Facebook Post Claims Dog Saved Puppies From House Fire

Outline
Message circulating rapidly via Facebook that features a photograph of a dog tending to her puppies on a fire truck, claims that the dog, named Amanda, saved her puppies from a burning house while firefighters fought the blaze.



Brief Analysis
The message discusses a real fire and the photo is genuine although the story may not be completely accurate. According to initial media reports, when a fire broke out in a house in Temuco, Chile, in August 2012, mother dog Amanda brought all five of her 10 day old puppies to the safety of the fire truck. However, later reports suggest that firefighters actually saved the pups, although Amanda may have retrieved one that was dropped and she certainly tended to them afterwards. Sadly, one of the pups later died. The rest of Amanda's pups survived.

Enter your email address to subscribe to the Hoax-Slayer Newsletter:

Last updated: September 13, 2012
First published: September 13, 2012
Article written by Brett M. Christensen
Research by Tim Williams, Brett Christensen
About Brett Christensen and Hoax-Slayer

Example

Detailed Analysis
This picture, which depicts a mother dog aparently moving her very young puppies to the safety of a fire truck, is currently circulating rapidly via Facebook and other social media websites. The picture's caption claims that the dog, a German Shepherd named Amanda, saved her puppies from her family's burning house while firefighters fought the flames.

The claims in the message describe a real event and the photograph itself is genuine. However, the rescue may not have transpired quite as described in the circulating messages.

According to initial news reports, when a fire broke out in a house in Temuco, Chile, in August 2012, mother dog Amanda brought all of her ten day old puppies out of danger and delivered them to the safety of an attending fire truck. The story was first published on Chilean news outlet soychile.cl on August 9, 2012. The report states that Amanda placed each of her puppies one by one on the step of the fire truck.

However, some reports and Reddit comments suggest that the original report may have been inaccurate. A second soychile.cl report indicates that firefighters may have in fact carried the pups out of the building themselves but that Amanda went in to retrieve one pup after it was dropped inside.

The puppies were later taken to a veterinary clinic with their mother. Sadly, a later news report explains that one of the pups, named Amparo, subsequently died due to burn injuries sustained in the blaze. But mum and the rest of her pups reportedly recovered well.

Soon after the first soychile.cl report was published, some of the pictures were posted to Reddit. The above image later began circulating via Facebook.

House owner Omar Torres was taken to hospital with burns.





References
La perra Amanda salvó a sus cachorros de un incendio en Temuco llevándoselos a Bomberos
Murió uno de los cachorritos salvados de un incendio por una perra en Temuco
Dog Carries Puppies Out Of Burning House, Brings Them To Fire Truck

Last updated: September 13, 2012
First published: September 13, 2012
Article written by Brett M. Christensen
Research by Tim Williams, Brett Christensen
About Brett Christensen and Hoax-Slayer