Canine hero

Heroes came in all shapes and sizes during the storm.

For Eve and Norman Fertig, it came as a 160-pound wolf dog mix named Shana, whom she had rescued.

The Fertigs, both 81, who run the Enchanted Forest Wildlife Sanctuary in Alden, went to the animal hospital on the grounds of the sanctuary Thursday night to tend to several injured birds and hawks.

The storm was in full force, with electricity going out and trees falling to the ground, by the time they left the hospital at 9 p.m.

A massive tree had fallen in front of the couple's house, about a quarter mile from the wildlife hospital. It was impossible for the Fertigs to get to their home.

As the snow continued to fall and the temperature dropped, the Fertigs tried breaking branches off the tree, hoping to remove enough brush so that they could climb over the tree.

But two hours later, the Fertigs were still breaking branches.

"We were freezing, we were shaking," Eve Fertig said.

Meanwhile, Shana had begun digging under the tree.

"She dug like a path for us," Fertig said.

She doesn't know exactly how big the path was, but it was long and deep enough for the rescue mission.

Eve Fertig - who weighs about 86 pounds - laid on top of her giant dog. Norman Fertig then leaned on his wife and dog.

And Shana carried the couple under the tree to the safety and warmth of their home.

"There must be a medal for a dog who saved two elderly people," Eve Fertig said.