National Dog Day: How Sadie saved Michael's life (Setter drags owner a third of a mile to safety)

The dictionary defines a hero as “a man of distinguished courage or ability, admired for his brave deeds and noble qualities.” A hero shows acceptance and fairness. He doesn’t judge. He’s loyal, forgiving, loving, and honest. He’s someone who will stand with you when things are bad and celebrate your accomplishments when things are good.

It takes these combined qualities to fully define a hero. Trouble is, it’s hard to find a human who can claim them all. Sure, we occasionally see news headlines of someone who has gone above and beyond, but maybe it’s time to look at our feet—to the four paws sitting next to us. While few humans possess every quality of a hero, it is the very nature of a dog to exhibit them all.

In honor of National Dog Day, I want to celebrate the canines in our lives who are so much more than pets. Time and time again, dogs come to the rescue of their owners, exhibit the most special form of unconditional love, and step beyond the call of duty to do the impossible.

Gentlemen of the Jury: The best friend a man has in the 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 most. A man’s 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 man can have in this selfish world, the one that never deserts him, the one that never proves ungrateful or treacherous is his dog. A man’s 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 master’s 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 him against danger, to fight against his enemies. And when the last scene of all comes, and death takes his 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 the graveside will the noble dog be found, his head between his paws, his eyes sad, but open in alert watchfulness, faithful and true even in death.

George Graham Vest - c. 1855

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