On Sept. 11, 2001, I was living here in New York and heard the sirens outside my window as fire trucks rushed to the burning towers. I felt dumbfounded and numb, and only my cat Toby, purring on my lap, brought me to a place where I could think again and try to help.
Blaze's firefighter dad, Timmy Haskell, was killed on 9/11.
Toby wasn't the only pet who provided comfort that day. The Animal Planet series Saved aired a special episode about people whose pets helped them recover from 9/11. When Maureen's firefighter sons Timmy and Tommy Haskell died in the Twin Towers, she says only the presence of Timmy's beloved Dalmatian, Blaze, "made my life worth living again." (See a clip from their segment above.)
And when 4-year-old Kate witnessed the attacks and became withdrawn and silent, only her family's new dog, Scout, helped her get over her trauma. (After the jump, a clip from Kate's segment.)
Continue reading Ten years after 9/11: the pets who helped survivors.
