A San Diego family's dog is getting credit for breaking up a traumatic home invasion Wednesday.
Two intruders tried to rob a family at gunpoint inside their Golden Hill home near Broadway and 30th Street at around 6:30 a.m., San Diego police said.
However, a border collie mix named Leila saved the day, according to the homeowners.
Michelle Howard and her daughter woke up to the sound of two men opening an unlocked back door.
"Next thing I know they’re running up at me with guns pointed at my head,” Howard said.
The men were wearing masks and told Howard to shut up and give up her money, Howard said. All she could tell them was that she didn’t have any.
Leila was barking the entire time, but eventually decided enough was enough. She charged and latched onto one of the robber's legs and refused to let go.
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The other intruder headed toward Howard’s roommate's bedroom to try and get money from him. Meanwhile, Howard’s 18-year-old daughter ran outside to tell neighbors to call police.
Howard said the intruders heard her daughter calling for help so they snatched a phone and ran off.
Howard was thankful to be alive. She said the family is missing a phone but admits the trauma she experienced might keep her up for a while.
"I'm not going to be able to sleep," she said. "I’m sure I won’t sleep."
San Diego police describe both men as around 6-feet, 2-inches tall. Both wore black shirts and hoodies.
No arrests have been made.
Howard thinks it’s possible the two men thought someone else lived at her apartment.
"I know God’s good,” she said. “We could be dead right now but we're not, so God’s just watching us."
She’s also forever grateful to Leila who refused to go down without a fight.
"There's my hero right there. You’re my hero,” she told Leila.
