Just before 6:30 a.m., a 9-year-old female yellow lab chow mix ran onto the Major Deegan Expressway and was hit by a car at exit 3. That's when another dog, her son, ran to the rescue, right there on the busy highway. The dog wouldn't let anyone near, barking at traffic and police officers, even as they tried to help.
At one point, police tried to coax the dog into a cruiser, and they got an earful.
The Deegan, normally buzzing at that hour, was slowed to a trickle. Drivers tried to maneuver around the scene, and the dog let them have it.
Finally, officers got close enough to lift the injured dog onto a sheet and place her gently inside a cruiser.
When police tried to get to the other dog, that's when the great pooch protector took off.
There was a slow-speed chase, then a high-speed chase. The dog dodged vehicles, changed direction and ran head-on into traffic.
Police backed up the highway, not sure which way the dog was going to break next.
Finally, after about 45-minutes, the dog was given a police escort onto an exit ramp, and traffic flowed again.
Meantime, the injured dog was on her way to help.
The dog was brought to animal care and control in East Harlem, where they gave her pain medication and made her comfortable. Then, a vet looked her over.
"She was alert," Lisa Ortiz said. "She picked up her head, she knew she was getting help."
The mama dog, now identified as "Chile," suffered a broken left leg. She wore no ID at the time of the accident, but her owner saw the drama on TV, went to the vet center and whisked her away to an animal hospital.
She will undergo surgery today.
The owner told animal control that the other dog, who he also owns, is home now.
Ortiz says the relationship between the dogs explains a lot.
"It was heartwarming, they look out for each other," she said.
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