Eddie the Guide Dog Is Officially a Hero. His Handler Can’t Name One Heroic Act

Eddie, a three-year-old Labrador retriever who works as the guide dog for Luis Rodriguez of Miami, won the 16th annual American Humane Hero Dog Awards. The win was announced live on NBC’s TODAY on Wednesday, Nov. 4. Rodriguez is legally blind, and Eddie is his first guide dog.¹³

The award comes from American Humane Society, which runs the competition and gives the dogs the “hero” label. Eddie won in the service and guide/hearing dog category before taking the top prize.¹

Rodriguez lost his vision gradually to retinitis pigmentosa, a condition that slowly took his sight. His wife encouraged him to get a guide dog, and he was paired with Eddie through Dogs Inc.¹³

A hero without one big rescue

Plenty of award-winning dogs have one dramatic moment to point to. Eddie’s case is built on something quieter. In his TODAY interview, Rodriguez said he can’t name one particular heroic act. Instead, he credits Eddie with helping him make the most of life.³

Speaking live on TODAY, Rodriguez described what that looks like on a regular day:⁴

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“He finds obstacles and avoids obstacles for me, finds stairs, finds elevators.”

That is the job, done over and over, by a dog who weighs about 70 pounds and has to stay focused in Miami.³ The difference it has made is personal. “Before Eddie came into my life, I had a lot of anxiety,” Rodriguez told TODAY.³

Dr. Robin Ganzert, president and CEO of American Humane Society, put it this way in the organization’s announcement: “Eddie is a remarkable hero dog and has helped Luis regain so much independence and freedom.”¹

Sharing the journey online

The independence Eddie gave him inspired Rodriguez to share their life together on social media under the name “Miami Guy and His Guide Dog.” According to the press release, the channels have reached thousands of followers and help teach the public about visual impairment.¹

ABC News also covered the win in a Nov. 6 video, noting Eddie was honored for changing the life of his legally blind owner through his guide work.²

How the winner was picked

The Hero Dog Awards have five categories: therapy, service and guide, military, law enforcement/first responder, and shelter dogs. Americans nominated hundreds of dogs. From those, 25 semi-finalists were chosen, five per category, and public voting narrowed the field to five finalists.¹

Eddie’s fellow finalists made for a varied group:¹

• Bubbles, a blind beagle, in the emerging hero/shelter category
• K9 Rozi of the Chicago Police Department
• Sage, a Navy facility dog aboard the USS Gerald R. Ford
• Goosey, a therapy dog

Facing a dog who works on a Navy ship, a guide dog from Miami came out on top with stairs and elevators.

All five finalists, Eddie included, will be honored at the 16th Annual American Humane Hero Dog Awards Gala in Washington, D.C., on Dec. 3.¹