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Golden Retriever Wins 'Bark Hero' at BHF Heart Hero Awards for Alerting Family to Cardiac Arrest

Rapid, dispatcher-guided CPR within moments proved decisive in Adam Cooke’s survival.

Overview

  • The British Heart Foundation honoured Hannah Cooke and golden retriever Polly in London, with Polly receiving a Bark Hero award at the Heart Hero Awards.
  • Polly’s unusual night-time bark in March 2024 in Ballinamallard, County Fermanagh, woke Hannah, who found Adam in cardiac arrest.
  • Hannah called 999 and performed CPR with dispatcher guidance until paramedics arrived.
  • Ambulance crews shocked Adam seven times en route; he woke six days later and was diagnosed with dilated cardiomyopathy.
  • After an implantable cardioverter defibrillator was fitted, Adam returned home, and the couple say they are now expecting their second child.