A teenage girl and her dog in Ohio are being recognized as heroes for saving her grandmother’s life during a medical emergency. Elise Kilmer, 17, and her labradoodle puppy, Saige, were in her room one afternoon when the dog started scratching at the door and barking loudly.
Saige led her downstairs, where the teen found her grandma in serious need of medical attention. The woman was choking and unconscious, but Elise who is a lifeguard at the YMCA, called 911 then did CPR until first responders arrived. Her grandmother spent 2 nights at the hospital and has since recovered. Elise knows she might not have survived without Saige’s instincts.
Elise told WJW “I’m not sure if she had heard my grandma fall out of the chair or something, but she definitely knew. They hear things that we don’t hear. I guess if no one was home it would have been a completely different outcome. I feel really proud I was able to help my grandma in that way.”
On March 12th, she’s being honored with a Greater Cleveland Hero Award by the Red Cross of Northeast Ohio for her life-saving efforts. Elise says, “I feel really proud I was able to help my grandma in that way.”