An Arizona man is crediting his horses for tipping him off to a burglar trying to break into his neighbor's house this weekend. (Read the full story reported by the Eastern Arizona Courier.)

Early Sunday morning, Larry Larson of Graham County, AZ, was preparing to meet his brother when he noticed his horses were awake and their ears pointed back (a common sign that a horse feels threatened).

Larson decided to feed the horses, but they "paid no attention to the food and continued to attentively watch the neighbor's house," the Courier reports.

Larson investigated and noticed a man trying to break into his neighbor's car. The two men scuffled and Larson's wife called the police, who arrived and arrested Michael Anthony Rosales Jr. Police believe Rosales is connected to several other area burglaries.

"That guy should have never came into that part of the neighborhood, but what really gave him up was the horses," Larson told the Courier.

"They didn't want to come over and see me; they wanted to see what was going on in the dark. ... If they're not paying attention to me, there's something really wrong going on, because they don't pass up feed."

Animal Planet's new series Saved (Mondays at 8 p.m. ET) recently featured the story of the Pieters family in Lancaster, PA, and their adopted Terrier mix, Jack. The family adopted Jack to be a companion to their young daughter, Maya, who suffers from a rare neurological disorder called Congenital Bilateral Perisylvian Syndrome. CBPS causes partial paralysis of facial muscles, which results in difficulty eating and swallowing. The disease is also associated with seizures.

Jack's company helped Maya's confidence blossom -- and, four years after he was adopted, when 7-year-old Maya suffered her first grand mal seizure, he literally saved her life by sensing her distress and alerting her parents.

We spoke with Maya's mother, Michelle, about Jack's amazing feat and what he means to her family. Watch the video from Saved above, then read our exclusive interview.

PETFINDER: What made you decide to adopt a dog?
MICHELLE PIETERS: Many of Maya's therapists and doctors were the ones to suggest us getting a dog. This was prior to and after her diagnosis of Congenital Bilateral Perisylvian Syndrome in October 2003.

Maya was very lonely -- her brother, sister and dad were all gone to school all day. She socially did not fit in and really never left my side all day and all night long. None of us except for Mary Elise, Maya's sister, were keen on getting a dog.

Finally Mary Elise pleaded enough so we started checking the Humane League of Lancaster County on a weekly basis. Maya was behind in all developmental areas and was in extensive therapies: speech, physical and occupational. She was very resistant to all of these therapists, especially those that had to deal with her oral motor skills.

A heroic dog lost his own life saving his human dad's yesterday morning. According to local news reports, when a fire broke out in Scott Dunn's Cobb County, GA, home, his 3-year-old Boxer, Duncan, alerted Dunn but later died in the blaze.

According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Dunn fell asleep on his couch Monday night, and was awakened by Duncan around 3:30 a.m.

"He was poking at me and barking," Dunn told the paper. "Normally, that means he needs to go out, but when I woke up, I couldn't see because there was smoke."

Dunn got dressed and grabbed the dog by the collar, but "Duncan planted his heels and wouldn't come," says WSB-TV reporter Amanda Cook. (Watch her report.)

At the funeral of slain officer Jon Tumilson in Iowa earlier this week, his dog Hawkeye walked up to his casket, laid down beside it and would not leave his late master's side.

Our friends at Animal Planet's Daily Treat blog report on the heartbreaking story:

Navy SEAL U.S. Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Jon T. Tumilson was among the 30 American troops killed August 6 when Taliban insurgents downed their Chinook helicopter with a rocket-propelled grenade. At his funeral in Iowa, his dog Hawkeye paid his last respects by walking up to the casket, laying down in front of it, and heaving a sigh.

[Tumilson's cousin Lisa] Pembleton wrote on Facebook that Hawkeye was Tumilson's loyal pet who wouldn't leave his master's side during the funeral in Rockford, Iowa.

Our friends at the American Humane Association are giving heroic pets a chance to shine in this year's Hero Dog Awards.

Each nominee is playing to win up to $10,000 for his or her favorite charity. These four are Petfinder alumni, and we couldn't be prouder! Read their stories below, then nominate your own hero dog today!

