It can make all the difference in the world to have a friend who has your back.
Just ask Pulma, this little Chihuahua.
The other day, Pulma was at home in Brazil with his dog siblings when a small mistake almost caused a big problem.
Pulma slipped and fell into the family pool while he was sniffing around. He tried to paddle with his little paws, but it was soon clear that he couldn’t get out on his own. Pulma was in danger of going under.
Then a hero came along. It was Athena, Pulma’s pit bull friend.
Here’s a video of that moment:
Athena had come to the rescue.
The people who owned the dogs were home at the time. When they heard splashing, they ran outside and found that Athena had already saved Pulma. At first, Pulma’s owner, Janaina Leite, was worried that Athena’s grip might be too strong as she pulled Pulma out of the pool. However, when she let go of Pulma, he came out of the pool startled but unharmed.
“It was a big scare. [But] thanks to her, and God, Pulma was unharmed,” Leite told The Dodo. “Athena is very affectionate and protective of her siblings. She is very special.”
Athena’s loving and protective instincts had stopped a tragedy, but Leite wants to do more. Even though this was the first time one of the dogs had fallen into the pool, she still plans to take precautions to avoid another accident.
“We are looking into putting some protection around the pool,” she said. “This certainly will not happen again. We love our fur babies.”
And what Athena does shows that they love each other very much.