Awards Program
The Dog Rescue Hero Awards
America's national recognition program for the dogs and people whose courage saves lives in disasters, emergencies, and the everyday moments that change everything.
Our History
A Tradition Born from Katrina
The Hero Awards Program traces directly back to 2005, when founder Kaye Cruz and his news crew witnessed both the worst and the best of humanity in Gulfport, Mississippi. Among the loss were extraordinary acts — strangers wading into floodwaters for someone else's dog, police K-9s pulling survivors from rubble, family pets refusing to leave injured owners.
Those stories were the seed. Ruff Rough INC formalized them into a national program so that ordinary heroes — canine and human — would no longer go unnamed.
Today the Hero Awards honor recipients across the country, with stories featured in national press, on the Ruff Rough podcast, and at our annual recognition ceremony.
Why It Matters
Public recognition builds public will. When America sees what one dog or one person did, more people train, more agencies invest, more communities prepare — and the next rescue happens faster.
Award Categories
Six honors recognizing the full range of rescue work — from disaster response to family heroes.
K-9 Disaster Hero
Dogs whose actions during hurricanes, floods, fires, or other disasters resulted in lives saved — human or animal.
Search & Rescue K-9
Trained working dogs in law enforcement, wilderness search, cadaver recovery, or urban disaster response.
Family Hero Dog
Pets that alerted their families to fires, intruders, medical emergencies, or other life-threatening events.
Human Rescuer of the Year
Ordinary people who acted with extraordinary courage to rescue dogs in danger — strangers, neighbors, first responders.
Volunteer Spirit Award
Long-serving rescue volunteers, foster families, and pilots whose quiet, sustained work saves lives year after year.
Lifetime Achievement
A career of service in animal rescue, disaster response, or K-9 handling — recognizing the people who built the field.
How the Program Works
1. Nominate
Submit the story through our online form — the dog, the person, what happened, when, and why it matters.
2. Review
Our team reviews every nomination, may follow up for additional details, photos, or media coverage of the event.
3. Honor
Selected honorees are featured on our Heroes page, in press releases, on the podcast, and at our annual ceremony.
Past Ceremonies
Each year we gather honorees, families, partners, and press to celebrate the year's heroes.
2024
Annual Hero Awards Recap
Honorees and event highlights coming soon.
2023
Annual Hero Awards Recap
Honorees and event highlights coming soon.
Visit our Heroes page to read featured stories, or the Press page for ceremony coverage.
Sponsor an Award Category
Corporate partners can co-brand a Hero Award category — present it on stage, share the platform with the dogs and people you helped honor. See sponsorship tiers.
Know a Hero? Tell Us.
Every story we honor inspires another rescue. Nominations are open year-round.