Picture: Alex Coppel.Source:News Corp AustraliaThe odds of having a heart attack at all were 11 per cent lower in single dog owners.“A very interesting finding in our study was that dog ownership was especially prominent as a protective factor in persons living alone,” said study author Tove Fall, “which is a group reported previously to be at higher risk of cardiovascular disease and death than those living in a multi-person household.

Footage of the rescue was posted to Facebook by Darrell Perkins, who told Storyful that the dog, named Ginger, had been missing for a number of days before he was heard her howling from a nearby river.