Bizarre Animal Heroics

Owned by Victoria Herberta of Houston, Texas,
Priscilla the pig made headlines in 1984 when she rescued an
11-year-old boy from drowning. Paddling in Lake Somerville,
Priscilla spotted young Anthony Melton struggling and swam
to his aid. She used her snout to keep the boy's head above
water until he could hold on to her collar and then dragged
him to the shore.

When fire broke out at Ansty Farm, Sussex, in
1985, Nipper, the farm's five-year-old collie, saved calves and lambs by
repeatedly venturing into the smoke and
shepherding them to safety. As a result of the ordeal, the brave
pooch ended up with singed fur and blistered paws.

In 1983 Ian Elliot was chopping down trees on his
Canadian farm when a pine tree crashed on to him, breaking his back.
His life was saved by his faithful sheepdog
Bracken who lay across his master to maintain his body
temperature. When Bracken heard the sound of voices in the
distance, he ran to the men and led them back to the injured Mr. Elliot.

When a four-year-old boy got stuck in riverside
mud and sank up to his armpits, Bruce the Labrador cleverly
lay on his side and gripped the boy's shoulder in his mouth
to stop him sinking further into the mire. Fortunately, the boy's mother
spotted the predicament and organized a rescue.

In 1989 Adam Maguire was surfing near Sydney when
he was attacked by a shark. As the shark moved in for
the kill, it was distracted by a school of dolphins thrashing
around in the water. To prevent the shark reaching its
prey, the dolphins then swam around it in circles until
Adam's friends had managed to rescue him.

Hearing the family's pet rabbit scratching at its
hutch, Tanya Birch woke up to find that her block of
flats at Wisbech, Cambridgeshire, was on fire. She grabbed
her two- year-old daughter, Heather, and fled to safety.
Sadly, the rabbit perished in the blaze.