment. I just wish to say, hang in there. You will never regret your decision.


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## WarrantsWifey (Dec 18, 2010)

Jazmine is our pup bought off the side of the road, she hasn't saved me from immediate danger per say, she did however stop three attempted break ins on our house a few years back. She went berserk and the guy bolted, not after damaging my door and windows, but without her, those nights could have gone completely different.


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## Caitydid255 (Aug 28, 2010)

I honestly await the day when Freyja feels that she needs to protect her house. You don't know the intentions of the people if they were not deferred by Jazmine's barking. She's a hero in my book.


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## RazinKain (Sep 13, 2010)

I have owned one dog that could have quite possibly saved my life. Her name was Ninja and she was a blue heeler. I was a teenager at the time, and we were at our ranch working cattle. I wandered a little too far out into the pasture and a little too close to a really bad tempered brangus bull. The bull dropped his head, crashed through the mesquite thicket straight towards me and kept coming. I turned and started running back towards the pickup which was a good 75 yds away. The bull was only about 20 ft behind me and closing fast, there was no way I was going to make it back to the safety of the truck before being run down and gored. Ninja had been herding cattle on the opposite side of the truck but somehow sensed something was going on. In a flash, that dog covered 100 yds of thick pasture, shot straight past me, and hit that bull like a sledge hammer. I've never witnessed such violence from a dog. She had grabbed the bull by the nose, tucked her legs, and thrashed until the bull went end over end and she still refused to release. That bull drug her a good 30 ft before she let go and returned to my side, shaking like a leaf. If a dog has ever come close to saving my life, that was definately the time.


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## DharmasMom (Jul 4, 2010)

Dharma saved my life but not in the way you would expect. Last summer I got fired from my job. The reason was stupid and basically it came down to that they just didn't like me and I was on probation so they canned me. It was the most humiliating, devastating, frightening experience of my life. I didn't have much in savings and what I did have went quick and I was having trouble finding another job. One day I sat in my garage, smoked a cigarette and just started bawling. Dharma sat in front of me and looked at me. I started to seriously contemplate suicide. And as a nurse I would not screw it up. I was going to turn my car on and just sit in the garage, just go to sleep. Then I wouldn't have to worry about losing my house, trying to find another job, how I was going to pay the electric bill, none of it. About that time Dharma leaned her face into mine and started to lick my face and tears. She then laid her head on my lap and looked up at me into my eyes like she was saying "don't cry mom, I love you". At that point, all I could think was that if I died, who would take care of her? Would she end up scared and alone in a shelter. How long before someone found me? How long would she be alone with my body, trying to wake me up, hungry and worried because I wouldn't get up. I realized then that no matter how bad things were I had to hang in there for her. She needed me and she counted on me to take care of her and love her and nobody could do it as good as I can. So I held on.

And you know what, I finally got a job and it is a better job that pays a whole lot more. I am gone more but at least I don't have to worry about how I am going to make ends meet each paycheck now and there is extra money for toys and treats for my girl. 

So yeah, she saved my life, even if it wasn't intentional.


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## Chicagocanine (Aug 7, 2008)

Not me but I have a friend who was attacked by a dog when she was a kid. Her grandmother's German Shepherd protected her from the other dog and may have saved her life.


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## Davey Benson (Nov 10, 2010)

Ever seen "Old Yeller"?

It happened in our family, probably about 80 years ago.

My grandpa was attacked by a sow when he was a young man. Their GSD they had at the time jumped into the pen, and got the hog off of him. He ended up with a shreded pant leg, and a large gash in the the calf of his leg. Had it not been for the dog, he quite possibly would have gotten killed. The dog was unscathed.

Yea Buddy!:happyboogie:


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## Wolfiesmom (Apr 10, 2010)

My dog thinks he has saved my life on a few occasions. He pulled me away from the high surf at the beach, pulled me away from the fire in the fireplace, and from my Kitchenaid stand mixer. I have no doubt that if I was really in danger, he would save me.


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## DharmasMom (Jul 4, 2010)

Wolfiesmom said:


> My dog thinks he has saved my life on a few occasions. He pulled me away from the high surf at the beach, pulled me away from the fire in the fireplace, and from my Kitchenaid stand mixer. I have no doubt that if I was really in danger, he would save me.



Those things are very dangerous!!! Wolfie has saved your lives almost daily from things you silly humans don't even realize are dangerous!! It's a good thing you have him. You might not have made it this long if it wasn't for him!


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## Bunch of Rascals (Dec 27, 2010)

I don't have anything to add just wanted to say that you made my morning with your heroic pup's actions wolfiesmom! Hahaha I love that. What a good boy


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## 2CrazyDogs (Jan 19, 2011)

I grew up in California in a not so good neighborhood. Friends of our family were moving and they had a 8 year old GSD that they couldn't take with them right away so my mom offered to take care of her until they could get her. While we had her our fence never got tagged and we never once had a break in. She even protected us from my sister's weird boyfriends who would try to sneak in during the night . Our neighbors couldn't bare taking her from us so we got to keep her until the day she passed.


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## LARHAGE (Jul 24, 2006)

I rescued a young Corgi and had her for 14 years, she was a pistol and a wonderful ranch dog, she didn't allow the horses to bang their stall doors or she would jump up and bite their nose, she noticed any little thing out of order, one time she ran up to me and made me follow her to a stall where a horses blanket hood had slipped and was over it's head, the poor horse couldn't see and was bumping into the walls! I'm convinced she could have potentially saved my life or at least prevented serious injury to me, I was putting a blanket on a stallion and he inexplicably just fired at me and shattered my knee cap on impact, I dropped to the floor and he turned around and pinned his ears at me, right as he came at me striking the ground with his front hooves, that little Corgi came at him and literally launched at his face and grabbed his muzzle, she hung on him long enough for me to drag myself under his stall guard, the stallion was dripping blood from his muzzle and my dog was unhurt, she just sat by my side till help arrived for me. I loved that bossy little pain in the butt, she was a holy terror, she died in my arms at the Vets office, they all loved her to death. I have a portrait of her in a place of prominence in my home, she was one in a million.


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## janisinsc (Aug 26, 2009)

I have a huskey mix named Ivan the Terrible. He is a very good dog and he chases all the airplanes out of our airspace. He jumps up on his hind legs and barks at them as they fly overhead. He only watches carefully if they fly by but not over our house. He only jumps at them if they are directly over our house. I can truthfully say since we have had Ivan we have not had a plane land or crash in out yard, such a good boy!


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## Lilie (Feb 3, 2010)

I've shared this story before on this forum, so I won't go into deal...

I had a GSD when I was a young teen into my early adulthood. I was swimming in an apt. complex pool when a man jumped in grabbed me, held me under water and managed to pull the bottom of my bathing suit down before my BF and GSD jumped into the water. He didn't see them because they were hidden by a small building on the other side of the pool. My GSD bit the man in the face while my BF pulled me from the water. My GSD was a very friendly dog and hated the water - how she knew to protect me...I don't know. 

Later with the same dog - I was sitting on my driveway rolling papers (had a paper route) with the same GSD and our neighbor's mix dog. A boy from down the road had/has mental problems and he came after me with a machette. Both dogs were injured as they protected me - but neither dog bit the boy, as if they knew he wasn't mentally responsible. My neighbors were able to come out and grab the boy. Both dogs recovered fine. 

I have no reason to believe that your dog has to be a PPD dog in order to protect you.


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## timmster (Jan 26, 2011)

I have an 11 year old chihuahua that has saved me from multiple ants and ladybugs, and when she's really feeling brave, she's even scared away a couple of crickets.

I can't wait till I get my very own German Shepherd!!!!


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## Jelpy (Nov 8, 2009)

I will always hold dear in my heart the day my GSD saved me from a vicious attack from a pepperoni and Onion Pizza. I didn't see it of course, since the cowardly launched a sneak attack while my back was turned. I was fortunate that my heroic baby was there to scarf down the pizza before it was able to harm me. Fortunately, she was able to survive its counter attack by indigestion. 

Jelpy and the Mesquite Mafia


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## WarrantsWifey (Dec 18, 2010)

Caitydid255 said:


> I honestly await the day when Freyja feels that she needs to protect her house. You don't know the intentions of the people if they were not deferred by Jazmine's barking. She's a hero in my book.


She is always my protector and guardian. <3 Thanks for your sweet words.... <3


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## DCluver33 (May 27, 2010)

I was walking Molly and Chopper once about, oh 7-8 years ago, down the bike trail by my grandparents house. Being that I was 16 years old I wasn't paying any attention to my surroundings and didn't realize that this guy had been following me for a while. Chopper was going deaf so he didn't realize there was someone either, Molly however, turned around, and if any of you know this dog you'll know she's very timid and will hide behind me or any situation, stood in front of me and growled, raised the hair on the back of her neck, bared her teeth, just looked down right nasty; the guy turned around very fast and practically ran back the way he had come. Turns out later this guy was one of my drugged up uncle's sick friends. I have no doubt that Molly was not acting our of fear, but to protect me. She has never acted like this since ever.

Molly has since gotten much better with her timidness, despite have no doggy etiquette.


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## Chowgal (Dec 21, 2009)

When I was younger, probably in the 5th grade, I was charged by a neighbors pittie/shar pei mix, and Tippsy, my chow(who is always by my side), jumped him. She'd been a good 30 ft away with my younger brother who was digging holes in the flower bed for my mom and she cleared 40 ft before I even realized what happened. And she only let go once my dad got a hold on the dog and dragged it back down the street, where he told it's owners if he EVER saw it loose again he'd shoot it himself..... Thank God, shortly after that they moved out.


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## RazinKain (Sep 13, 2010)

Lilie said:


> I've shared this story before on this forum, so I won't go into deal...
> 
> I had a GSD when I was a young teen into my early adulthood. I was swimming in an apt. complex pool when a man jumped in grabbed me, held me under water and managed to pull the bottom of my bathing suit down before my BF and GSD jumped into the water. He didn't see them because they were hidden by a small building on the other side of the pool. My GSD bit the man in the face while my BF pulled me from the water. My GSD was a very friendly dog and hated the water - how she knew to protect me...I don't know.
> 
> ...


My god! I would be feeding that dog T-bone steaks for the rest of his life! He is your guardian angel for sure.


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## xenos56 (Jan 30, 2011)

We have two dogs, one is a GSD and the other is a Golden. The GR saved me numerous times, the GSD only looks threatening, but backs off. Two years ago, I was walking both of them by our place when our GR began growling (this was 5 am so I was trying to get her to cut it out). She gave me a look and backed up and out of her collar and took off. I ran after her and saw she was chasing a guy. I couldn't catch up to them, well, because our GSD was freaked out and was pulling me home. I gave up crying and ran back to our door to find our door was open. The guy was a lookout for another guy who was trying to enter our apartment. I had seen another guy running down the side hall, but i thought he was scared too. Anyway, I woke my husband up and told him to get dressed because our dog went nuts and chased a robber down. As soon we opened our door, there was our GR wagging her tail and breathless. This was one of many times she saved us. If it weren't for her, whoever entered our place had access to our baby who was fast asleep in her crib. 

No matter the breed, dogs have a keen sense of danger. Our Golden Retriever has proven this many times over. She came to me matted up and thin, and bonded with us quickly. Buying a dog is easy, adopting one that can save you and the life of your child is priceless.


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