Dog honored for saving owners during October snowstorm

Published: December 4, 2006 | 5136th good news item since 2003

A 160-pound dog who rescued her elderly owners during the October snowstorm in western New York has been awarded for her heroics.

The wet, heavy snowstorm that struck the Buffalo area on October 12th brought a large tree crashing down just outside the entrance to the rural home of Eve and Norman Fertig of Alden.

The couple, both 81, struggled for hours in the falling snow to clear a path to the door. Meanwhile, Shana, a German shepherd-timberwolf mix, was digging a tunnel under the fallen tree.

With his wife laying on top of Shana, Norman Fertig pushed them through the opening and they made it into the house.

Yesterday, the seven-year-old dog was given the Citizens for Humane Animal Treatment’s Hero’s Award for bravery.

The Fertigs run a wildlife Sanctuary in Alden, 15 miles east of Buffalo. The had left their home during the storm to tend to several injured birds when the tree fell.

Published in Animals
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