https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/dog-heroes-911-10-canines-24939360
For many of the search dogs, the terror attack was their first ever task on the job - and they played a vital role in saving lives
When the World Trade Centre collapsed, nearly 3,000 people lost their lives.
It prompted 300 dogs and their handlers to scramble to the area to search for survivors at Ground Zero in New York.
But only around 100 of them were prepared for the sheer scale of the disaster, which happened 20 years ago.
There are dozens of stories of people’s brave efforts to rescue workers from the twin towers on September 11, 2001 - but that very day saw a number of heroic hounds guide people to safety, and comfort those who lost loved ones.
Dogs were working 12-hour shifts, with vets stationed at Ground Zero to keep the dogs healthy and hydrated, cleaning their eyes, nose and paw pads.
These courageous animals risked their lives to find survivors, and locate jewellery that could be returned to the victim's families.
The Dogington Post has paid tribute to the dogs, which have all since passed away, but their legacy lives on.
From guide dogs who rescued workers from the 71st floor, to the dog that found the last remaining survivor from the rubble.
Here are 10 heroic dogs who assisted at Ground Zero:
Roselle
Roselle was sleeping under her owner, Michael Hingson’s, desk when a plane hit the first tower 15 floors above them.
The three-year-old was Michael’s fifth guide dog, and helped her owner escape the building through smoke and crumbling debris via staircase B.
She led her owner and 30 other people down 1,463 steps from the 78th floor out of the tower, which took over an hour. As they left the building, Tower 2 collapsed.
Hingson later said: "While everyone ran in panic, Roselle remained totally focused on her job, while debris fell around us, and even hit us, Roselle stayed calm."
The brave dog then led her owner to the safety of a subway station, where they helped a woman who had been blinded by falling debris.
Salty
Another guide dog, Salty, was on the 71st floor with his owner, Omar Rivera, when the hijacked plane hit the World Trade Centre.
Rivera recalled how they tried escaping down the nearest flight of stairs, but it was filled with smoke and became very hot and he thought it was too much for Salty, so let go of his harness so the dog could head down alone.
Omar said he tried to let the dog go, but Salty refused and guided him to safety.
Both Salty and Roselle were awarded a joint Dickin Medan six months after the disaster.
Sirius
Explosive detection dog Sirius was the only police dog to die in the 9/11 attack.
The K9 employee was working with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey Police Department with his handler David Lim.
The duo were in the south tower when the north tower was hit, violently shaking the ground.
Lim secured his partner in his kennel before investigating.
He went on to rescue injured civilians, surviving the collapse of the north tower - but as he was rushed into an ambulance, the south tower came crumbling down on top of Sirius, who was in the basement.
His remains were recovered over a year later in winter 2002, and his training leash and badge is housed in the 9/11 memorial museum in New York.
Bretagne
Pronounced Britnee, this Golden Retriever was just two-years-old when she found herself on her first assignment - searching for Ground Zero survivors.
Her trainer, Denise Corliss, was a volunteer firefighter with the Cy-Fair Fire Department.
They worked on the scene for 10 days, later going on to assist in rescue efforts after Hurricanes Rita, Katrina and Ivan.
She passed away in 2016, just shy of 17 years old, with kidney failure - and was believed to be the last surviving dog from the terror attack.
She was given a hero’s farewell, draped in an American flag as firefighters and search and rescue workers lined the streets to salute her.
Coby and Guinness
Between them, Coby and Guinness helped for 264 hours, working 12-hour shifts over 11 days to locate the remains of dozens of people within the rubble.
The two Labradors searched tirelessly through the debris of the collapsed buildings, on a search and rescue mission far larger than anything they’d trained for.
The dogs were rewarded for their efforts with a nap or a chew toy, before returning home to Southern California to retire with their handler.
Thunder
Kent Olson travelled from Washington with his dog, Thunder, to search for victims of the terrorist attack.
Typically Thunder would search for victims and survivors of avalanches and possible drownings - but this challenge was much bigger than anything he’d worked on before.
Sage
At just 18-monthsold, Sage became a search and rescue dog.
Her very first mission on September 11, 2001, was searching the Pentagon following the attacks.
Sage sniffed out the body of the terrorist who had flown American Flight 77 into the building.
The Collie was later deployed to Iraq, in 2007, to search for US soldiers captured or killed by terror groups.
Trakr
This brave German Shepherd located the last survivor of the incident, 27 hours after the buildings had been hit.
The south tower had collapsed around Genelle Guzman-McMillan, and Trakr was able to detect the Port Authority of New York worker, alerting firefighters to her location.
She had been on the 13th floor when the building crashed down on top of her, but she was found alive on the morning of September 12.
Two days later, Trakr collapsed from chemical and smoke inhalation, burns, and exhaustion, and was treated by vets at the scene before returning home to Canada.
Trakr passed away in April 2009, but not before his DNA was entered into a cloning contest by his handler. In June 2009, five cloned Trakr puppies were born.
Jake
At 10-months-old, Jake was found roaming the streets as a stray with a broken leg and dislocated hip.
He was taken in by Utah Task Force 1 worker, Mary Flood, who cared for the dog before training him in search and rescue.
During the 9/11 attack, Jake worked relentlessly for 17 days searching for victims.
The black lab went on to train young rescue dogs and their handlers, and worked as a therapy dog at Utah nursing homes and at a camp for burn victims.
Jake died from blood cancer in 2007 at the age of 12.
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