Hero dog shot protecting his young owner from attackers desperately needs surgery

The old saying goes a "dog is man's best friend" and one German Shepard truly proved that earlier this week.

Two-year-old Rex came to the brave defence of his human owner, Javier on Wednesday after burglars broke into their home in Des Moines, Washington.

Armed gunmen broke into the house but while 16-year-old Javier hid in an upstairs closet, Rex valiantly tried to protect his owner and the property from the intruders.

As he called 911, Javier tried to hide Rex too but the dog was determined to fight off the two individuals - however, he paid a heavy price.

Upon arriving on the scene, police were able to safely escort Javier out of the house and also found Rex wounded reportedly from four gunshots to his neck, leg and knee.

Officers told Q13 Fox.

A 16-year-old boy who was home alone said he believed someone was breaking in.

He heard noises and voices, ran upstairs and hid in closet. He continued relaying everything he heard on the phone with dispatch.

The dog in the residence was barking. Then he heard breaking glass, and the dog still barking. Then he heard gunshots and the dog was no longer barking.

Thankfully this story doesn't end there and despite the trauma of the incident, there is a chance of a happy ending for Rex.

After the attack, he was rushed to the BluePearl Veterinary Partners in Renton, where the family paid $2,000 for treatment and scans to stabilise him.

In order to save Rex's life, the family set up a GoFundMe page which has already surpassed the initial goal of $10,000 and at the time of writing has raised over $21,928.

Q13 journalist, David Ross has visited Rex and has been documenting his progress through Twitter.

Rex is due to undergo surgery this weekend and here's hoping that everything goes well for him and his family.

Police have not yet been able to locate those responsible.

HT People

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