Heroic German Shepherd dog saves sleeping owner from flat fire in Stoke-On-Trent

A college student has praised her heroic dog for saving her life, after a fire started in her flat.

Melody Chen, 19, fell asleep after turning her cooker on at her home in Stoke-on-Trent.

She suffers from anxiety, PTSD, low blood sugar and a heart condition, which caused her to fall asleep.German Shepherd, Mia, who is Melody's service dog, was barking, licking her face and tugging at her jumper to pull her out of the flat.

Mia, who is one-year-old, then led her to the back door, past the kitchen, where Melody spotted the flames.She is able to sense when her owners heart rate is too low or too high, and alert her so she can sit down safely without fainting.

Melody, who is studying animal management and wants to be a vet, said: "I got Mia last year because my health was getting worse. She didn't come from a charity and is owner-trained. I mostly trained her myself with the help of a trainer for guidance."Melody says she 'doesn't want to think what would have happened' if Mia had not been there when the fire started on Friday 24 March, as her housemate was out at the time.She said: "The low blood sugar made me feel really tired. I was going to make some breakfast and I put the stove on. Then I went to lie down and forgot to turn it off."I woke up to her frantically barking and licking my face, trying to wake me up. I noticed she was tugging on my jumper, pulling me to the back door. I got up and she was still trying to pull me.

"She doesn't normally bark, but she was barking like mad. I don't even know what would have happened if she hadn't woke me up. If she wasn't there I probably wouldn't be here. She has only just turned one in February."She's still a baby. She had never seen a fire. The way she reacted to it was really something. I had a German Shepherd before but she wasn't quite there with it."

Mia has now been nominated for the finals of the Animal Star Awards, where she is in the running for the Assistance dog of the year award for her lifesaving actions."Some dogs don't enjoy being service dogs. Mia being nominated for the award is really exciting. When I got the email, I was like 'oh my God!' - I couldn't believe it."She definitely deserves it. She's done so much. She has put so much time in training with me. She's the reason why I can go to college and leave the house."At college, she just lies down next to me. Most dogs around one are still like puppies. They have to love doing it."