Belmont police are crediting a German Shepherd with saving his owner’s life after a drug overdose.
Officers said they were notified Friday evening of an unleashed dog in the road, and that the dog would not move for traffic.
Belmont police Officer Kristopher Kloetz was able to find out who owns the dog and return the dog home. At the residence, just a short distance from where the dog was found, Kloetz found the door slightly ajar, but did not get a response from anyone inside.
Upon stepping inside the home, Kloetz spotted the dog’s owner on the floor. Police said the man had “a very weak pulse” and irregular breathing. Kloetz called paramedics immediately, and they determined the man was in the middle of a narcotic drug overdose and did not have long to live.
Emergency personnel administered the emergency overdose medication Narcan, and the man began to make a recovery on the way to the hospital.
Lt. Richard Mann recalled by phone Monday a time a toddler had sought help for a parent who had overdosed, but said the incident with the dog Friday was unique. He said the dog acted out by standing in the road, knowing it would get someone’s attention.
“It does not take much to realize this animal knew something was wrong with its owner and went to get help the only way he knew how,” police said in a statement. “He’d better buy that dog a steak; there is no doubt in our minds the animal saved that man’s life.”