John McShane - Mans Best Friends: True Stories of the Worlds Most Heroic Dogs

Copyright 2012 John McShane

first published in the united states of america in 2017 by :

Overamstel, 15 W. 36th St., 8th Fl., New York, NY 10018,

an imprint of Overamstel Publishers, Inc.

phone (646) 850-4201

Originally published in the United Kingdom by

John Blake Publishing Ltd in 2012

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by means electronic, mechanical, photocopying, or otherwise, without prior consent of the publisher.

distributed by : Consortium Book Sales & Distribution,

34 13th Ave. NE #101, Minneapolis, MN 55413

phone (800) 283-3572

www.cbsd.com

first edition august 2017 / 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

printed and bound in the u.s.a.

isbn : 978-1-944713-42-3

library of congress control number : 2017903175

I would like to dedicate Mans Best Friends to all those special, loyal and heroic dogs and, of course, their owners, who are featured in this book. Thanks to all those who have shared their stories to bring this book to life.

Preface

G eorge Graham Vest is far from the most famous lawyer-politician in American history and Warrensburg, in Johnson County, Missouri, is the kind of small town that few outsiders have heard of. But it was in Warrensburg courthouse that Vest, a skilled orator, made a dramatic speech. Its simplicity and truth summarized in a few short words a timeless relationship: that of a man or woman and their dog. A dog, said Vest, in words just as relevant today as when he first uttered them, is mans best friend. Never has a truer word been spoken, and never has the bond between the two been so accurately described.

He was addressing the jury in the case of a long-running dispute between two related neighbors centered on the death by shooting of Old Drum, a hunting dog. On September 23, 1870, Vestrepresenting the dogs ownerstood upright and summed up the case, eloquently praising the loyalty of a dog to his owner in terms that brought tears to the eyes of the members of the jury (and all those who have since read his brief submission).

Under the heading Eulogy of the Dog, the official records of the US Senate note his remarks to the jury that day:

The best friend a man has in this world may turn against him and become his enemy. His son or daughter that he has reared with loving care may prove ungrateful. Those who are nearest and dearest to us, those whom we trust with our happiness and our good name may become traitors to their faith. The money that a man has, he may lose. It flies away from him, perhaps when he needs it the most. A mans reputation may be sacrificed in a moment of ill-considered action. The people who are prone to fall on their knees to do us honor when success is with us may be the first to throw the stone of malice when failure settles its cloud upon our heads. The one absolutely unselfish friend that a man can have in this selfish world, the one that never deserts him and the one that never proves ungrateful or treacherous is his dog.

A mans dog stands by him in prosperity and in poverty, in health and in sickness. He will sleep on the cold ground, where the wintry winds blow and the snow drives fiercely, if only he may be near his masters side. He will kiss the hand that has no food to offer, he will lick the wounds and sores that come in encounters with the roughness of the world. He guards the sleep of his pauper master as if he were a prince. When all other friends desert, he remains. When riches take wings and reputation falls to pieces, he is as constant in his love as the sun in its journey through the heavens.

If fortune drives the master forth an outcast in the world, friendless and homeless, the faithful dog asks no higher privilege than that of accompanying him to guard against danger, to fight against his enemies, and when the last scene of all comes, and death takes the master in its embrace and his body is laid away in the cold ground, no matter if all other friends pursue their way, there by his graveside will the noble dog be found, his head between his paws, his eyes sad but open in alert watchfulness, faithful and true even to death.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, Vest went on to win the case. Afterwards his speech took on a life of its own, being reprinted both in the United States and abroad, no doubt not only due to the eloquence of the language but also the simple, universal truth about the relationship between a man or woman and a dog. Although the exact wording a dog is a mans best friend is never used and the friendship between the two had been noted before, Vests oration is now commonly accepted as the origin of the phrase.

This book chronicles the actions of a small number of those best friends. The dogs come in all shapes and sizes: some giant, some so small they could literally be put in a pocket. Some of the dogs have impeccable pedigrees. Others well, lets just say their lineage has become lost in time, and who cares anyway? Their brave actions and speed of mind and body were invaluable, often life-saving, to those who cared for them and, in return, received devotion beyond what most humans could imagine. Truly, they are the worlds most heroic dogs.

1
Dog Physicians

D ogs have many fine qualities that are plain for all to see, but there are others no one could expect them to possess. Who, for example, expects a dog to come to the medical aid of a human in distress or even in danger of dying? Of course dogs can transport medicines or equipment. They can tell humans someone is in distress through barking or expressions of agitation. But interceding with some form of aid of their own volition? There are some instances of such action, crossing the barrier from the expected to the unexpected, from the predictable to the realm of disbelief.

Take Toby, for example. His path had never crossed with that of Dr. Henry Jay Heimlich, the physician accredited with prescribing the abdominal thrusts used to help choking victims clear their air passages. Dogs and the now-famous Heimlich Maneuver didnt seem like natural companions. Not, that is, until 2007, when Toby, a two-year-old golden retriever, became the first dog to save a life by performing the respiratory rescue technique.

Debbie Parkhurst, 45, was eating an apple at her home in Calvert, Maryland, when she failed to swallow a bite. The chunk of fruit became trapped in her throat, and within seconds her life was in jeopardy. She began to beat on her chest, frantically pounding away with her fists, and even leaned over a chair to perform the Heimlich Maneuver on herself, all without success. Then Toby came to the rescue.

The next thing I know, Mrs. Parkhurst described, Tobys up on his hind feet and hes got his front paws on my shoulders. He pushed me to the ground and once I was on my back, he began jumping up and down on my chest. The chunk of apple was dislodged, and she escaped death. As soon as I started breathing, he stopped and began licking my face, as if to keep me from passing out. A friend arrived in time to witness the dogs amazing act and drove her to a doctor.

After her brush with death, she admitted: I literally have paw-print shaped bruises on my chest! Im still a little hoarse but otherwise Im OK. They say dogs leave a paw print on your hearthe left a paw print on my heart, thats for sure. The doctor said I probably wouldnt be here without Toby. I keep looking at him and saying, Youre amazing! Of all the dogs in the world, I never would have expected this goofy one here to know the Heimlich.