A rescue dog in Whakatāne has been credited with saving her new owner’s life after a house fire last Friday.
Hazel, a 9-month-old dog adopted from JDC Rescue, bit her sleeping owner to wake him as the fire took hold, according to Stuff. He escaped with smoke inhalation.
“His dog actually bit him and woke him up. If his dog wasn’t there, he wouldn’t be here,” the home’s property manager, Christina Eichler, told Stuff.
Locals told Stuff the blaze grew beyond anyone’s ability to control faster than they had imagined. Firefighters had been called early, but Hazel woke the man before it was too late.
Dora Motateanu from JDC Rescue, where Hazel had been living, said the man’s decision to adopt Hazel had saved her life, and now she had returned the favour.
“That’s amazing,” she said. “I mean this is why we do this, for those moments when we see dogs finding their families.”
JDC Rescue had written online last week that Hazel had been surrendered by two previous owners and was “the most gentle and loving girl you could ever meet”.
“Despite the unfortunate circumstances she has faced, she remains the most gentle and loving girl you could ever meet,” the rescue wrote.
The group described Hazel as a “genuine treasure” and said she had first been rescued as a small puppy before being rehomed, then dumped again when an owner “decided to make a lifestyle change.”
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