New York Dog Lunges in Front of Bus, Saves Blind Owner's Life
— -- A golden retriever service dog named Figo saved a life when he leaped in front of a small school bus in an effort to protect his blind owner.
"I've seen dogs protect their owners when an intruder is coming at them, but not from an automobile," Brewster Village's chief of police John Del Gardo told ABC News. "I've never seen that before."
Audrey Stone, the woman that Figo guides, was walking through an intersection on North Main Street on Monday morning when a bus struck the pair in the center of the walkway, police said.
"Right before it happened the dog did something really heroic," Del Gardo said. "He sort of lunged at the bus. It injured his leg and paw, and the woman received multiple injuries. When EMS came, he [Figo] didn’t want to leave her side."
Brewster Fire Department's second assistant chief Moe DeSantis, who was at the scene of the crash, said the bus was carrying two school children, and no one on the vehicle, including the driver, was injured.
The driver, Chief Del Gardo said, was issued a summons for failing to yield to a pedestrian in a crosswalk.
Del Gardo added that Stone is currently being treated in the hospital with numerous fractures, three broken ribs, and a laceration to the head.
Figo, who received an operation at Middlebranch Veterinary in Carmel, New York, is now doing well in his recovery process, according to his vet Dr. LouAnn Pfeifer.
Pfeifer, who has been caring for eight-year-old Figo, said she is not surprised that he sacrificed himself for Stone.
"This is what they're trained for," she said. "He’s a good boy. He's been a patient of ours since he was in service of Miss. Stone and he is just a wonderful dog."
Pfeifer added that her facility will be holding onto to Figo upon Stone's release from the hospital.
