Page 12 - aruba-today-20220314

a12 people & arts
Monday 14 March 2022

This tale wags the dog: 'Rescued by

Ruby' tells K-9's story

"It's like divine intervention.
She was given a chance
and she's been doing ev-
erything she can to pay it
back," he said. "You have
this dog that was given up
on, and she's changed so
many people's lives."
O'Neil knew adopting a
shelter dog written off as
unmanageable was a
gamble. Police dogs typi-
cally are bred for their work
and trained from birth.
Most state police K-9s cost
$7,500 and come from Eu-
rope.
Ruby, a working K-9 for the Rhode Island State Police and former
shelter dog, holds in a down-stay outside the state police bar- But O'Neil recalls being im-
racks in North Kingstown, R.I., Wednesday, Feb. 16, 2022. pressed by Ruby's determi-
Associated Press nation and focus, and she
graduated at the top of her
By WILLIAM J. KOLE trained as a police K-9. class. And as someone with
Associated Press Fast-forward to October dyslexia and hyperactivity,
NORTH KINGSTOWN, R.I. 2017, when this tale takes he identified with Ruby.
(AP) — This is the story of an incredible twist: A teen- "We both kind of know
a mischievous mutt who age boy got lost for 36 where each other's coming
turned out to be a very hours while hiking, and from," he said.
good girl. Such a good girl, Ruby succeeded where a On the afternoon of the
in fact, that she saved a human search party failed boy's rescue, Ruby led
life. — she found the boy, who O'Neil straight to the teen,
Ruby, an Australian shep- was unconscious and in who had tumbled into a
herd and border collie mix, grave medical condition. ravine. O'Neil's radio and
ended up in a Rhode Island He turned out to be In- GPS were out of range,
animal shelter as a pup be- man's son. but Ruby's repeated bark-
cause of persistent behav- "Rescued by Ruby," pre- ing drew authorities to the
ioral problems. Five families miering March 17 on Netf- scene. The youth, who has
adopted her in turn, only for lix, tells the story of a prob- since recovered, declined
each to return her because lematic pooch who just to be interviewed.
she was too rambunctious. needed another shot. When O'Neil knocked on
"She was a total knuckle- "Ruby was given a chance the door of the boy's home
head," said shelter volun- at life and ended up saving to deliver the good news,
teer and dog trainer Patri- a life," the American Hu- he found himself face to
cia Inman, who repeatedly mane Hero Dog organiza- face with Inman: "I said,
intervened to keep Ruby tion said in a 2018 citation 'Pat, this was her thank you
from being euthanized. naming her the nation's for saving her life — she
"She jumped and bit her "Search and Rescue Dog saved your boy's life.' And
leash. She wouldn't sit or of the Year." we both started to cry."
lie down. She just never In yet another twist, Ruby Later, as it all sank in, Inman
stopped moving. She was is played by a canine ac- found herself wondering:
special, and she needed a tor, Bear, another former What if?
special person." shelter dog who was saved What if O'Neil hadn't taken
Enter state police Cpl. Dan- by the movie's dog trainers a chance? What if Ruby
iel O'Neil, who needed a from being put down. had been put down?
search-and-rescue dog. In "It's a true underdog story," "I was so grateful. I was
2011, he was taken by an O'Neil, 41, said in an inter- beside myself and over-
eight-month-old Ruby's ir- view at his office at the whelmed," she said. "So
repressible energy and in- Rhode Island State Police, many things had to fall into
telligence, and after Inman where he now oversees an place for this to happen
vouched for her, she was 18-dog K-9 unit. the way it did. The universe
works in mysterious ways."
O'Neil, who's played in the
Netflix film by "The Flash"
actor Grant Gustin, said he
hopes people will consider
adopting a shelter dog.
"If you show them love and
compassion and you give
them a certain type of sta-
bility, they'll show their true
colors," he said.q