An elderly Arizona woman and author who suffered a harsh fall last Friday is alive and recovering at a nearby hospital thanks to her service dog Danny, who not only helped her regain consciousness but also brought her the tools she needed to call for help, ABC News reports.
An author and dog-lover from Glendale, Ariz., Bennett writes stories about the foster dogs she takes in under the penname "Bessie Mac," according to ABC News 15 Arizona.
Last Friday, one of the foster dogs -- a Miniature Schnauzer named Danny -- returned Bennett's favor by saving her life.
After slipping on a tile floor and breaking her femur on Friday, Bennett lay unconscious on the floor of her home.
She woke up after being licked by Danny and remembered that no visitors were scheduled to arrive until the following Tuesday.
"I was scared. I really thought I was going to die," Bennett told ABC News.
That's when Danny sprang into action, knocking over the telephone and nudging toward Bennett. When she asked him to bring her paper, Danny brought over five pieces, including one with neighbors' phone numbers.
Bennett called 911 and then neighbors, who located a spare key and let paramedics into the house. She was then rushed to Banner Thunderbird Medical Center in Glendale, where she is now in recovery.
Now she plans to tell Danny's story in the next installment of her "Forever Home" series
According to the series' website, Bennett has been an animal-lover since childhood and after taking in foster animals from the Arizona Schnauzer rescue.
In a blog post, Bennett wrote of the joy she experiences taking in dogs like Danny:
The joy and love that each of [the dogs] has brought to my life is unexplainable. It is always hard to let them go on to their forever homes, but when they come to you sad, broken-hearted dogs and leave as happy, playful dogs to their forever homes, it’s such a great feeling. My volunteering friend sent me on a journey that has truly been a blessing. Fostering rescue dogs has given me a greater depth of understanding the true meanings of unconditional love, loyalty, responsibility, and trust.
For more on this story, view the ABC News video report above.