Moose, our courageous hero, has finally found his forever home on a beautiful farm in Franklin. His new loving parents, Ciara and Darrel Hill, believe he truly deserves this idyllic setting.
This 8-year-old Great Pyrenees now calls a spacious 5-acre property home, complete with woodlands, a meandering creek perfect for splashing around, and vast cornfields. He’ll never know loneliness again.
Surrounded by the security of a fenced-in yard, Moose shares his space with four friendly goats, 18 curious turkeys, and more than 20 cheerful chickens that peck away in the grass. Tim, an African spurred tortoise, leisurely roams near the rabbit hutch. The house features a deck that extends to an above-ground pool, specially designed with Moose in mind. He also has the delightful company of seven canine siblings, including an array of terriers, the gentle giant Suzie, a great Dane, and even a possible Chinese crested and Maltese mix. The entire crew enjoys meals together.
The American Kennel Club notes that adult male Great Pyrenees typically weigh over 100 pounds, but Moose, who is still visibly slender from his recent rescue, currently weighs around 85 pounds. He receives a diet of high-protein wet food in the morning, two cans of dry kibble for grazing throughout the day, and a second high-protein meal in the evening, all to help him regain a bit of lost weight, as explained by Ciara Hill.
Moose’s life took a remarkable turn while he was residing at the Portsmouth Humane Society shelter, a fateful change that occurred on August 4.
On that memorable Friday, Chris Cushna and Sheila Janes decided to pay a visit to the shelter. Janes’ granddaughter, Luna, 8, along with Cushna’s children, Anya, 10, and Logan, 12, were spending the weekend aboard the couple’s 1983, 42-foot Gibson houseboat, docked at the Tidewater Yacht Marina. Looking for ways to entertain the children, Janes recalled that the humane society allowed people to take dogs out for the day.
“We passed by a lot of dogs who were very vocal about wanting someone to take them out,” Janes recounted. “But Moose was at the very back, radiating a gentle giant’s calm and chill demeanor.”
The family had such a delightful time with Moose that they decided to keep him for an extra day, and he even shared a bed with the children.
Around 7:30 a.m. that Sunday, Anya was awakened by Moose’s gentle whining. She alerted her father, and they took Moose out onto the deck, thinking he might need to relieve himself. To their shock, they witnessed a massive fire engulfing a nearby boat. Cushna rushed back inside, waking up the rest of the family and guiding them to safety on the deck. Within minutes, flames consumed their houseboat.
Cushna said, “The early alert by Moose was absolutely crucial in ensuring everyone’s safe evacuation.”
Devastated by the loss of their home, the couple couldn’t adopt Moose.
Ciara Hill was relaxing on her back porch, reading about Moose’s heroic act on the humane society’s Facebook page, as her husband tended to the grill.
“That dog, the one who rescued those people from the fire,” she exclaimed to her husband.
“Really?”
“Yes, and he’s back at the shelter!”
“Well, then, go get him,” Darrel Hill insisted.
The next morning, she drove to Portsmouth and brought Moose back to their farm.
“A dog like that, a true hero who saved lives, doesn’t belong in a cage,” Darrel Hill remarked. “We have all this space, and now he’s home.”