Benny
Category: Therapy Dogs
Location: Playa del Rey, CA
Charity: Love on 4 Paws
When Benny came into the rescue group he was skin and bones, had pneumonia and had lost his sight in one eye. LeeAnn saw Benny on Petfinder and adopted him. She quickly learned that he was friendly and lovable -- but he also had leash aggression and separation anxiety. LeeAnn didn't give up on him. She enrolled him in obedience and therapy-dog classes, and today he visits young patients at a children's hospital.

Muffin
Category: Therapy Dogs
Location: Wallingford, CT
Charity: Angel on a Leash
An 8-year-old terrier mix, Muffin survived Hurricane Ivan in 2004. When Kate adopted her after seeing her on Petfinder, she was "a matted, smelly mess with her toenails almost grown into her paw pads." Today, Muffin is a therapy dog and a founding member of the nonprofit Soul Friends, Inc,, which serves  children with social and emotional challenges. Her favorite thing? "A good snuggle with children living with trauma and loss."


Bugsy
Category: Emerging Hero Dogs
Location: Lincoln Park, NJ
Charity: American Veterinary Medical Association
Diane saw Bugsy on Petfinder seven years ago and adopted him. In 2010, he was diagnosed with congestive heart failure; the vet gave him six months to live. Now, more than a year later, Diane is inspired by his heroic battle against the odds. "Each day is a blessing having our little guy with us," she says. "We call him our hero."

Pippa
Category: Therapy Dogs
Location: Greenwich, CT
Charity: The Good Dog Foundation
Pippa had been described as "hyperactive and nuts and no one wanted her." But when Lucinda saw her on Petfinder, she saw something special in the rail-thin, flea-infested dog's eyes. She adopted her and enrolled her in therapy-dog training. Today, Pippa visits hospitals, nursing homes and schools. She has survived an auto-immune disorder, and her vet says she's a miracle girl. Through her work, she's also a miracle worker.
Read more about these hero dogs, and see other nominees here.

Find out how to nominate your dog for the Hero Dog Awards after the jump!

Among the information that has emerged about the raid that killed Osama bin Laden, there's one particularly interesting detail: The elite team of Navy SEALS included a dog.

The canine commando was most likely a German Shepherd or Belgian Malinois, military sources tell the New York Times.

Those breeds " 'have the best overall combination of keen sense of smell, endurance, speed, strength, courage, intelligence and adaptability to almost any climatic condition,' according to a fact sheet from the military working dog unit."

Discovery News reports that members of the SEALs' dog team "can parachute or rappel into action at a moment's notice" and can be outfitted with "canine tactical assault vests," self-inflating lifejackets, "infrared nightsight cameras and an intruder communication system able to penetrate concrete walls."

And according to a news roundup in the Huffington Post, "The heroic canine was strapped to a member of the SEAL team as he lowered himself and the dog to the ground from a hovering helicopter near the compound."

A hero dog in Alaska is being honored for leading authorities to a burning building. Buddy the German Shepherd, who guided state troopers to a fire at his family's property, received a silver-plated dog bowl today in Anchorage.

According to the Associated Press:

Troopers say Buddy and his owner, 23-year-old Ben Heinrichs, were in the family workshop when a heater ignited chemicals. Heinrichs told Buddy: "We need to get help."

The dog eventually found a trooper responding to a call about the fire.

People who rescue pets often say the pet rescued them in return. But sometimes that's literally true!

The Humane Society of the United States' Dogs of Valor awards honor heroic dogs who really did save humans' lives. (Read HSUS president Wayne Pacelle's blog post about the awards.)

Here are just a few of the finalists:

• Calamity Jane of Aledo, TX, charged a neighbor's yard and scared off armed robbers.


• Jackson of Rahway, NJ, alerted his owner that a 90-year-old neighbor was trapped under a fallen door.


• Prozac of Sanford, NC, not only saved a member of the family when they couldn't breathe, but awoke everyone two months later when the house was on fire.

So head over to the HSUS, read these amazing stories and place your vote for your favorite Dog of Valor. Then come back and find your own heroic canine among the 156,841 adoptable dogs on Petfinder.

Who will you vote for? Here's a hint at my vote -- we Janes have to stick together.