DALLAS — Warren and Karen Harris, of Dallas, are empty nesters, but they still have a little one at home they consider their baby.
Their bundle of joy is a 9-year-old rescue dog named Slick.
Although they’re proud of their pup, it’s safe to say they’ve never been prouder than they were last week.
“I didn’t know it was possible to love him anymore,” said Karen.
Their adoration for Slick, a terrier corgi, grew during their nightly walk through the neighborhood.
They were circling the block, like they’d done many times before, when Slick stopped and refused to walk any farther.
“He just stared and I said, ‘What is it Slick?,’” Warren said. “And he said, ‘There’s a problem here, dad.’”
Warren and Karen had no idea why Slick wouldn’t budge until they looked toward the house where he’d stopped.
“I saw a man laying on the porch, gesturing toward us with a hand, trying to call out for help,” said Warren.
The man, a Vietnam veteran, had suffered a stroke. He spent all day crawling through the house and out the front door, but no one noticed he was there until Slick sensed his desperation.
“That’s the only explanation that I have, is that he sensed that something was amiss,” said Karen.
Slick may have very well saved the man’s life.
Karen and Warren had forgotten their phones, but rushed to a neighbor’s house and called 911. An ambulance took the man to the hospital, where he’s still recovering.
His hero, meanwhile, curled up on the couch next to Warren and Karen, completely oblivious to his own good deed.
The Harris’ said, by loving so unconditionally, dogs save us every day.
For that, they deserve a lot more credit or, at least, a shiny new toy.
“Oh, my god,” Karen said. “Whatever he wants. His Ferrari’s on order.”
Slick, surely, will simply settle for a walk.