Saluting a Hero! The Last Known Canine Survivor of 9/11 Dies

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Bretagne, May She Bark in Peace!

A loving tribute to pawnderful leader and example of the best of Canines everywhere!  WOOF!! WOOF!!!!  I paws to salute, 16-year-old Bretagne, a beautiful Golden Retriever.  She was the last known FEMA Search and Rescue Canine who served at Ground Zero died peacefully in Cypress, Texas.

An absolutely pawsome remarkable girl, Bretagne served with members of Texas Task Force 1 (TX-TF1) at the site of the World Trade Center for 10 days in 2001. She was 2 years old and newly certified as a FEMA Search and Rescue canine when she served to help humans at the terrorism incident in U.S. history.

A confident girl whose drive, determination, skills and personality were pawsome to her career.  During her pawsomely barking career with TX-TF1, Bretagne responded to nearly a dozen other disasters, including Hurricanes Katrina, Rita and Ivan. 

After retiring from her formal search and rescue work, she continued to serve humans as a goodwill ambassador for her local fire department and as a reading assistance dog at an elementary school near her home.  The barkingly sweet girl was the star of a non-fiction book about senior dogs  She met Texas First Lady Cecilia Abbott, and late last year, former President George H.W. Bush at his Presidential Library in College Station, TX.

As a nominee for the 2014, American Humane Association “Hero Dog Award,” she received red carpet treatment during the Hollywood, CA, ceremony. Her 16th birthday was celebrated last year with a bash in New York City- it gained worldwide media attention.

She was loved by all her teammates even those who had just met her in training.  Asking team members about her, the common comment you'd get is,
‘Oh she just loves me!’.  Bretagne was fiercely devoted never taking her eyes off her handler always taking her job seriously.   At her first deployment at the World Trade Center, she took her job seriously in an unknown chaotic situation. Paws, somehow she always knew who needed her comfort who needed to hold her close and stroke her fur.

Bretagne had a long-term relationship with the Penn Vet Working Dog Center, where her namesake, Bretagne 2, was trained as a diabetic alert dog for an individual with severe Type 1 diabetes.

As a feature about her 16th birthday said: “To Bretagne and all of the working dogs who give so selflessly to help humans around the world, thank you.”

May she rest in peace!  arf.