Nala the Traveling Dog: The Golden Retriever Behind ‘Nala Stomps’

In summary: Pal was a male Rough Collie trained by Rudd Weatherwax who played the female role of Lassie in “Lassie Come Home” (1943). His direct descendants played Lassie for decades afterward, making him the founder of an unbroken canine acting line. The most famous female dog in film history was played by a male…

In summary: Bretagne was a Golden Retriever from Texas who searched Ground Zero for ten days after the September 11 attacks — her first deployment. She was the last known surviving 9/11 search dog when she died in 2016 at age 16, and firefighters lined up to salute her. Bretagne’s first day on the job…

In summary: Walter Geoffrey is a French Bulldog from Austin, Texas, whose theatrical, opera-like howls turned him into a viral sensation with more than 1.4 million Instagram followers. Nicknamed the “King of Meltdown City,” he’s appeared on Ellen, The View, and Good Morning America. French Bulldogs are known for a lot of sounds. None of…

In summary: Smoky was a 4-pound Yorkshire Terrier found in an abandoned foxhole in the New Guinea jungle in 1944 and adopted by Corporal Bill Wynne. She served through 12 combat missions, ran communication wire through a narrow pipe that saved an estimated 250 men and 40 planes days of digging, and is widely regarded…

In summary: Trakr was a German Shepherd police dog from Halifax, Nova Scotia, who found the last living survivor pulled from the World Trade Center rubble on September 12, 2001. He and his handler, Constable James Symington, drove 15 hours overnight to reach Ground Zero after watching the attacks on television. Roughly 300 search dogs…

In summary: Two Great Danes named Zeus have held Guinness World Records for the world’s tallest dog. The first Zeus, from Otsego, Michigan, measured 44 inches (111.8 cm) to the shoulder in 2011 and remains the tallest dog ever recorded. A second Zeus, from Bedford, Texas, was confirmed as the tallest living dog in 2022…