Englanninsetteri Peteä voi hyvällä omallatunnolla kutsua sankarikoiraksi. Se menetti nimittäin henkensä traagisesti suojellessaan rakkaitaan karhun hyökkäykseltä. Peten omistajat, lemmikkien päiväkotitoimintaa tarjoavaa Me & My Shadow Pets -yritystä johtava pariskunta oli ulkoilemassa koirien kanssa Greenwood Lakessa.

He törmäsivät yllättäen mustakarhuun, joka lähti hyökkäämään koiria ja pariskuntaa kohti. Pete asettui suojelemaan laumaansa samalla, kun Ben hoiti muut koirat turvaan. Valitettavasti Pete kärsi kuolettavista vammoista puolustaessaan omiaan. Rescue-koirana adoptoitu lemmikki jouduttiin omistajien suruksi lopettamaan eläinlääkärin toimesta.

– Sytyttäkää kynttilä Petelle, ja muista että kodin tarjoaminen rescue-koiralle voi joskus pelastaa sinut, lemmikin omistaja kirjoitti.

Koskettava tarina levisi Me & My Shadow Petsin Instagram-tilillä ja Twitterissä toimittaja Ben Whiten toimesta. Sitä on jaettu sosiaalisessa mediassa uudelleen jo kymmeniä tuhansia kertoja.

So our friends lost their sweet setter Pete today. He and some other dogs surprised a black bear while on a hike. Pete bravely protected the rest of the crew who got to safety. Pete later succumbed to his injuries. He was an older guy and went out a true hero. RIP PETE THE HERO! pic.twitter.com/a3W5q9DHbc

— Ben White (@morningmoneyben) February 12, 2018

Below is an account from my husband of yesterdays pack walk. "Today we lost our brave, old man Pete. The dogs surprised a black bear just off the trail while we were hiking this morning. It must not have heard or smelled us with the pouring rain. It felt threatened and turned around. Pete stepped up and held off the bear until I could get the other dogs to safety. Once I was sure they were safe, I went back and scared the bear off, but Pete was gravely injured. I was able to get him back down to the main trail and, thanks to Cathi and Kate, we were able to get him in a car and to the hospital pretty quickly. He held on like a real trooper the whole time, and he was never alone in his pain. The x-rays revealed some pretty bad spinal damage that would mean he could never walk again, if he survived all the surgeries (not a certain thing at his age). We decided it was best to let him go this afternoon. Run free Pete, you no longer have all those aches and pains of old age. You had a great 18 months with us running the days away like you loved." Please light a candle for Pete and remember that fostering and rescuing a dog can sometimes save you. Senior dogs have so much to give. Love you Petey. Save me some cheese for when we see each other again. ❤️💔❤️

A post shared by Me & My Shadow Pets (@mmspets) on Feb 12, 2018 at 1:16pm PST