A family dog in Cumbria has been given a posthumous award after alerting his owners to a gas leak while they slept.

Australian terrier Rio, from Harrington, near Workington, barked and led his owner to the kitchen, where one of the cooker rings had accidentally been left on without a flame, allowing gas to escape.

“Without Rio, we would have slept through the night completely unaware of the gas leak,” owner Alison Tams said. “We owe him everything.”

Rio died in April, the day after his 12th birthday. He has now been recognised with a commendation award from vet charity PDSA.

The incident happened in July last year after Rio had settled in for the night with his family.

His behaviour then changed. Normally calm and affectionate, he became restless, repeatedly jumping on and off the bed, barking, pacing and refusing to settle.

Owners Phil and Alison Tams said they could not understand at first what was wrong.

When Alison got out of bed, Rio ran to the bedroom door and towards the stairs, repeatedly returning to make sure she followed, she said.

He barked until he reached the kitchen, where he stood beside the cooker and Alison could smell gas.

“Rio was completely different that night,” she said. “He was panicked, determined and absolutely insistent that we follow him.

“He simply would not stop until we understood what he was trying to tell us.”

Alison switched off the gas and opened the windows while Rio watched on. After that, he returned upstairs to bed.

The PDSA commendation is one of four awards in the Animal Awards Programme. It recognises animals whose devotion, companionship and everyday actions have made an exceptional difference to the lives of people.

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