A dog that bravely defended its owner from an armed robber narrowly escaped death when the attacker plunged a knife deep into its skull.
Gino Wensel, 40, was exercising Duke, his faithful German Shepherd when the robber came at him with a knife in his hand.
The fearless canine managed to scare off the assailant after he plunged the steak knife into its head in the Mitchells Plain area outside Cape Town.
Still breathing, Duke was taken to an animal welfare centre, where it was immediately sedated before the knife was removed.
Animal Welfare Society of South Africa spokesman Allan Perrins said: “Duke had suffered a very high impact blow that I have no doubt was intended to kill him and was in a critical condition and was close to death.
“The X-ray showed however that the blade had gone in three inches but had bent on entry away from the brain missing it by millimetres and turned towards his right eye socket.”
“Incredibly Duke has recovered overnight and his owner came back for him today. The fuss they made over each other gives all of us the reward we need for what we do here.”
