It was the sweetest 16 for this pup! Bretagne, the last living rescue dog from 9/11, marked her 16th birthday this week with a very special celebration.
The golden retriever, who lives in Texas, was flown up to NYC this week with her owner, Denise Corliss, by doggy website BarkPost and 1 Hotel Central Park. Bretagne, who was 2 years old at the time of the 9/11 attacks in 2001, is the last known surviving canine to rescue humans from the rubble at Ground Zero.
She and Corliss were part of Texas Task Force 1 when the attacks took place. “Responding to New York City was our first deployment,” Corliss recalled to BarkPost. “I just couldn’t believe the magnitude and then I looked down at [Bretagne] and she seemed stoked and ready to work… I was just so grateful to have a canine partner that helped me get through it.”
After hearing the story, BarkPost’s creative producer, Laura Hartle, wrote: “There was no question in our minds that [Bretagne] deserved a Dog’s Best Day for the ages.”
Indeed, the pooch got pampered for her 16th. Bretagne and Corliss were picked up from LaGuardia Airport, and transported to the 1 Hotel Central Park in Manhattan, where the dog was greeted with… a gourmet cheeseburger.
The four-legged hero got to play with toys, eat other delicious treats, and even cruised around town in a vintage taxi. There was also a surprise waiting for the duo in Times Square: a billboard displaying a photo of the pair, captioned, “NYC Welcomes You And Your Mom.”
On the Hudson River, they were gifted with an exclusive “Bone to the Dog Park,” a sterling silver engraved name tag custom-designed by Tiffany & Co. Bretagne, of course, got presents for her 16th birthday, too, including a dog-friendly cake, a room filled to the brim with squishy toys, yummy treats, and a lovely donation of $1,000 to the Texas Task Force.
Watch “Bretagne’s Best Day” video above!
