Buddy is a touching story with a tragic ending. Bill Hitchcock was the sole caretaker of a remote lodge on Knight Island, Alaska. While out cutting firewood, Hitchcock was struck by a piece of timber and died. For the next two weeks, his faithful four-year-old black lab, Buddy, paced between his owner’s body and the shoreline looking for help. He managed to survive the brutal February temperatures that reached -23°F before leading searchers to his owner.
After people heard of Buddy’s story, over a thousand letters, calls, and emails were sent by people hoping to adopt him. Finally, Bill’s neighbors, Roger and Marilyn Stowell, decided that Jim Brewer, the mayor of the Alaska Peninsula village of Chignik would get him.
Less than a month later, Buddy was dead. Brewer who had initially told reporters that “Buddy will just become part of our family,” had Buddy put to sleep. According to Brewer, Buddy had difficulty transitioning to his new life and, after the dog bit him, he decided to surrender him to Anchorage Animal Control. Buddy was labeled “ineligible for adoption” and euphonized. The Stowell’s, who had told Brewer that he could return Buddy if it did not work out, were heartbroken as were the 999 other people who had expressed an interest in Buddy.- Darcy Logan
Tags: 6th sense, a faithful dog, A wolves story, Alaska, amazing animals, amazing pets, amazing true stories, Angel Animals, animal, animal acts of love, Animal Angels, animal communication, Animal companions, animal compassion, animal courage, animal devotion, animal empathy, animal heroes, animal intelligence, animal miracles, animal related stories, animal rescue, animal rights, animal tales, animal understanding, animals, animals as guides for the soul, animals as teachers and healers, Bobbie the wonder dog, Buddy, bum a friend of shorty's, canis lupus, canis lupus familiaris, dog saves dog, dog saves person, dolphin saves person, dolphin saves whales, familiars, famous animals, for the love of dog, Forever faithful, Grateful Dog, grey friars bobby, Greyfriars Bobby, Hachi, Hachiko, hero cat, hero dog, hero wolf, Heroic animals, heroic dog, heroic wolf, Kevin Baskovich, Knight Island, Notsuredamus, Notsuredomus, pet, pet devotion, Pet lovers, pets, Shep, the familiar spirit, the grey friars bobby, The Greyfriars Bobby, the wonder dog of oregon, Therapy Animals, true stories, true stories about animals, unlikely animal friendships, wild animal saves dog, wild animal saves person, wildlife, wolf, wolves