Dog Saves Its Own Life By Dialling 999

The next nincompoop that dares suggest animals are stupid be warned, we have all the evidence we need to refute your ill-informed claim.

May we offer up, George, a two-year-old Basset Hound (clearly not pictured), who saved his own life by phoning 999. Granted, George only had himself to blame because he was actually strangling himself with the phone cord (he’d knocked the phone off and managed to get caught up in the wire), but nonetheless he had the foresight to calmly dial 999 and alert the emergency services. That, or he got incredibly lucky while desperately trying to paw his way out.

Either way, once the police were called – they were spooked by the heavy breathing – they managed to burst into the empty house in West Yorkshire, and with the help of a neighbour scoured the house before finding George choking in the living room.

Neighbour Paul Walker, 41, heroically ripped the phone apart to wrench the wire from George's throat.

"Incredibly you could see where his paw print was on the phone to ring 999 — he literally saved his own life." He told The Sun.

"When the police came into the room and realised what had happened they burst out laughing.

"They told me they had been sent out because of a 999 call in which the operator could only hear heavy breathing and gasping.

"They thought someone had collapsed or been attacked."

Funnily enough, one of George’s owners, 18-year-old Lydia Brown says George is generally a bit dumb. “He’s really dopey and just likes to chew socks,” she joked to The Sun.