Teenager honored for saving boy from dog

A routine trip to the mailbox last month turned 13-year-old Michelle Maurer into a hero.

It earned her a nasty dog bite, too.

On Wednesday, the Las Vegas City Council gave Michelle the Medal of Honor, the city's highest award, for pulling a 7-year-old neighbor away from an attacking Rottweiler.

"Michelle jumped in the middle of that ruckus," said Councilman Steve Ross, who presented the award. "Without blinking an eye, she jumped in and saved this young man -- probably his life.

"I'm not sure there are many of us in this audience who would do the same as adults."

Michelle noticed the neighborhood dog in her yard as she headed to the mailbox on that day in early October. Then Antonio, the 7-year-old neighbor, came by.

She knew Antonio is scared of dogs, something that pressed on her mind when she turned around from the mailbox and saw the boy being attacked.

"I picked up Antonio from the dog. The dog was jumping on me and jumping on Antonio," said Michelle, who added that she was "terrified" during the incident. "I was just worried that Antonio was really hurt."

She and the boy ran behind a pickup parked nearby. There, she put Antonio down, and he made a beeline home. Then Michelle got her father.

"She's either very brave, or maybe needs to have her head examined," said her father, David Maurer. "I don't see anybody having that big a desire to go up against a Rottweiler like that."

Still, it didn't surprise him when his soft-spoken daughter did what she did.

"She's very quiet, very reserved, but when it comes down to something needing to be done, she does it in a heartbeat," her father said. "I'm very proud of her."

The boy needed 12 stitches to reattach his ear. The dog also bit Michelle on her arm, leaving a severe bruise.

The dog belongs to a neighbor and is still in the neighborhood, and the families are still friendly, Michelle said.

Michelle, who attends Cadwallader Middle School, had an audience of rescuers at Wednesday's City Council meeting. Nine members of the Las Vegas Fire and Rescue Department also received awards for lifesaving and community service.

Mayor Oscar Goodman told the firefighters they might have a potential recruit: "Keep your eye on this one," he said.

Thanks, but no thanks, Michelle indicated after the meeting, adding that for now she's interested in studying psychiatry.

Contact reporter Alan Choate at achoate@reviewjournal.com or (702) 229-6435.