Top 10 Most Loyal Dogs of All Time
This is a top 10 list of the most loyal dogs in history. If you’re looking for the most loyal dog breeds, then you should go for a sheepdog like a German Shephard or a Shetland Sheepdog. Pit Bulls despite all the propaganda are the least loyal of all dogs surpassed only by the Chihuahua.
10. Shep
Shep's owner died in August 1936 in Fort Benton Montana. Shep followed her owner's casket to the train station and put together a shelter nearby the depot platform where he owner's body was carried off, awaiting for him to return. For the next five and a half years she would meet every passenger train arriving there and sniff at every passenger hoping to get a breathe in a hint of her owner. She continued this ritual until she was struck by a car and killed in January 1942. She is memorialized with the statue seen above.
9. Talero
Talero is a German Shepherd who guarded the body of her owner for 23 days after he died in a snowstorm, fighting off starving animals trying to attack the body. When Talero was found by police snuggling next to her owner's corpse, attempting to keep him warm.
8. Kostya
Kostya's owner left him outside of a hospital in Tolyatti, Russia, soon before dying inside. Kostya remained there for 7 years until dying of natural causes. Kostya is memorialized with a statue in front of the hospital. Newlyweds ritually rub his nose as a demonstration of loyalty towards each other.
7. Ruswarp
Ruswarp was a Border Collie who disappeared on a hike with her owner in the Welsh Mountains in January 1990. Her owner died during that hike, and he stayed behind to guard her owner. In April of the same year he was discovered by another hiker the 14-year-old dog was so frail and weak that he had to be carried off of the mountain. He died shortly after his owner's funeral and is memorialized with a statue at Garsdale Railway Station.
6. Bobbie the "Wonder Dog"
Bobbie got separated from his family on a trip home from Silverton, Oregon to Wolcott, Indiana. Bobbie made his way all the way back home to be reuinited with his family after a trek of 2,551 miles (4,105 km).
5. Fido
Fido, a mixed-breed dog waited as a bus stop for 14 years awaiting the return of his owner. Fido's owner was killed in an air raid in 1943 during the invasion of Italy. A memorial statue of Fido that was erected in 1957 is still there today, awaiting his owner's return.
4. Capitán
Capitán is a German Shepherd who ran away from his home in Argentina after the death of his owner in 2006. He was rediscovered a week later miraculously waiting loyally at his owner's grave. Capitán was brought home but again ran away to be at the final resting place of his former owner. His family agreed to let him stay there, providing him with food and water until he died in 2018.
3. Greyfriars Bobby
Greyfriars Bobby, a Skye Terrier, was yet another dog who waited at his owners grave for 14 years until his death. His heroics and loyalty are memorialized in several films, folklore, and a statue. He is remembered in Scotland as a symbol of unwavering loyalty.
2. Theo
Theo was an English Springer Spaniel used to sniff out bombs in Afghanistan. In 2010 Theo's owner was killed in a firefight with insurgents. Theo protected his owner's corpse from armed combatants until driven off by his owner's comrades. After Theo was taken back to the base he was stricken with grief and died from a broken heart. Theo was posthumously honored with the Dickin Medal, Britain's highest honor for bravery for animals.
1. Waghya
Waghya, was the pet dog of king Chhatrapati Shivaji of India. As his owner's wives jumped onto his funeral pyre (as was part of the Hindu tradition), he followed suit, self-immolating himself along with the rest of the king's loved ones.
