Rescued dog ends up saving the lives of her adopters

OAK ORCHARD, Del. –  A dog that was rescued from a shelter just about 6 months ago ended up saving the lives of her adopters.

Ken Walsh, the dog’s owner said, “Without Greta, the house would have filled up, and lord only knows what could have happened.”

In mid-November at 3 a.m. when it seemed the whole world was asleep, the Walsh family was awoken to the sudden sound of barking.

Walsh said, “I got up out of bed and when I went to come down the hall she was very excited and that’s very unlike her nature.”

5-year-old Greta, a rescue from an animal shelter in Camden, Delaware was clearly disturbed. She was barking and hitting the bedroom door with her front paws, desperately trying to get her family’s attention.

Walsh said, “She definitely got my attention.” He continued to say, “I walked out to the living room and you could smell propane throughout the house.”

It seems one of the family’s other dogs had managed to turn on the stove in the middle of the night.

Walsh explained, “All the dog had to do is [hit and turn a knob], now there’s gas coming out of that burner.”

The family was able to turn off the stove and open all their windows eliminating the danger.

Walsh said, “Propane gas will displace oxygen and explosive so I mean were very lucky not only to have Greta but that it wasn’t worse.”

We spoke to local gas experts and they said the best way to detect a propane leak in your house is by smell, something Greta seemed to catch on to.

Tom Godfrey, a Regional Safety Director for AmeriGas said, “Propane is an odorless gas but we insert Ethyl-Mercaptan into it which smells like rotten eggs so when there is a propane leak it is very noticeable.”

Now Ken Walsh is crediting the safety of his family to his beloved dog Greta, begging the question: who rescued who?

Walsh said, “When I had gone to the shelter that day I wasn’t even looking to bring a dog home. I had met Greta and she touched my heart and she wound up coming home with me. I think it was a meant to be thing for her and I, so we saved each other.”

As a reward for Greta’s heroism, she was served up some delicious food.

We’re told she got her own steak and sweet potatoes, she also got peanut butter and even some vanilla ice cream.

If you ever smell propane in your house, you should immediately get out without turning off any switches or lights.

Then once you’re outside use your cellphone or ask a neighbor to call 911.

You should also pick up a Propane gas detector from your local hardware store – or go online and get one since today is cyber monday!