Pit bull buddies Slayer and Paco have been deemed ‘heroes’ to their owner family’s two young children.
Slayer’s owner Melissa Butt explained details in a Today interview about a startling incident that took place outside her southwest Florida home August 13.
Slayer and another family dog, Paco, had reportedly been keeping an eye out on a snake that was lurking around her yard for some time.
Butt told Today the dogs had an ‘urgent’ disposition about them that day when they were playing with her two grandkids, 4-year-old Zayden and 1 1/2-year-old Mallory outside.
Slayer (left) and another family dog, Paco, had been keeping an eye out on a snake that was lurking around her yard August 13
The dogs had an ‘urgent’ disposition about them while playing with the two kids and keeping an eye on the snake
Slayer’s owner Melissa Butt said Slayer and Paco were taken immediately to the vet and suffered serious injuries
The dogs were barking repeatedly and refusing orders, so the children’s mother and Butt’s daughter, Cynthia took the kids inside
When the dogs got sight of the snake, they began barking repeatedly and refusing orders, so the children’s mother and Butt’s daughter, Cynthia took the kids inside.
Moments later, Cynthia and her husband, Daniel, returned to check on the pit bulls, and found them hunched over the snake to prevent it from moving.
The snake ‘lashed out to bite both of the dogs, getting Paco on the elbow and Slayer on the snout,’ according to Today.
‘Slayer grabbed the snake in his mouth and killed it,’ Melissa Butt said of the incident.
Slayer and Paco were taken immediately to the vet and suffered serious injuries from the poisonous attack.
Butt said the dogs are ‘100 percent family’
When the pups arrived to the vet, the doc said they ‘had to act fast’ to recover them
The dogs were transferred to the BluePearl emergency vet in Brandon, Florida over a half hour away from their home.
When the pups arrived, the veterinarian said they ‘had to act fast’ to recover the dogs’ health.
Butt said Slayer’s face was ‘so swollen he could barely get his tongue out’ to give her a kiss.
Paco was released from the hospital with lesser injuries, while Slayer was treated with several doses of antivenin.
Slayer’s face was ‘so swollen he could barely get his tongue out’ to give the owner a kiss
He was able to return home to his family Wednesday, while still taking the medication.
‘There’s nothing I can say or do to show how grateful I am,’ Butt said. ‘How do you thank someone for saving your loved ones?’
The snake responsible for the dogs’ injuries was identified as a venomous copperhead.