This is a heartwarming story of two everyday heroes: firefighter Bill Lindler and his pitbull mix, Jake.
Their friendship began when Bill pulled Jake from a burning shed as a 3-week old puppy. Jake’s small body was 50-70% covered in burns and so he was rushed to a local clinic for treatment. Upon finding out that Jake’s owners didn’t claim him, Bill decided to adopt him right away.
“I don’t think Bill even discussed it with his wife, it was just – he’s coming home with me,” Danielle, Jake’s vet, recounts with a laugh.
Bill and Jake soon became inseparable. Jake needed close supervision during his healing process, so Bill started bringing him around the Hanahan, SC fire department. “The guys immediately took to him,” says Bill. “He’s real good for morale.”
When the firefighters come home from a job, Jake is there to greet them.
“We can go out on a real bad call and come back and he’s there and happy to see us. No matter what happens, he’s always there,” one of the firefighters says.
Soon, the mayor of Hanahan decided to make Jake an honorary firefighter and the official mascot of the department. This is only the beginning of what is shaping up to be an inspiring partnership between Bill and Jake.
Now, Jake’s duties involve training as an arson detection dog and going out to local schools for education classes about fire prevention. Bill also would love to see him be a therapy dog for burned children. “So they can see that he’s a survivor and that, despite the scars, they’re all still beautiful.”
