Post by admin on Jun 27, 2012 20:35:54 GMT 10
A family dog in the US jumped into a swimming pool to save the life of a drowning toddler by holding his head above water.
Bear, a black Labrador, held 14-month-old Stanley Drauch above the water on his back before his mother could drag him from the pool, Michigan television station WOOD reported.
When she discovered Stanley in the pool, Patricia Drauch thought he was floating face down, but soon realised Bear was holding the boy's head above the water.
"[Bear] wouldn't move in the pool," she told WOOD. "He didn't bark. He didn't move. It was like he was afraid to move at all until I got Stanley up out of the pool and that's when he came up out of the pool with me."
Ms Drauch feared the worst when she first found her son in the pool, with the toddler unconscious and unresponsive.
"His lips were blue. His eyes were rolled back," she said. "He wasn't responding so my mind is going to the worst — that I was too late."
Bear, who has been with the family since he was a puppy, was trained to keep an eye out for the family's kids, a factor Ms Drauch says saved her son's life.
"I'd always told [Bear] since he was four weeks old that these are your babies, watch out," Ms Drauch said. "He has big paws and they were little and I didn't want him to step on them, so it paid off teaching him to watch out for them."
"If Bear wasn't out, I don't think Stanley would have made it," Ms Drauch said. "He proved that he's got enough love for the kids he's more than just our hunting dog."
Stanley has made a full recovery since falling into the pool, with an X-ray after the incident showing he had no water in his lungs at all.
Bear, a black Labrador, held 14-month-old Stanley Drauch above the water on his back before his mother could drag him from the pool, Michigan television station WOOD reported.
When she discovered Stanley in the pool, Patricia Drauch thought he was floating face down, but soon realised Bear was holding the boy's head above the water.
"[Bear] wouldn't move in the pool," she told WOOD. "He didn't bark. He didn't move. It was like he was afraid to move at all until I got Stanley up out of the pool and that's when he came up out of the pool with me."
Ms Drauch feared the worst when she first found her son in the pool, with the toddler unconscious and unresponsive.
"His lips were blue. His eyes were rolled back," she said. "He wasn't responding so my mind is going to the worst — that I was too late."
Bear, who has been with the family since he was a puppy, was trained to keep an eye out for the family's kids, a factor Ms Drauch says saved her son's life.
"I'd always told [Bear] since he was four weeks old that these are your babies, watch out," Ms Drauch said. "He has big paws and they were little and I didn't want him to step on them, so it paid off teaching him to watch out for them."
"If Bear wasn't out, I don't think Stanley would have made it," Ms Drauch said. "He proved that he's got enough love for the kids he's more than just our hunting dog."
Stanley has made a full recovery since falling into the pool, with an X-ray after the incident showing he had no water in his lungs at all.
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