I recently received an email announcing one of last year’s recipiant of the Congressional Medal of Honor, which is the highest military honor. The winner of this award surprised me, but once I read about his actions I was touch, amazed, and proud. Here is a picture of this amazing hero.

Yes, the winner of the Congressional Medal of Honor was a dog named Brutus.

 Brutus won the Congressional Medal of Honor last year from his tour in Iraq .  His handler and four other soldiers were taken hostage by insurgents.  Brutus and his handler communicate by sign language and he gave Brutus the signal that meant ‘go away but come back and find me’.  The Iraqis paid no attention to Brutus.  He came back later and quietly tore the throat out of one guard at one door and another guard at another door. 

The guys were being held in an old warehouse and Brutus jumped against one of the doors repeatedly until it opened.  He went in and untied his handler and they all escaped.  He’s the first K9 to receive this honor. 

Despite these amazing acts, if  Brutus knows you’re ok, he’s a big old lug and wants to sit in your lap and enjoys the company of cats.

I absolutely love animal stories like this, because they show us that animals are more than possessions or something to look at in a zoo.  They have personalities and needs not all that different than our own. I encourage you this week to look a the animals in your life and be thankful for the joy and compassion they bring to your life.