The Belgian Malinois is a special breed of dog. It's highly intelligent, extremely athletic and needs a ton of interaction. While these attributes make the Belgian Malinois the perfect dog for police and military work, they can be a bit of a handful as a typical pet. As Belgian Malinois owner Erin Wilson jokingly told NPR, they’re basically "a German shepherd on steroids or crack or cocaine.” It was her Malinois Eva’s natural drive, however, that ended up saving Wilson’s life. See on Instagram According to a news release from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, Wilson had been walking down a path with Eva slightly ahead of her when a mountain lion suddenly appeared and swiped Wilson across the left shoulder. She quickly yelled Eva’s name and the dog’s instincts kicked in immediately. Eva rushed in to defend her owner.It wasn’t long, though, before the mountain lion won the upper hand, much to Wilson’s horror.cShe told TODAY, “They fought for a couple seconds, and then I heard her start crying. That’s when the cat latched on to her skull.”Wilson did everything she could to release Eva from the cat’s grasp. She told The Sacramento Bee that she threw rocks, tried choking it and gouging its eyes. But no luck. It wasn’t until she received help from a passing motorist, Sharon Houston, who had a PVC pipe and some pepper spray that the situation improved. The pair were finally able to get the mountain lion to let go, but not before it dragged poor Eva along the path trying to escape. She was quickly rushed to the vet.Wilson’s beloved canine companion was in life-threatening trouble. Wilson’s husband, Connor Kenny, told SFGATE that Eva had suffered two skull fractures, a punctured sinus cavity, severe damage to her left eye and experienced seizures. The pup’s situation was dire. To help cover the medical expenses, Wilson created a GoFundMe account and was soon surprised by the outpouring of love and support the public had for her heroic Malinois. The fundraiser gathered more than $30,000, well exceeding what the family needed. See on Instagram And luckily, Eva never lost her fighting spirit. As was posted on her own Instagram account, Eva recovered, returning home to her sister Mishka (and to new toys, no less). She even got a milkshake on the way home. And Wilson shared with The Sacramento Bee that there's going to be more treats where that came from, "stuffies" shall be chewed and steak dinners shall be had. See on Instagram Eva might technically be a Belgian Malinois, but her true breed is hero. Her fierce determination, loyalty to her loved ones and unbridled courage came out in full force. Because of her, a life was saved. She is, without a doubt, the goodest girl. This article originally appeared two years ago.

Imagine rummaging through secondhand finds in your local thrift store, only to find that some items include a bonus feline at no extra charge. Montequlla the orange tabby had somehow not gotten the memo that he and his family were moving. As they dropped off furniture, including a big recliner chair, to the Denver Arc Thrift Store on New Year’s Eve, they had no idea that poor little Montequlla was tucked away inside. Luckily, the staff began to notice the chair meowing.Though the family had already left, the store called Denver Animal Protection to make a report.Jenna Humphreys, the DAP officer who responded to the call, told the Denver Channel:"Sure enough, there's a recliner out front, and there's a little orange tabby stuck inside. Very friendly, couldn't get out. They said that they had noticed the meowing shortly after somebody had dropped it off."Officer Humphreys scanned Montequlla’s microchip and tried to call his owners, to no avail. According to the Denver Animal Shelter, the microchip had not been updated. A friendly reminder to keep your microchips updated, pet owners! Meanwhile, Montequlla’s family were back home, frantically searching for their beloved pet. When they eventually realized he might have accidentally become a furniture stowaway, they immediately called the thrift store. The stress of moving can often cause cats to hide. They are notoriously averse to change and try their best to escape the chaos in favor of something familiar. Fortunately there are ways to help soothe your anxious kitty into the unknown. While we’re on the subject, recliners can pose a huge risk to cats. There are several horror stories out there, and I won’t punish our readers by going into detail. But suffice it to say, you should always check underneath a chair to avoid serious injury. But this story does have a happy ending, as Montequlla is very much unharmed and back safely in the arms of his owners, who are “relieved” to be reunited with their furry adventurer, according to Humphreys.Judging from the look on his face in this photo, this cat will not forget his trip anytime soon. This article originally appeared two years ago.

James Earl Jones had one of the most recognizable voices in the entertainment industry. Most of us probably heard that deep, resonant voice first as Darth Vader in "Star Wars," or perhaps Mufasa in "The Lion King," but just one or two words are enough to say, "Oh, that's definitely James Earl Jones."Before his passing in 2024, Jones had been acting on stage and in film since the 1960s. He also has the distinction of being the first celebrity guest to be invited to "Sesame Street" during the show's debut season in 1969. According to Muppet Wiki, clips of Jones counting to 10 and reciting the alphabet were included in unbroadcast pilot episodes and also included in one of the first official television episodes. Funnily enough, Jones originally didn't think the show would last, as he thought kids would be terrified of the muppets. Clearly, that turned out not to be the case.Jones' alphabet recitation served as a test for the "Sesame Street" pedagogical model, which was meant to inspire interaction from kids rather than just passive absorption. Though to the untrained eye, Jones' slow recitation of the ABCs may seem either plodding or bizarrely hypnotic, there's a purpose to the way it's presented.As education researcher and Children's Television Workshop consultant Gerald S. Lesser describes the video, "Mr. Jones' recitation of the alphabet takes a full minute and a half. He stares compellingly at the camera. At the time the sequence was made, his head was shaved for his role of Jack Johnson in 'The Great White Hope,' and it gleams in the close-up. His immense hollow voice booms the letter names ominously. His lip movements are so exaggerated that they can easily be read without the sounds.” The letter is shown on the screen a second or so before Jones says the name of the letter, and there is a pause after he says each one. This pattern allows kids to say the name of the letter if they recognize it and then have the name reinforced by Jones. If kids don't know it, they repeat it after him. For kids who are more visual or who have auditory processing issues, seeing the letter displayed and seeing Jones' clear mouth movements as he slowly says each letter are helpful learning aids. Lesser and other researchers coined the term "James Earl Jones effect" for how the learning process played out. Jones' alphabet segment may have helped prove the effectiveness of "Sesame Street"'s educational model, but it's also just mesmerizing to watch. When he gets to "J" and the facial expressions really kick in? Priceless. Watch and enjoy:This article originally appeared two years ago.

