Brave Dog Saves Hundreds of Sheep by Herding Animals Away from Australia's Wildfires

Kelli Bender
Brave Dog Saves Hundreds of Sheep by Herding Animals Away from Australia's Wildfires

You’re looking at a little hero!

According to NBC News, Patsy the shepherd mix almost walked through fire to save a group of more than 220 sheep.

The black-and-white pooch joined her owner, Stephen Hill, on an early morning trip to the farm of Hill’s cousin. Around 4:15 a.m. on Dec. 31, Hill noticed a wall of fire was burning towards his cousin’s farm and the town of Corryong in Victoria, Australia, and rushed over, with Patsy following close behind, to see if he could help his family protect their home, land and animals.

This blaze Hill saw is just one of many wildfires burning throughout Australia, decimating millions acres of land and killing an estimated 1 billion animals.

Thanks to Patsy, hundreds of sheep on the farm didn’t suffer a similar fate. The dog herded over 220 animals into a barn that was a safe distance away from the fires raging near the property. Only six sheep didn’t make it into the barn.

RELATED: Here Are the Parts of Australia Where Fires Are Currently Burning as Temperatures Soar Again

“If you haven’t got a good dog, you can’t do so much with the sheep,” Hill told NBC News.

Courtesy Cath Hill
Courtesy Cath Hill

Cath Hill, Stephen’s sister, helped spread 6-year-old Patsy’s story, reports Metro, because “people need something positive.”

She also assisted in creating an Instagram (@patsythecorryongwonderdog) for the dog, which includes a video of the dog sitting on the ground, surrounded by sheep, smoke and flames.

View this post on Instagram

Many people have asked for the original video of Patsy to be put up, so here it is....when I stood in this burnt black paddock after the fire ripped through our family farm in Corryong, all I wanted to do was show our friends and family that we were ok, that we were still here, and that even in all the devastation we still had so much to be grateful for. So many others have lost quite literally everything they have. I never dreamed that these 20 seconds of Patsy in a paddock would spread across the world, and that me posting pictures of a little black and white dog would become my way to help my hometown recover from the worst fires in living memory. It’s funny how life works sometimes... These fires are not over. Not even close to being over. They will burn for weeks, months even, and communities all over Australia are going to be hit just like Corryong has been. Our fire season here isn’t even half way through, and it seems like nowhere is safe. It’s easy to feel helpless. But, it’s also easy to help. Make a donation to bushfire relief, no matter how small it is, trust me it will be appreciated. Every little bit helps!

A post shared by Patsy The Wonderdog (@patsythecorryongwonderdog) on Jan 8, 2020 at 4:11am PST

“Hey Patsy, can you hear those sheep?” Cath asks in the clip. “That’s all your work, well done. You little champion, good girl.”

Stephen feels “really lucky” to have a fearless, good dog like Patsy, since he knows farmers who have lost hundreds of animals.

Courtesy Cath Hill
Courtesy Cath Hill

RELATED: How Celebs Are Helping Combat the Devastation in Australia

“It has made me emotional,” he told NBC News.

Knowing that the same fires that threatened their farm continue to burn and that there are plenty of Australians deeply affected by the fires, the Hills are asking animal lovers to consider donating to Wildlife Victoria, Blaze Aid, and a GoFundMe started to help rebuild a part of Victoria destroyed by the Australian wildfires.