The SPCLA is currently looking for nominations for their 20th Hero Dog Award.

The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Los Angeles recognizes that annually with its National Hero Dog Award. The recipients are ordinary house pets that protect their owners from danger in startling, unexpected ways.

"They're not trained dogs -- not search and rescue," said Madeline Bernstein, SPCALA president. "These are basically the dogs that lie around on the carpet every day that do something [extraordinary]."

The tales of past winners read like Lassie's rTsumT:

• Last year's winner, Scout, a chocolate Labrador from Maine, pulled his family's drowning 4-year-old son from a frog pond.

• Rocky, a Rhodesian ridgeback from Pennsylvania, defended his family's 8-year-old daughter from a sex offender who broke into their home. The kidnapper was carrying her from her bedroom, covering her mouth, when Rocky found them and attacked. The man dropped the girl and fled while Rocky chased him, biting him several times before running back to check on the child. Police found the kidnapper in a nearby park, bleeding from his wounds.

• Chief, a Lab/shepherd/malamute mix, found a stranded and freezing snowboarder who had become lost on Mammoth Mountain in Montana. While his owner had ignored the man's cries, mistaking him for a coyote, Chief ran off into the snow. When Chief didn't return a few hours later, his owner went looking for him, and found him lying with the snowboarder, who was clinging to him for warmth.

• Cinder, a rottweiler, was on a hike with her owner in Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., when she turned around and suddenly headed home. Her owner, a firefighter, followed her, believing she was sick. When he reached the house, he noticed that the dog continued to stare at him. He was about to call the veterinarian when he began experiencing heart palpitations and passed out. He woke to find his second rottweiler, Reno, licking his face, and Cinder nudging a portable phone near his hand. He was able to call 911 for help.

• Duke, a Welsh corgi from Cathedral City, Calif., was walking with his 85-year-old owner on a street with roadwork. As his owner stepped off the curb, Duke barked loudly and refused to move, then backed up and yanked on his leash, forcing his owner to step back. As he did, a large truck sped past on the wrong side of the road, hugging the curb.

The SPCLA is currently looking for nominations for their 20^th Hero Dog Award. Staff members judge the hundreds of entries that are received every year.

Most don't make the cut. Many people talk about their dog's heroic behavior in times of emotional distress, Ms. Bernstein said. The dog sat with them while they grieved a death in the family, for instance, or comforted the children.

Some seem heroic on the surface, but later turn out to just be dogs acting like, well, dogs. Some dogs have actually been trained to perform the heroic behavior -- like dragging drowning people from water, for example -- which disqualifies them. And a few entries are a little ... unusual -- one woman claimed her dog tried to perform a kind of CPR on her during a heart attack.

Once the entries are narrowed down, staff make sure the stories have confirmation -- news reports, police reports, or witnesses. "We do our best -- you can't interview the dog," Ms. Bernstein said.

Other organizations, like breed clubs or service dog organizations, have similar awards. Heinz Pet Products has been offering its Dog Hero of the Year award, which also goes to a non-professional, companion animal, for 47 years.

This year's winner is Blue, a Florida Australian blue heeler, who was out for a walk with his owner's 85-year-old great-grandmother when she fell in the yard, breaking her nose and dislocating her shoulder. Neighbors didn't hear her cries for help, and her family wasn't home at the time. Blue lay with her, keeping watch, then stood up, growling in the direction of the nearby canal -- which was frequented by alligators.

He moved away, and the injured woman heard sounds of animals fighting. When Blue didn't return, she thought he was dead.

He wasn't, and when the family returned, he ran up to them, barking. The woman, hearing the car, called for help, and they retrieved her from the yard. Blue had 30 puncture wounds, one requiring several stitches, which the veterinarian confirmed had come from an alligator.

"We get tons of great stories," said Patti Jo Lambert, program coordinator. "It's just a way for us to recognize man's best friend."

The winning Heinz dog gets a cash prize of $500 and a year's supply of selected Heinz pet products. Two runners-up get $200 apiece.

The winning Heinz dog gets a cash prize of $500 and a year's supply of selected Heinz pet products.

The winner of the SPCLA contest gets flown with two family members to Los Angeles, where they lead the Pedigree Great LA Dog Walk, an annual event featuring more than a thousand dogs and their owners. Owners and dogs also get assorted other prizes, including dog food donated by Pedigree.

The award is a great way to spotlight the way everyday dogs, including those from shelters, can behave in a crisis, Ms. Bernstein said. "In the movies, it's a trained dog responding to a cue," she said. "But these are real-life hero dogs that had no training, and went and did this."

The stories of the ordinary animals' apparent heroics really capture people's interest and imagination, she said. "People really look to dogs as their companions," she said. "Because everyone wants a best friend, there's something really magical about something like that."

To nominate an animal for the SPCLA Hero Dog Award, submit an essay of 100 words or less, describing the heroic act that occurred within 2001, along with a name, address and daytime phone number. Any dog that is a companion animal and not formally trained for rescue or police work is eligible. Heroic acts must be able to be verified by newspaper clippings, police reports, etc.

Write to the SPCALA, National Hero Dog Nominations, 5026 W. Jefferson Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA, 90016. Deadline for submissions is Sept. 2, 2002.

To nominate an animal for the 2003 Heinz Dog Hero of the Year award, send a detailed description of the act (which must take place between Jan. 1 and Dec. 31, 2002), along with your name, address, telephone number and a photo of the dog to Dog Hero of the Year, P.O. Box 2137, Cranberry Twp., PA, 16066.