A famous dog who lost her snout after she heroically saved two girls from a traffic accident in 2011 has recently died peacefully in her sleep.
10 years ago, Kabang – a street dog from the city of Zamboanga in the Philippines – bravely dashed in front of her owner’s daughter and the girl’s cousin just as they were crossing a street.
Without them realizing it, a speeding motorcycle almost collided with the two girls, who were saved from injury after Kabang moved ahead of them and took the impact head on.
The incident turned Kabang into an instant celebrity, with many lauding her for her bravery and loyalty, and others voicing their concern for the serious injury sustained.
One veterinarian named Anton Lim was so moved by the dog’s heroics that he even took the effort to transport Kabang all the way to the U.S. for snout reconstruction surgery. The procedure was done at the University of California, Davis School of Veterinary Medicine, and took no less than five hours to complete.
A good girl till the very end.
Following the surgery, Kabang was given further treatment for heartworm and a transmissible venereal tumor – which she eventually was cured from, and was sent back to live with her owner Rudy Bunggal until his death in 2015.
After Bunggal passed, Kabang was once again reacquainted with Lim, who cared for the heroic dog until May 17, 2021, when she passed away quietly in her sleep at the old age of 13.
“I’m very sad to inform you that I found Kabang dead in her bed with no prior sign,” he said to the Inquirer. “It happened between 4 and 7 p.m.”
“I last played with her at 4 p.m., and was supposed to feed her again her dinner,” he explained. “I found her motionless with no external sign or prior sickness. She died in her sleep.”
Lim also explained that Kabang always ate heartily – even up until her last moments, and had managed to finish up her last meal at lunch time before taking her final nap.
Now that the pup has passed on, Lim said that there are plans to erect a dog statue that will act as both a memorial and a final resting place for Kabang.
The statue was commissioned in March this year by Lim, who managed to rope in Filipino artist Kublai Millan to create a 1.2-meter carving following the dog’s likeness, and will be erected at the Roseller T. Lim Boulevard in Zamboanga Sibugay.
“We are very sad about her loss,” he said to the Inquirer. “We will temporarily bury her in our backyard until the dog’s statue shall have been completed. Then, we will transfer her there.”
