A Shiloh shepherd in crate training has taken the top award in this year’s Hambone Awards, presented by Nationwide.
Luca, a Massachusetts dog, had usually been well-behaved at home apart
from refusing to stay in its crate. Luca’s owner, Lori, gave the dog a chance and decided to let it roam free while she ran a quick errand. Upon returning, Lori was in for a surprise.
“I looked up the stairs and saw that my cabinet was gone,” says Lori, who has a deep connection in the shepherd rescue community and has fostered and adopted pups. “He had pulled the entire thing out, track and all. The barrel and the cabinet front were flung into my dining room.” Apart from dismantling the cabinet, Luca had also gotten into the hidden trash and tried to eat everything.
“Lori did an amazing job being able to overlook the damage to their home—at least temporarily!—and focus on Luca’s health,” says Jules Benson, BVSc, MRCVS, vice president, Pet Health and chief veterinary officer for Nationwide. “The corn cobs that Luca had eaten posed an immediate risk of intestinal obstruction and her quick action was critical to a good end result.”
Nationwide hosted a public vote August 13-22, 2024, to determine the most unusual story and two runners-up from a field of eight Hambone Awards finalists. The runners-up were Lambeau, a jigsaw puzzle-eating mixed-breed from North Carolina; and Archie, a mixed-breed pup from New Jersey that went through the front door to greet the mailperson.
For more information, visit the Nationwide website.