In Chicago, a wire-haired fox terrier named Maggie was home alone—and must have been pretty bored—when she managed to make her way out of her apartment’s fourth-floor window and onto a ledge that is reportedly only five inches wide. It’s not clear how long she was out there, but neighbors spotted her in the terrifying predicament and called the fire department.
As you can see in the amateur video clip embedded below (the key action begins at about the one-minute marker) a firefighter just pokes his head out the window and presumably calls the dog to come. However, the problem is that she is facing in the opposite direction. There seems to be a moment when she starts to try to turn her body around, but then realizes she doesn’t have the room to do so. She briefly walks forward towards the corner edge … but then, in a glorious Eureka moment, starts to gently walk backwards towards the man in the window. As soon as she is within reach he lifts her inside. It’s only a few seconds, but it’s pure heart-stopping drama.
The dog’s owners, who were both at work at the time, later took Maggie over to the Engine 22 station to personally offer thanks (and their assurance that it won’t happen again).
Does the dog Maggie realize how close she was to death? Somehow, after watching the video, I’m certain that the answer is yes.