Tripp came into my life on February 5, 2005. That was the day I found him on Petfinder.com. I was looking for an older Golden because I knew they were harder to find homes for. However, each time I did a search for Goldens, Tripp’s funny little face kept popping up on my computer screen. Nonetheless, there was something in that face that I just couldn’t turn down! A week and a half later, I drove from our house in Marietta, GA to Chattanooga, TN and brought him back to his forever home. I adopted Tripp from TVGRR (Tennessee Valley Golden Retriever Rescue) and he has been nothing but pure joy ever since he came into our lives! He settled in immediately and you knew he was very happy and grateful to be a member of our family. That was 3 1/2 years ago and what an amazing 3 years it has been! This is Tripp’s story of unconditional love.
     On January 12, 2006, Tripp repaid us for his rescue with a rescue of his own. My daughter Sara came over to spend the night with me to help celebrate my birthday on the following day. At 3:00 a.m., Tripp woke me, quite agitated and anxious. I couldn’t find anything wrong so I went back to sleep. At 6 a.m., Tripp woke me again, biting and barking frantically and pulling on my arm. This time, his determination was relentless and filled with frantic urgency. When I woke, the whole house was rapidly filling with smoke and I could barely see my hand before my face! Tripp ran across the hall and jumped up on Sara’s door barking and whining. I ran to her door and woke her up. As she ran from the house I called 911 to report a fire. There were no flames yet but I knew something bad was about to happen. By that time I had become disoriented in the smoke and couldn’t see to find the stairs. Sensing my panic, Tripp pressed against me and guided me safely down the stairs and out of the house. The firefighters arrived as we were exiting the house. They entered the house immediately and the second they walked into the back upstairs bedroom, the wall and floor burst into flames! The fire had started within the wall downstairs and smoldered all night long. It had burned up the wall and through the second story floor. My husband was at work on the news desk at NBC’s affiliate WXIA in Atlanta. You can imagine the panic he felt as he heard the 911 fire dispatch to his home address.
     Afterwards, the Lieutenant of Station 12 that answered the call to our home told me that from the moment I called 911 we had only mere moments to get out. In other words, had it not been for Tripp’s early alert, our home and our lives would have been lost in a terrible fire! Thanks to Tripp, the firefighters were in the bedroom when the fire broke through the wall where it had been smoldering, and were able to put it out. It would later take four months for the restoration on our home to be completed.
     Later that afternoon, Lt. Boggess wrote a letter to the Fire Chief, telling her how Tripp saved his family’s home. He also told her that Tripp became a hero that day because he saved his family’s lives. Two months later, Tripp was honored at a banquet given by the Cobb County Fire and Rescue Services. Many brave firefighters were honored that night and Tripp was among those recognized. He was awarded their “Life Saving Award”….the first ever awarded to a civilian!
     Our adventures didn’t stop there! We had the honor to fly to Seattle, WA that following September to the Purina Golden Retriever Specialty Dog Show where Tripp was given the G.R.A.C.E. Foundation’s Hero Award. In November we had the distinct pleasure of meeting Actress Betty White. What a treat that was and Tripp loved all the attention she bestowed upon him! Tripp has been interviewed by many TV stations and acts as an Ambassador for TVGRR. He was featured as The Top Dog in the February ‘08 issue of Dog Fancy Magazine. His story of heroism has been all over the internet and just last year he was Mr. April in TVGRR’s Goldens and Guys Calendar. He was pictured with four of the firefighters that came to our home.
     Tripp loves all the attention he gets and is always ready for a new adventure. He never tires of doing things as long as he is with his mom. He has done a lot and nothing seems to slow him down. There is however, one thing that distinguishes him from all the other “normal” dogs. You see, Tripp only has three legs. Just five months before I adopted him, he was hit by a car. He was a stray, begging food from local restaurants on a busy highway in Chattanooga, TN. The animal shelter that picked him up didn’t treat his shattered leg. During his 21 day stay at the shelter, Tripp was adopted out but was returned within a few days after the people who took him decided they didn’t want to pay to have his leg fixed. The decision was later made to euthanize him. A Good Samaritan rescuing another dog heard the conversation and asked to take him. They agreed to let her have him contingent upon her getting him immediate treatment. She took him that very day to her vet but the leg couldn’t be saved. His left back leg was amputated and TVGRR was called to take him in. Tripp went to his foster home the next day and two days later had to have surgery again on the amputation site. No one wanted a damaged dog and no one wanted a three legged dog. But when I saw his face I KNEW this was the dog that would soon fill my heart with joy and our lives with much happiness!
     Life for Tripp and our family has settled somewhat. He loves his daily walks on the nearby nature trails. We often go to the river where he dives and swims until he drops. He loves to chase squirrels and visit with his friends at the local dog park. His favorite thing however, is to spend as much time with his Mom as he can possibly squeeze out of each day. He is quite a charmer and a beggar! He is very smart and knows MANY words…both spoken and spelled out!!! Tripp and I are now a registered Therapy Dog Team. We go to nursing homes and hospitals and elementary schools. He loves it when he goes to work! He has so much love to give and always gets a smile from those he visits with.
     There is nothing like the unconditional love that a dog brings into your life. I only hope that I can be half as great as my dog thinks I am! Tripp is my best friend and companion. He asks for nothing but to have my hand touch his sweet face and tell him that I love him. I tell him that each morning….just after I hug his neck and thank him for giving me another opportunity to share my life with him!