In the dark morning hours of May 3, a freight engineer quickly hit the brakes when he noticed a dog dragging a human out of the way of his oncoming train. That human, Christine Spain, had passed out on the way home from a friend’s house. Had her Pit Bull Lilly not been with her, she would be dead.
Though Lilly managed to pull her owner from the path of the speeding freighter, it couldn’t be slowed in time for the dog to avoid getting hit. The engineer rushed from the cab as soon as the train had stopped. He told a spokesman for the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals that when he arrived at the scene, Lilly’s head was resting on the woman‘s chest.
Incredibly, Spain — still unconscious — was left completely unscathed. But the same could not be said for Lilly. She lay covered in blood, the muscle and skin of her right foot completely gone.
Boston police officer David Lanteigne rescued the eight-year-old dog three years ago, hoping to provide Spain, his mother, with a companion — and a reason to cut down on drinking. He says Lilly’s recovery is his top priority now.
Her leg amputated and internal injuries still needing attention, Lilly remains in critical care at Boston’s Angell Animal Medical Center. You can help support the cost of her treatment.
Meanwhile, check out footage of this hero dog:
