 |
| The deserted infant, photo via Ghana News Agency |
A farm dog has attained hero status after spending a night protecting an abandoned newborn
human. Authorities say the dog, along with its two-week-old charge, was
found under a bridge in Winkongo (which is near Bolgatanga, the Upper
East Regional Capital of Ghana), near the farm where he lives – with the
tiny baby snuggled against him. Rather than abandon (or eat) the vulnerable tot, the dog curled up next to him for the night, refusing to leave his side. So Hairy Poppins joins the rank of a hero hound dogs after saving the life of this abandoned two-week-old baby.
A search party had been convened to look for the dog, not the baby, when the pooch's worried owner got concerned that he hadn't returned home in the evening. Searchers spent most of the night tracking the hound through nearby fields and woods, and came upon the unlikely pair quite some time later; finally locating him under the bridge near the farm he calls home, they were surprised to find the dog curled around a human infant.
A search party had been convened to look for the dog, not the baby, when the pooch's worried owner got concerned that he hadn't returned home in the evening. Searchers spent most of the night tracking the hound through nearby fields and woods, and came upon the unlikely pair quite some time later; finally locating him under the bridge near the farm he calls home, they were surprised to find the dog curled around a human infant.
Madam Rosemary Azure, Director of Health for the Talensi-Nabdam District, shared the remarkable story with the Ghana News Agency
at a ceremony for a different occasion entirely – the launch of two
vaccines that will help prevent diarrhea and pneumonia – although it's
not impossible that officials will find themselves presiding over a
medal presentation to "Hairy Poppins" sometime soon.
The baby himself is in relatively fine fettle after his adventure. His umbilical cord had not been cut, and had gotten infected, but the little one was otherwise unharmed; he's had all his vaccinations, and is currently in the custody of a local health directorate until new, non-bridge arrangements can be made for him. Azure noted that she couldn't say what had led to the baby's desertion by his mother, but speculated that the parents were teenagers, and took the opportunity to caution locals against unprotected sex. Police are investigating.
There have been a few such doggy heroes in Africa.
Perhaps most famous is the Kenyan stray now known as Mkombozi, who was foraging for food in 2005 when she found an abandoned infant girl in a plastic bag. Mkombozi (which means “liberator” in Swahili) carried the baby back to her own litter of puppies – across busy roads, through a barbed wire fence and into one of the impoverished neighborhoods of Nairobi.
 |
| Heroic canine foster dads neglected baby |
The baby himself is in relatively fine fettle after his adventure. His umbilical cord had not been cut, and had gotten infected, but the little one was otherwise unharmed; he's had all his vaccinations, and is currently in the custody of a local health directorate until new, non-bridge arrangements can be made for him. Azure noted that she couldn't say what had led to the baby's desertion by his mother, but speculated that the parents were teenagers, and took the opportunity to caution locals against unprotected sex. Police are investigating.
There have been a few such doggy heroes in Africa.
Perhaps most famous is the Kenyan stray now known as Mkombozi, who was foraging for food in 2005 when she found an abandoned infant girl in a plastic bag. Mkombozi (which means “liberator” in Swahili) carried the baby back to her own litter of puppies – across busy roads, through a barbed wire fence and into one of the impoverished neighborhoods of Nairobi.
Can we have a picture of the hero?
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeletehanks dear. As the story indicated, this epic adventure was shared at a ceremony for a different occasion entirely – the launch of two vaccines that will help prevent diarrhoea and pneumonia – so for now, the dog's picture is unavailable.
ReplyDeleteMaybe if officials indeed find themselves presiding over a medal presentation to "Hairy Poppins" dog sometime soon, the picture of the hero dog will be shared.
lol I may decide to pursue this heroic canine!!!
is that the actual dog then? appears the article has been updated to reflect a pic...please authenticate. This story is creating a lot of buzz and I would like to share this link with others if the pic is in fact of hairy poppins :)..so YES you should pursue this story for sure Koy.
ReplyDelete