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Red Cross Calls Pit Bull a Hero

Dog who would have been banned, saves family.

It’s a good thing Elkhart County, Indiana, didn’t go ahead with its plan to ban pit bulls. Thor wouldn’t have been around to save his family when a fire broke out.

Today, the Red Cross is calling Thor a hero.

The fire started at about 3 a.m. on July 9 and raced through the home. According to Kemper Hunter, Thor’s person, the dog began barking furiously and jumping on everyone to wake them up.

But that wasn’t all. When Kemper went to look for their baby in the smoke and confusion, he realized Thor was already on it. “We turned around to look for the bassinet that was at the head of the bed, and it’s at the door. All we got to do is open the door and go out. [Thor’s] like ‘Let’s roll, dad! It’s time to go, I got you.’”

“The real hero here is the family pit bull,” said Frank Connolly, assistant executive director of the Elkhart County Red Cross. “Lately we have learned how important pets can be to a family, and this is as stark an example as I’ve ever seen.”

Ironically, just a few months ago, Thor could have been evicted from his home. In January, the Elkhart City Council had met to vote on a measure to ban pit bulls from the city limits. The measure failed by one vote. One of the people voting against was Councilman Brian Thomas, who noted that the problem is not dogs; it’s their guardians.