Dog Found In Dead Owner’s Arms After Tornado Has New Home

A tornado passed through Van, Texas, two weeks ago, killing and injuring people and animals, decimating everything in its path. A heart-wrenching scene was discovered when rescuers saw a Great Pyrenees dog who had crawled up into the arms of her owner who died in the tornado, a scared and lost soul who was seeking comfort in a world that was turned upside down.

The dog, believed to be eight years old, has now found a new home and has been renamed Emma. Emma was adopted by a volunteer who helped an animal shelter that was saving the animals who had been wounded by the tornado and those that were abandoned. Cindy Nash, the director of Nicholas Pet Haven, stated the following, according to ABC News.

“Emma went and crawled up underneath his [her former owner’s] arm for comfort, so a very sad situation–but she’s going to have a good home.”

The adopter, Michelle Shockley, works as a supervisor at a nearby zoo. She helped with the rescue. Emma was in a large crate in the back of a pick-up truck when she first saw her, and the dog was understandably distressed and drained from her experience. She decided to change the dog’s name at the suggestion of a behavioral psychologist. Shockley stated the following, according to KCEN-TV.

“I was sitting in the back of the pick-up and she came out on my lap. She was just exhausted and very traumatized”

A veterinarian shaved Emma to determine what injuries she had suffered. She had bruises throughout her body as well as some head trauma and an inner ear injury. She appears to have difficulty balancing and it takes effort for her to move. Shockley stated the following, according to ABC News.

“From what the vet said from his initial exams, the way in which she was battered and bruised under her coat, she was at Ground Zero. She was thrown around.”

Emma’s former owners, David and Brenda Tapleys, were believed to own 10 dogs. Unfortunately, three perished in the tornado. Another was taken by the couple’s grown children living out of state. The children surrendered the other six, including Emma, to Nicholas Pet Haven, which is attempting to find loving homes for the remaining dogs.

One of the remaining five dogs is an Australian shepherd mix that has been adopted by another family. Two are long-haired dachshunds and both have congestive heart failure. Nash described a Pomeranian as being as “cute as a button.” A black-and-white terrier mix is also seeking a new home.

Thankfully, Emma is beginning to recover from the trauma she underwent. Her hair is beginning to grow back and she is regaining her appetite. Her new family was thrilled when she ate a whole can of dog food on Monday, and Michelle Shockey’s mother, Jo Shockley, stated the following, according to ABC News.

“She’s a little underweight, but she could have been a real active dog. They’re known to be guardians, and protectors. They’re known to protect things that are more helpless than they are.”

Dogs certainly are known to bond with their human companions as Emma showed when she sought comfort in the arms of her deceased owner. In another case, a normally calm, nonthreatening golden retriever helped protect her owner from a home invasion. A violent, drug-using criminal broke into a home in Wyandotte, Michigan. The homeowner, Sarah Powers, was home alone at the time. When Powers exited her bathroom, she saw a man violently punching her beloved 11-year-old golden retriever, Sadie. The home invasion ended because of Sadie’s heroic actions as she kept her feet on the intruder, according to an article in the Inquisitr.

[Photo Courtesy Nicholas Pet Haven’s Facebook Page]