John Boy
A rescue Labrador fetched a police officer and helped save his owner’s life
This one’s from the archive. It’s half community story, half local news, and still one of the clearest examples of how far a Lab will go for their person.
Early on Friday morning, 13 February, Officer Jeff G. of the Germantown Police Department found a black Labrador in the Autumn Ridge neighbourhood, off County Line Road.
“He stood there and barked a little bit, then I rolled down my window and called to him. Then he wagged his tail and got more friendly until I got out of my car. And then he ran a little bit,” Jeff G. said.
John Boy had a plan. He needed help.
“In a roundabout way, yeah, he sure did. He pointed me in the right direction,” the officer said.
The Lab led him home. Outside the front door, his owner Krystal was completely unresponsive; sitting in a chair in her pajamas.
“To be honest with you, I thought she was dead. And when I went up, she was very cold to the touch; her lips were blue. But I was able to determine she was breathing and had a pulse. I called for assistance and my partner was close. So together we got her in the house,” Jeff G. said.
He also called Krystal’s daughter and sister.
“Basically what he told me was, he said that they thought that she was dead. So it’s hard,” said Tianne W., Krystal’s daughter.
Instead of a tragic morning, it became a day of relief. Krystal has a heart condition and stayed in hospital for tests; but she was alive, thanks to a quick-thinking Lab who knew exactly who to fetch.
There’s one more detail that makes this hit harder: John Boy had been returned to rescue organisations three times before he found his forever home with Krystal.
Maybe it was meant to be. Maybe the families who passed him by really missed out. What we do know is that on that freezing February morning, John Boy was exactly where he needed to be; and so was the officer he brought home.
Thank you, John Boy.
