Dog Kisses Firefighter With Gratitude After Rescue From Roof

WELLS, ME — A dog got himself into quite a predicament Saturday in Wells, Maine, and was trapped on the roof of a house after ripping open a screen and crawling out an upstairs window. The husky named Jasper was pacing back and forth when Phil Burke discovered him and called authorities.

Was the dog ever grateful. He showed his appreciation by giving fire Capt. James Nawfel a big smooch — a moment police Officer Steve McDonald captured in a photo that is causing a stir on Facebook and the websites of news organizations that picked it up.

“It’s pawsatively love,” the police department wrote in a post of the picture. “Is there anything more stunning than an animal expressing gratitude?”

The police department also credited another citizen, who wasn’t named, who stayed with the dog to calm him until help arrived.

Heart emoticons flooded the police department’s Facebook page after the photos were posted on Sunday.

Nawfel told television station WGME he’s surprised at the attention the photos have gotten.

“I had no idea a little affection from a dog would blow up the way it has,” he said. “It’s been surreal at best.

“It floors me that, out of anything going on, this has gotten the attention that it has. It’s crazy. Absolutely crazy,”

Jasper’s owners, who brought a thank-you card to the firehouse on Memorial Day, say the pooch is an “excited and friendly” dog that is always looking for opportunities to explore.

Newfal says rescuing a dog from a roof is a first in his career as a firefighter.

“You know there's always the thought of the firemen going to rescue the cat out of the trees — it’s the ongoing thing,” he told WGME. “But a dog on the roof is a first.”

Photos by Wells, Maine, Police Officer Steve McDonald, used with permission