As humans who suffer from complicated and messy bonds, having a pet as a companion can help ease the pain of suffering and broken bonds. We need a sense of loyalty and compassion. We knew we needed someone who will love us unconditionally and will welcome us home no matter how long we’ve been far away.
Having pets is a blessing given to us from above. Whether it may be usual pets such as dogs, cats and birds, or the unusual ones like lions and bears, these animals still know how to care for their human owners. You never know that maybe one day, they will be a most needed help when we find ourselves in danger.
Animals have their own instincts of figuring out danger apart from the usual events. You may be surprised how hard the things they are willing to do for you. Here are some of the most touching stories of humans and their pets that could touch your heart the way it did to ours.
RaeLee, a lost dog who saved a life
Yolanda Sevogia has a neighbor named Stacey Savige, who knocked on her door one morning to ask her if she can keep an eye on a lost terrier that was found roaming around the local elementary school. Yolanda agreed to watch the dog, but she told Stacey that it would only be for one day. Photos of the dog were taken by the two women and they printed off 4,000 fliers with the word “FOUND” in it, stuffed them in mailboxes and also placed it in an ad on Craigslist.
In the meantime, Yolanda made her way to the dollar store and bought some pet supplies. She warned her two sons not to fall in love with the dog because it will not be staying for long. At that time, Yolanda’s son Azaiah was 10 years old, and Christian was 21 years old. Christian has Down Syndrome and an assortment of other ailments. He also had recently undergone heart and kidney surgeries.
After four days, there is still no sign of the owner and Yolanda was still looking after the dog, whom they started calling ‘RaeLee’, which is pronounced as “Riley”. When she arrived home from work that day, the dog was barking madly at her as it flung himself against the screen door. This was unusual but as soon as she opened the door, she found out why it acted that way. RaeLee sprinted into the boys’ room where Yolanda found Christian in the middle of a violent seizure. It ran over to Christian and turned silent as soon as Yolanda bent over to help him. It knew what was going on and was eager to seek help.
If RaeLee failed to get someone’s attention, the neurologist said that Christian would have choked on his own blood and died. Thanks to the dog’s wit and fast approach that Yolanda made it on time. During this point, no one had called to claim the dog so Yolanda decided to keep him.
After this event, it was so hard not to fall in love with the dog, especially with the fact that it saved Christian’s life. But the next morning, Stacey got a call from a man named Randy who recognized his lost dog and called the number on the flier. Stacey felt sad and cried. She told him that the dog saved her friend’s son.
Still, Randy drove to Yolanda’s house to pick up his dog, and found Azaiah crying on the porch and Christian in the window. Even though he loves his dog, he saw that maybe it was meant for a new family now. After a few moments Randy said, “Maybe Odie was supposed to find you, maybe you should keep him.” Odie, who was now RaeLee, stayed with Yolanda’s family and joy overflowed in the house as the new dog continued to be an aid, as well as a new addition to the family.
Dindim, the traveler penguin
We see penguins in discovery channels and in videos that focus on featuring different animals. They are cute creatures with and who wouldn’t want to be friends with one? They are known to be super friendly with people but could be antisocial at times, depending on the situation.
An unexpected friendship was built four years ago when Joao Pereira de Souza rescued a South American Magellanic penguin on an island off the coast of Rio de Janeiro. He found it all covered in oil and was starving. Since then, they have been the best of friends and Joao named the penguin Dindim. Joao also tried to encourage Dindim to swim, but the little penguin does not want to leave. It eventually went back to his home but it travels every year to meet Joao and spend some quality time with him.
It’s so lovely to see these kinds of friendships that started from a small act of kindness. It would be hard for Dindim to survive if it weren’t for Joao and it actually appreciated it.
Capitan, the loyal German Shepherd who stayed by his master’s grave for six years
Dogs have been well known for their friendly nature and having a bond with them may go beyond the grave. Like what happened to Miguel Guzman and his dog named Capitan. Miguel adopted Capitan in 2005 for his son Damian.
Through the years, this dog showed unyielding loyalty to his master. But then, when Guzman died in 2006, Capitan went missing. The family tried to look for him but had a hard time finding him. He was eventually found lying in the cemetery next to Guzman’s resting place, barking and crying.
One of the remarkable parts of this story was that Miguel died in a hospital, and his body was taken to a funeral home far away from where he lived. Capitan has never been to the cemetery before as well.
The funeral director said that the first time he saw Capitan, he arrived at the cemetery alone. Maybe he remembered the smell of his owner that he tried to look for him because he missed his owner so much. Dogs’ special humans will forever have a space in their hearts even if they pass away. They have feelings too, including sadness and sorrow. The dog did a few laps through the tombstones before finding his master’s grave, all on his own.
Capitan continued to visit his old master every single day, at 6:00 p.m., like a routine and slept there until the morning came. He kept watch diligently for six long years and rarely left the spot. Damian said that he thinks Capitan will be there until he dies as well. He chose to look after his dad. This act of love displayed a true dedication even through death.
Hercules, the gentle grizzly bear
Bears are often portrayed as large animals who can be frightening when encountered. But this case is different. A bear cub was adopted by Andy and Maggie in the year 1974 and was named Hercules. He lived with the couple and was raised by them. He grew tall like a giant with a height of 8 feet and weighed an estimate of 500 kg, but still remained a gentle one. He showed love to the people he met and everyone loved him as well.
He became popular as well, as he toured the world, and starred in a James Bond movie. Here, Mercules met Margaret Thatcher. These are some of the highlights of his 26 precious years. Until the death of the Hollywood star in 2002. It was due to natural causes and things suddenly felt different. This event bore a huge hole in the life of his human parents. The heartbroken couple had a hard time thinking how their marriage would survive this tragedy. But they made it through and have now adopted Robbie, a Jack Russell which is way different than Hercules.
