Dog Helps Save Owner After They Were Struck By a Car In Dorchester

Lucy, a beagle mix, ran off to seek help as John Miles lay unconscious in the street.

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They say dogs are a man’s best friend, and that seems to be the case with John Miles and his faithful beagle mix, Lucy.

On November 25, after Miles was struck by a vehicle while on his routine four-mile walk with Lucy along Neponset Avenue in Dorchester, the animal ran and found help, despite her own injuries, as her companion lay helpless in the street suffering from two broken legs and a broken arm.

After a car hit the pair at a “high speed” while they crossed the busy roadway, Lucy left John’s side and barked “madly” at the doorway of a nearby dentist’s office until someone responded, according to MSPCA-Angell officials.

Once she got the attention of people, Lucy limped back to Miles and stayed by him until emergency crews arrived. “By the time the police and animal control officer arrived, Lucy had braced herself against the nearly unconscious John, refusing to leave his side even as he was lifted into the ambulance,” officials said in a statement.

The driver was not cited by police, according to officials, because the vehicle stopped at the scene.

Unfortunately, Miles had no identification on him during the walk, so police had to use the tags on Lucy’s collar in order to track down the address that Miles came from to let the family members know he had been injured. Miles, who was in surgery on Thursday, treating 15 fractures to his face and his broken legs and arm, said he blacked out and had no recollection of the incident.

When officers brought Lucy to the address where his son and daughter-in-law, Caitlin Miles, live, about a quarter-mile from the accident, Caitlin rushed the animal to Angell’s Emergency and Critical Care Unit where they tended to her injuries.

The examination and X-rays revealed that Lucy had torn a ligament in her knee, requiring surgery. She’s scheduled to undergo surgery on Friday, but a fund has been set up by MSPCA-Angell, through their Pet Care Assistance program, to help offset the cost of the surgery. Doctors estimate it cost upwards of $5,000, and so far, MSPCA-Angell has collected around $2,900.

“This is obviously a terribly sad and worrying time for our family—with my father-in-law facing surgery and months of rehab and our much-loved dog, a hero to all of us, also requiring extensive veterinary care. We’ll do whatever it takes to get her well, of course, as she is everything to us,” Caitlin Miles said in a statement.

After surgery, Lucy also may require physical therapy and ongoing treatment to improve her outcome, doctors said. “Lucy reminds us all of the important role animals play in our lives,” said Dr. Meghan Sullivan, who will conduct the surgery on Lucy’s leg. “She’s a true hero to John and her family and to all of us. We won’t rest until she’s back to her active self, enjoying long walks with her family once again.”