In a heartbreaking turn of events, Petel (raspberry in Hebrew), the canine hero who saved her family from Hamas' terrorist attack on Oct. 7 in Kibbutz Be'eri, has succumbed to injuries sustained during the harrowing ordeal, as reported by the Ynet news site.
We are heartbroken to report that #Petel, a family #dog who heroically saved her family in Kibbutz Be'eri, southern #Israel, on October 7th, has passed away after succumbing to her wounds. On the day of the attack, Petel heard #Hamas terrorists enter her family home and started… pic.twitter.com/PoASiyJrRL
— StandWithUs (@StandWithUs) June 3, 2024
According to the Ben Zvi family, Petel's relentless barking alerted them to the presence of terrorists attempting to break into their home. The family credits the dog's brave actions, amplified through a baby monitor, for prompting the terrorists to abandon their plans and flee the scene. Initially paralyzed by the explosions inside the safe room, Petel found the courage to bark incessantly when the terrorists tried to force their way through the door.
"The terrorists heard the dog in stereo. I can only assume that the scene became too complicated for them and they decided to leave the house," Ela Ben Zvi recounted.
Tragically, when the family was evacuated by soldiers later that day, they were forced to leave Petel behind because she was post-traumatic and too afraid to come out because of the explosions, and the family couldn't carry her due to her size. They provided her with food and water, intending to retrieve her once the situation was resolved. However, in a devastating turn of events, soldiers conducting searches in the kibbutz mistakenly believed terrorists were present in the house and opened fire, injuring Petel with shrapnel.
Upon realizing their mistake, the soldiers swiftly transported Petel to a veterinarian for treatment. After receiving medical care, she was eventually reunited with her beloved family. Despite her ordeal and advanced age of 11 years, Petel persevered, "and received a lot of love, hugs, and pets," Ben Zvi said. But she was an older dog, 11 years old. And she went through a lot and spent a lot of energy on her rehabilitation and recovery. There were several people who told us that she held on a little longer to be with us, and then she was let go," she expressed with profound sadness.
