Ginny

Ginny the Dog (greatpet.com)

Ginny was not any regular every day canine. She had a special gift. She could track down a cat in trouble. She even once saved a man. This is her story from when she came into the world to when she left the world. This is the life story of Ginny the rescue dog.

(amazon.com)

Ginny was a schnauzer and Siberian husky mix. She was born in 1988 and lived on Long Beach Island. Before Ginny was adopted, people found her locked in a closet with no food or water but still fighting for her pups. She was later taken to an adoption shelter where Philip Gonzalez was looking for a dog. He wanted a Doberman but they didn`t have one on the adoption floor. Just when he was about to leave, the volunteer who worked there said she had two dogs in the back recovering from being spayed. There was a Doberman and Ginny. Philip wasn`t interested in scruffy looking Ginny so he went to the Doberman’s cage. The volunteer insisted that he take Ginny for a walk. On the walk Philip got used to her and had a good time. When they came back Philip was ready to sign the adoption papers.

(amazon.com)

Three days after Philip adopted Ginny they went for another walk. When Ginny saw a cat she ran around the corner after the cat and the leash slipped from Philip`s hand. Philip thought Ginny and the cat where going to fight, then Ginny sat down next to the cat and started licking her and the cat started purring. Philip thought it was a coincidence. When Philip took Ginny for a walk again the same thing happened, Ginny dashed away. When Philip caught up to her she was frantically sniffing and scratching at a pipe. When the pipe fell, five kittens came out. She had rescued the kittens!

A few weeks later Ginny and Philip went to the shelter to donate dog and cat treats. While Philip was giving the treats, Ginny went around the corner to the cat kennels. When Philip found Ginny she was begging in front of a kennel. When Philip looked into the kennel he saw that the cat had only one eye. He knew that Ginny wouldn`t settle for just one cat, she would want more. But Philip took the cat home anyway.

The next week Ginny and Philip went to the shelter again. Ginny did her same begging routine and Philip once again noticed that Ginny found a cat that needed rescuing. A few days after Philip adopted the newly found cat, he discovered the cat was deaf. Ginny had a wonderful instinct for finding cats in need.

Ginny didn`t just save cats, she also saved a man once. When Ginny realized a blind man had stepped off the curb into ongoing traffic, Ginny ran in front of him and started barking until the man turned back.

In Ginny`s final days Philip stayed next to her and kept her company. Ginny left the world on August 25, 2005. In her lifetime Ginny saved more than 900 cats. Ginny now has a fan club, Ginny TV, and the Ginny Fund. There are two books about Ginny. One is The Dog Who Rescues Cats and the other is The Blessing of the Animals. Even though Ginny`s gift was natural for her and instinctual, other dogs have the opportunity to learn these same traits through training.

Service dogs are trained to help others like people who are deaf, blind and need assistance. Service dogs wear a uniform to tell people they are on duty and that they are not allowed to be played with. Some people just have dogs for pets. But sometimes dogs can be aware of real danger. Sometimes you hear on the news that some unknown dog just saved a person from a heart attack or seizure. These dogs are not trained to do that, some dogs just have a sixth sense.

(servicedog.com)

Police dogs are trained to assist police. Have you ever heard of a K-9 Cop? These dogs are mostly on duty so they don`t have time to be played with. When police train these dogs they don`t train them how to fetch or sit. They teach them how to go after a person who has committed a crime. They also train these dogs to sniff out weapons and illegal drugs. Sometimes these dogs are off duty and have a good time like pet dogs. But when they get a call they quit playing around and go after the criminal.

Ginny and other rescue dogs both have something in common. They are all heroes, whether they have a special gift or they are trained to do what they do. They are all lifesavers in their own unique way. That is why I chose Ginny as my hero. Not just because I am an animal lover, but because these are the kind of dogs that don`t just fetch and play ball. These dogs look for danger like policemen and firefighters. Even though Ginny was just a dog, her accomplishments inspired me to take care of animals now and in the future.