As any dog lover can tell you, the animal’s ferocious loyalty is one of its most endearing traits.
That loyalty, clearly, doesn’t just apply to humans, though. It also applies to a dog’s wards — which in this particular story is a pack of sheep.
Casper, a livestock guardian dog in Decatur, Georgia, fought off 11 coyotes (killing eight of them!) as he protected his sheep at home, according to WXIA-TV. The incident itself happened a month ago, but Casper’s current status wasn’t divulged until recently.
You can see WXIA-TV’s segment on the heroic Casper below:
Casper, a Great Pyrenees, obviously didn’t leave that encounter unscathed.
But the craziest part of this ordeal, aside from — spoiler alert — the fact that Casper survived, is that he actually took a page from another famous Casper and disappeared like a ghost for two whole days.
After the initial incident and disappearance, Casper somehow found his way home again (this is beginning to sound like a movie), much to his owner’s shock.
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“He looked like death, I mean he looked terrible,” owner John Wierwille told WXIA. “He came back home and he just kind of looked at me like, ‘boss stop looking at how bad I look, just take care of me.’”
The “just take care of me” line seems particularly relevant when you hear about the exact nature of the injuries he sustained.
WARNING: The veterinary staff’s comments contain graphic descriptions which some may find disturbing.
Casper, just 20 months old, lost his tail in the attack. But perhaps the most gruesome injury described involved his skin — or the lack thereof.
“It was a big flesh wound, like it was gone, skin’s gone,” Maisie Hale, a clinic supervisor, told WXIA. “Looked like maybe a coyote grabbed hold of the skin and just peeled it right off. Then I saw his neck wound and it was the same thing, flesh taken off … I was like, ‘what am I gonna do?’”
Hale is a part of LifeLine Animal Project, a nonprofit organization whose mission “is to end the euthanasia of healthy and treatable animals” in Atlanta, and helped spearhead Casper’s recovery.
Lifeline has raised more than $15,000 toward Casper’s medical bills, according to KESQ-TV.
“He’s lucky to be alive,” LifeLine’s Dr. Susan Brosman, who was on the veterinary team that helped Casper, said.
Brosman noted that Casper’s survival was a “miracle,” but that he’s now “good for a full recovery.” She also called him a “hero” for his actions.
“He looks great now, he’s in good spirits,” Hale added.
Great Pyrenees dogs, according to the American Kennel Club, are incredibly affectionate family dogs and also vigilantly protective.
It’s pretty clear that Casper exemplifies both of those traits, and then some.
