Weela – A Pitbull Hero to be proud of
December 20, 2009 by Joel
Filed under Dog Stories
Weela almost never got to be a hero. She, and nine other pitbull puppies were left to die in a lonely alley in Imperial Beach California. But she was lucky. Lori Watkins, a dog lover passed by and heard the puppies whimpering. She took the 10 of them to her ranch and got them healthy. She found homes for nine, and kept Weela, who followed her son wherever he went.
One day Lori’s son Gary was chasing lizards when suddenly Weela took off and ran into Gary, knocking him out of the way of a rattlesnake. The snake bit Weela in the face, but once again Weela survived a potential disaster, as if someone was looking after her.
A few years later in 1993 heavy rains caused a dam to break in the Tijuana river. The raging waters caused many people and animals to be isolated and stranded in small sections of the area. Lori had some friends who had left 12 dogs at their ranch. Weela led Lori and Dan Watkins through heavy rains, strong currents and floating debris to get to the dogs. Lori was amazed at how Weela recognized quick sand, mud bogs and dangerous drop-offs. He worked tirelessly to help Lori and Dan rescue the stranded dogs.
When 17 dogs and 1 cat were found stranded on an island, Weela would swim to them with 30 to 50 pound bags of dog food strapped to his back.
13 horses were discovered trapped in a manure patch. Weela led the rescue team to the horses, repeating the act until all of the horses were safe.
One day when Weela was returning from one of her trips to the stranded dogs and cat, she came across 30 people attempting to cross the river. Weela kept barking at them until they followed her lead to a safe part of the river to cross. They had been trying to cross at a point where the river was strongest and the water was deepest. Weela led them to a shallower and safer part of the river.
In total, Weela helped save 30 people, 13 horses, 17 dogs and 1 cat. For this she was the 40th Ken-L-Ration dog of the year. Well deserved.
A pitbull to be admired. A sign that pitbulls can be kind and gentle when raised to be.
