Canadian family's golden retriever, Angel, saves 11-year-old owner from cougar attack

[Omaha Steve]

Source: NY Daily News

By Soraya Roberts
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER

Angel by name, angel by nature.

A Canadian family's dog saved her 11-year-old owner's life Saturday by stepping between him and a cougar.

Angel, an 18-month golden retriever, sustained puncture wounds around her head and neck from the deadly scuffle, CTV News reports.

The cougar charged Austin Forman as he was collecting firewood from the yard of his family's home in Boston Bar, British Columbia -- near Vancouver.




Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/lifestyle/pets/2010/01/04/2010-01-04_canadian_familys_golden_retriever_angel_saves_11yearold_owner_from_cougar_attack.html

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RCMP/Handout
Canadian family pet Angel, the 18-month-old golden retriever, saved his owner, Austin Forman, 11, from a cougar attack, sustaining head puncture wounds in the process.

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/lifestyle/pets/2010/01/04/2010-01-04_canadian_familys_golden_retriever_angel_saves_11yearold_owner_from_cougar_attack.html#ixzz0bh8l63LU

[WriteDown]

1. THAT IS JUST AWESOME!

Thanks for posting this.

[denbot]

2. Was this the culprit?

[Doctor_J]

5. I think it was this

[BeatleBoot]

11. No, you meant Sarah Palin!

[CLANG]

14. None of the "dogs" I know would try to fight her off!

'Course being married, I wouldn't have any idea...

[Fire_Medic_Dave]

3. Good girl!

My wife and I have fostered over 50 goldens.

[peace13]

15. Thanks for that!

Goldens are very sweet.

[endless october]

4. brave and loyal pup there.

hope she makes a full recovery.

[virgogal]

6. God bless her brave little heart.

[beyurslf]

7. What a great story!

[TheWraith]

8. Golden Retrievers are the best dogs, in my opinion.

I've never seen dogs sweeter and more loyal than them, or more family oriented.

[pink-o]

12. I still miss my golden to this day!

I love the way they smile. They just look at you like this :-) :-) :-) :-)


Whoooose a good doggie then????

[Bigmack]

25. I was gonna post....

a great Golden pic I saw. Dog was thusting his face through bungies after a ball. The bungies pulled all his facial skin back until he looked like he was smiling with his whole head.

Couldn't find it, but when I googled "golden retriever smiling", I got 238,000 hits.

They are lovers.

At the risk of setting off the pit bull fans... have you ever heard of a "pack of roving Golden Retrievers" mauling an old lady or kid?

[dixiegrrrrl]

29. Actually, Goldies are 3rd on the list for dog bites.

Shepherds, Chows and then Goldens.(due to unstable temperament of too many backyard breeders.)

My Goldie can do a great guard dog imitation and most people are fooled by his protective behavior.
Something I had to encourage him to do, usually they will just drool you to death.
I am not surprised that Angel was such a guardian, tho.

[MountainLaurel]

33. My goldie is like that

Although he was naturally sort of a guard dog -- he's very suspicious of strange noises. He keeps an eye on the backyard (there are some possums living in the neighbor's tree) by standing in the house and poking his front half out the dog door. In the front, no one can shut a car door on the street without three furry heads popping up in the window to check it out.

[WriteDown]

16. Nonsense...

Siberian Huskies or Akita Inu's. You tell them to sit and they look at you and ask "Why should I?" I just love the Spitz breeds, but of course its all a matter of opinion! :)

[morillon]

21. My Spitz is very willful.

I adore all the Spitz breeds. They do have minds of their own, though! :-)

[WriteDown]

27. Very cool...

It takes special owner to tolerate their willfulness! :)

[gaspee]

34. Oh Yeah

I live with 8 Shiba Inu ranging in age from 15 yrs down to 12 weeks and they are extremely willful - though I think they would protect me from a cougar - or try anyway since they weigh 20 - 30 pounds each.

[WriteDown]

35. I have a 30 pound 14 year old male Shiba Inu....

He is something else. Don't think I could do 8 though.

[Earth_First]

9. Just gave my 2 year-old golden a pat on the head as she sits next to me

They truely are one of the most amazing, loyal animals in the world.

[Fire_Medic_Dave]

18. I'd have to go find one of the 4 plus the foster dog. One of the 3 labs is with me now.

[BeatleBoot]

10. Unconditional Love

Love retrievers.

They love back.

[Divine Discontent]

13. what a GR8 story! God blessed that child with a Golden!

[AllyCat]

17. Aptly named pooch

What a great dog! Lucky family!

[L. Coyote]

19. "the deadly scuffle," So, who is dead?

[Sinistrous]

22. The cougar.

Shot by RCMP Officer.

[ladywnch]

23. officer shot the cougar before it could finish off the Golden. n/t

[FreedomRain]

20. If you have to have a dog

Retriever is a good choice. Mine once amazingly broke his chain (attached to a post )to defend me from a rattlesnake I accidentally trod upon

[gratefultobelib]

24. And labs are canny hunters, too!

[Jamastiene]

26. My NEIGHBOR'S Golden/Pit mix protected me the other night.

I'm not sure what the neighbor calls her, but I call her Bonnie. She's always around and I usually pet her and talk sweet to her and her little Corgi/German Shepherd mix buddy.

The other night I was taking my groceries out of the trunk and heard something rustling in the woods nearby. Bonnie had been wagging her tail at me until she heard that. When she heard that, she got BETWEEN me and the woods and started growling and barking ferociously toward the woods. Whatever it was left.

I know she'd protect me as if I was her own "people" if I ever needed protection. I'm glad she is around. She is a great dog.

[avaistheone1]

28. Goldens are wonderful doggies.

That golden was only a baby himself.

[roguevalley]

30. my sister's dobie used to find moose in the woods and bring them

back to her. :-D

[Vidar]

31. Angel indeed!

[JNelson6563]

32. Whozabestdogever??

whozabestdoggieeeeee??????

Awesome. :-)

[avaistheone1]

40. Goldies!

[TrogL]

36. The dog should be fine

...assuming the cougar wasn't rabid.

Scalp wounds look at lot worse than they are.

[Martin Eden]

37. Our yellow lab is 13 and finally starting to show her age

I can't bear to think about the fact that this family member won't be sharing her life with us much longer.

[Mad_Dem_X]

38. What a brave, wonderful dog!

This is why dogs rule as pets - they will protect their owners, against any predator, even if it puts the dog's life a risk. "Man's best friend," indeed.

[Cronus Protagonist]

39. What do you get if you cross a pit bull with a golden retriever?

A dog that scares the shit out of you and runs away with the toilet paper.

[Kolesar]

41. Now I have a joke I can tell at dinner

:thumbsup:

[bikebloke]

42. An afghan

Back in my moshav farming days in the Negev, I was walking through the settlement. Someone's beautiful tiger-striped afghan was walking down the road. So I stopped to pet it. A little further on, some mutt charged me from a house. Suddenly the afghan leaped between me and the mutt, growling at it. The mutt backed away. The afghan got another pet.

[Odin2005]

43. Good girl!