Hockey fan Nadia Popovici had been watching the Vancouver Canucks play the Seattle Kraken in 2022 when she noticed something offputting from the stands that set off alarms from her training as a medical student.As Canucks assistant equipment manager Brian Hamilton approached the bench, Popovici noticed a small mole on the back of his neck. The marking might have seemed innocent enough, but thanks to her experience volunteering for oncology wards, Popovici recognized the potential danger lurking. So, she quickly took action. “The mole on the back of your neck is cancer,” read Popovici’s message in big boldly colored letters on her phone screen. It took a few attempts to get her message across during the hustle and bustle of the game, but she eventually got Hamiliton’s attention through the plexiglass. And sure enough, her on-the-spot prognosis was right.Hamilton received a biopsy which confirmed that the mole had been cancerous. And if it had gone unaddressed, it would have been life-threatening."It was only on the outer layer of my skin,'' Hamilton recalled at a news conference. "It hadn't penetrated to the second layer of my skin and that's because we caught it so early…And the words out of the doctor’s mouth were if I ignored that for four to five years, I wouldn’t be here.”"She extended my life. I've got a wonderful family. I've got a wonderful daughter. She saved my life."? Part 1 of Brian "Red" Hamilton's interview with the media after finding the woman who he calls his hero pic.twitter.com/t5sS8RCZPW— Vancouver #Canucks (@Canucks) January 1, 2022 Moved by this stranger’s act of kindness, Hamilton wrote a heartfelt letter on social media in an attempt to reunite with the woman who saved his life. His letter read: "To this woman I am trying to find, you changed my life, and now I want to find you to say THANK YOU SO VERY MUCH! Problem is, I don’t know who you are or where you are from…we are looking for this incredible person…help us find a real life hero, so I can express my sincerest gratitude."#HockeyTwitter, we need your help!Please RT to spread the word and help us connect Red with the woman he considers his hero. pic.twitter.com/HlZybgOnjf— Vancouver #Canucks (@Canucks) January 1, 2022 It didn’t take long before the message found its way to Popovici’s mother, who commented: “She hasn’t even seen this message yet as she worked graveyard shift at the suicide crisis center in Seattle so she’s still asleep. She’ll be shocked to see this message! She will be at the game tonight in the same seats. She’ll be so happy and excited to know he got it checked! What wonderful news!!!! She just got accepted into multiple medical schools!"Talk about the power of the internet. And so, the pair had an incredibly sweet reunion at the start of the game that night.The internet community helped us find Brian's hero, Nadia, and tonight they met in person where he got to express his sincerest thank you to her for saving his life. A story of human compassion at its finest. pic.twitter.com/66ogo5hB1a— Vancouver #Canucks (@Canucks) January 2, 2022 Displaying a truly amazing amount of empathy, Popovici shared with Sportsnet: "The fact that I got to look him in the eye and hear what happened from his perspective. Imagine how jarring that is to for you to be at work and someone just kind of looks at you and says, `Hey, maybe you go see a doctor.' That's not what you want to hear. So the fact that I got to see him and talk to his family members that have been really impacted by him dodging a big bullet that's so special.''Popovici is well on her way to saving countless more lives, since both the Canucks and Kraken teamed up to provide a $10,000 scholarship for medical school expenses. Together with the @SeattleKraken, we awarded Nadia Popovici a $10,000 scholarship for medical school as a show of our appreciation ? pic.twitter.com/VgK8aMgJTA— Vancouver #Canucks (@Canucks) January 2, 2022 Popovici’s reaction to receiving the reward for her selfless act (in the tweet above) is as heartwarming as the giant kraken beanie she sports.The biggest win tonight ? pic.twitter.com/6w0LGTcg9E— Vancouver #Canucks (@Canucks) January 2, 2022 Though the Canucks won that night, they tweeted that Hamilton and Popovici being able to meet was their “biggest win.”Popovici told Sportsnet that Hamiton’s mole was a “picture perfect example of what melanoma looks like.” If you’re wondering what that picture perfect example is, one person left a very helpful tweet so that you might be able to tell the difference between a marking that's benign and one that’s malignant. (Of course, this doesn’t replace getting the help of a trained professional.)Thank you so much for asking!!! We use ABCDE (and F for Family: higher risk if a close family member has had melanoma) pic.twitter.com/EhpFv5CzGy— Ms Dale ?????? (@DaleRM) January 2, 2022 And to Nadia Popovici, who continues to be of service, thank you. More than ever, efforts to show compassion don’t go unnoticed. This article originally appeared two years ago.

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