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ANIMAL WATCH -
Vote for Rudy HERE. It just takes a few seconds.
Category: Therapy Dog
Hometown: Los Angeles, California
Voting ends soon. You can vote more than once.
Rudy, a six-year-old Standard Poodle therapy dog, and now a runner-up for the 2025 American Humane Hero Dog Awards, has spent many hours with children and adult victims of the recent Los Angeles-area fires assuring them they were not alone in those terrifying events which destroyed almost everything that was familiar and safe in their lives.
Rudy works with victims of some of the most devastating situations that occur in human lives, but he doesn’t realize this is heroic. He merely senses their fear and their need and wants to be close to assure them he can be trusted and that they are loved and not alone.
RUDY IS ASKING FOR YOUR VOTE SO HE CAN DO MORE!
Rudy is asking for our individual votes here to give him national recognition of his tireless efforts and provide him with more opportunities to spread his message of love and hope as he works with the Los Angeles Police and Los Angeles Fire Department, responding to the greatest tragedies in communities.
Rudy has boundless unconditional love to share with all who need it when their world is being destroyed or they have experienced a tragedy that they may not be able to express, until they stroke Rudy’s soft fur and his warm brown eyes tell them he understands and they are loved.
But, Rudy’s Superpower doesn’t stop with just the obvious.
PROVIDING COMFORT TO OTHER HEROES
Rudy is there for police officers, firefighters and other law-enforcement and medical personnel.
He connects with the hearts of first responders in these devastating situations. He is there for those who have witnessed or been a victim of violence and cruelty they could not stop.
First responders do not have to use words to share with him their pain from the tragedies that are part of their daily work; such as, arriving after all or part of a family (and often their pets) were consumed by flames before they arrived or were too powerful and moving too fast for them to control.
Emergency responders may be the first-on-scene to mentally record an auto with children’s faces pressing against a window at the scene of a fatal crash with no survivors. These tragedies and others live silently and untold in the hearts and memories of police officers, sheriff’s deputies, Highway Patrol, fire fighters and emergency medical responders, but Rudy understands and assures them silently that they must think of the many they have saved and that he is also a symbol of faith in the lifesaving miracles they perform.
Rudy, Therapy Dog Semi-Finalist -- a runner-up for 2025 American Humane Hero Dog – NEEDS OUR VOTES TO WIN THE FINAL AWARD
YOU DON’T HAVE TO BE A CALIFORNIA RESIDENT TO VOTE FOR RUDY
Rudy earned a spot in the semifinals for his work as a therapy dog, notably for his help during the 2024 wildfires in Southern California. Now, animal lovers across the country have the opportunity to vote for their favorite four-legged hero to help them move on to the final round for the chance to be named America’s top dog.
VOTING ENDS SEPTEMBER 15, 2025
The public can express its thanks to all emergency responders by voting carefully under the correct category. In this case, VOTE FOR the gentle Standard Poodle, Rudy, the therapy poodle who helped during the January wildfires and is a finalist in the 2025 American Humane Hero Dog Awards,
Rudy is not just another pretty face, but earned his place in the 2025 American Humane Hero Dog Awards, Therapy Dog category – with the help and training by his owner, Steven Zonis, of Chatsworth, CA.
Rudy is facing some tough competition as a Therapy Semi-Finalist but has devoted his heart to those who need his gentle love and assurance and is asking for your vote here.
YOU CAN LEGALLY VOTE MORE THAN ONCE (See instructions at voting link.)
(Phyllis M. Daugherty is a former Los Angeles City employee, also the Santa Ana Fire Department and a long-time animal welfare advocate. A contributor to CityWatchLA, she is known for her investigative reporting on animal shelter operations, misuse of public funds, and the dangers of poorly regulated pet adoption policies. She is a strong proponent of public safety in animal control, advocating for stricter oversight of aggressive dog breeds, especially pit bulls, and for breed-specific legislation.)
