Roach, a six-year-old pit bull mix, who was out for a morning walk with his owner off the Interurban Trail near Happy Valley Park in Fairhaven knew Thursday morning something wasn’t normal on their daily route.
He’d spotted shoes in the mud and brush, but his owner, Martin Petelinz, 42, pulled him away from his find, thinking it was trash.
Seven hours later, around 4:30, back on the trail for an afternoon walk, Roach wasn’t going to let the shoes go.
“He really wanted to go the same way,” Petelinz said. “He kept pulling to go to that trail… This time, he wasn’t really letting me lead and when we got really close, he actually started growling at them, not barking.”
When Petelinz went to investigate further, he found the shoes attached to the body of a 74-year-old man facedown in the mud with a leg injury. With his adrenaline racing, Petelinz thought he had found a corpse. But after some forceful prodding, the man let out a moan.
Petelinz called 911 at 4:37 p.m. Because Petelinz and Roach were off-trail, Petelinz had to meet the first responders on Cowgill Avenue and bring them to where the man was.
EMTs told Petelinz that the man had dementia and no awareness of where he was.
“He couldn’t walk out on his own and he was near hypothermic because of the rain and the cold,” Petelinz said. “They said if I hadn’t gotten to him before it got dark, he was probably not going to make it.”
Petelinz said the man had wandered away from his care facility Thursday morning. It’s unclear which facility in Fairhaven the man came from. Brookdale Senior Living, Mt. Baker Care Center and Solstice Senior Living each told Cascadia Daily News the man was not a resident.
The Bellingham Police Department said they had received a missing person’s report around 4:17 p.m. from the 2800 block of Old Fairhaven Parkway. The patrol officer was able to determine that the man found in the brush was the same subject as the missing person’s report.
No silver alert was put out for the case, according to BPD.
The man was transported to PeaceHealth St. Joseph’s Medical Center. His condition was not immediately released.
Roach came into Petelinz’s life three years ago when he adopted the pitbull-mutt from the Whatcom County Humane Society. Roach turned six in January.
Petelinz described Roach as defensive when he thinks his owner is being threatened, but overall is the most loving dog.
“[Pit bulls] get a horrible rap, so if anything else, this helps instill that pit bulls are awesome pets,” he said. “He’s the biggest cuddler and the biggest couch hog ever.”
For his Lassie-style heroics, Roach got a little bit of steak for dinner Thursday night and a little extra love.
“It was all the dog,” Petelinz said. “He was the one that brought me back. He was the one that pushed me to check out the shoes. It was totally him who saved a life.”
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Fairhaven rescue dog helps save life of elderly man Thursday during trail walk
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