Killian, the dog who helped stop child abuse
Dogs have the ability to sense if something wrong was going on. When Killian was adopted by a loving family, she was known to be gentle and friendly. Until one day, when her behavior started to change and started to become hostile towards the family’s female babysitter. The parents sense that there is something off, so they decided to secretly record what could be happening when they are not in the house. Later on, they found out that the babysitter abused their 7-month old child which ended up in the woman being arrested. Thanks to Killian that the baby won’t have to suffer abuse from that day forward.
Yoriko, one of the coolest fish on Earth
We usually see fishes in aquariums at home but being friends with one is actually rare. If you happen to meet one and be close to them, you are one of the lucky ones who actually have the chance to experience it.
A local diver named Hiroyuki Arakawa was tasked and entrusted to be an underwater guide to a shrine beneath Japan’s Tateyama Bay. He has known a lot of local marine animals but one of them felt special to him. Yoriko, an Asian sheepshead wrasse, has been friends with Arakawa for 25 years now.
One of the best parts of their friendship and unusual relationship was when Arakawa greets Yoriko every time with a kiss upon meeting him. Yoriko surely loved this kind of gesture and saw how special his human friend was.
Shirley and Jenny, the Asian elephants who finally reunited
These two Asian elephants were rescued from abuse at a circus.
After 25 years of separation, Jenny and Shirley the Asian elephants were finally brought back together. They were so overjoyed upon seeing each other that Jenny tried to bend the bars of her stall in an attempt of trying to get to Shirley. When these two animals were able to touch each other in an open area, they stayed together roaring and leaning on each other. Friendships do last even in animals. Once a good friend, always a good friend.
Hawkeye, the inconsolable Labrador
Hawkeye was a Labrador owned by Petty Officer Jon Tumilson. Unfortunately, he was killed in a major U.S. helicopter crash in Afghanistan. He was one of the 38 officers who died during that incident as well. An emotionally-charged Navy SEAL funeral was held in his hometown, yet his dog was the most heartbroken among the rest.
He refused to let his owner’s casket go and stayed there, lying next to it for a long period of time. A viral photo of this event was spread online and broke a lot of hearts. Scott Nichols, a close friend of Tumilson, has now adopted Hawkeye. Yet, we all knew that nothing or no one can take away Tumilson’s space in Hawkeye’s heart forever.
Kwibi, the sweet Gorilla
You may have seen gorillas in movies and may be familiar with their strong and territorial behavior. Well, Kwibi is one of a kind. Kwibi was raised by Damian Aspinall until the age of five years old. During that time, he returned him to West Africa to be free.
Damian returned to Africa and one of his first goals was to find Kwibi. He was warned that the gorilla was hostile to people but he tried to call Kwibi, the gorilla came to him, held him and gazed into his eyes with intensity. It seemed like the gorilla really waited for his return in a long time. Kwibi wouldn’t want to let him go and it was one of the greatest experiences of his life.
Zander, the worried Husky
Zander is a white Husky that was rescued by John Dolan from a shelter a few years ago. Of course, Zander loved his human so much that when Dolan has to be hospitalised one day due to a skin condition, Zander’s mood was greatly affected. He got very depressed and was lying in despair around the house. When he felt like he could not take it anymore, Zander sneaked out from his house at 3 am and ended up at the hospital which is 2 miles away from home.
It is where Dolan was admitted. Under perfect conditions, dogs have been reported to smell objects or people for as far as 20km away. Maybe this is what helped Zander to find his longed human. He was later on found by a nurse wandering outside and called the number on his collar. He was later taken back home by Dolan’s wife.
Duke, a dog who saved an infant child
Duke is a dog who proved the worth of his adoption. One night, he tried to wake up his owners who are sleeping at the moment by shaking their bed uncontrollably. He tried to get their attention as their nine-week-old baby named Hazel was having a hard time breathing in the other room.
Good thing that Duke’s senses have been alarmed and that he took the right actions needed at the right time. A life was saved due to his smart initiative and effort.
Christian, the lion who recognized his human friends
Christian was a lion cub raised by an Australian family living in London until he was a year old. He lived along with two brothers who were close in age, whose names are John and Ace. When the cub was already too big for them to keep,
Christian was turned over to an animal sanctuary in Africa. When John and Ace were informed by Adamson of Christian’s successful reintroduction to the wild, which was reported in some newspaper articles, they travelled to Kenya to have a visit to Christian which was filmed in the documentary ‘Christian, The Lion at World’s End’. The brothers waited as the full grown lion approached them.
The now sole survivor of his pack managed to recognize the boys and greeted them with an outpouring of affection. Videos are uploaded online that reached over 18 million views on youtube. Here’s a video of this heartwarming scene:
Toldo, the cat who gets gifts
Cats may have been placed on memes for their boss-like attitude. They were joked around saying that they feel like they are gods when they are fed. But Toldo’s love for his master is what every cat owner seeks.
When his master Renzo Lozzelli passed away, Toldo continued to carry gifts to his grave. Lozzelli’s wife, Ada, noticed that he would bring little twigs, leaves, toothpicks, plastic cups or anything that his eyes could land on. The trip to and from the cemetery has tired Toldo out and the cold weather outside has already given him bronchitis.
He does not go outside frequently now and just continued to love the rest beside Lozzelli’s wife. Cats may not be as expressive as we think they are but their hearts are pure as well. They may scratch or ignore you but at the end of the day, deep in their hearts was the affection and longing they have for you.
