Thinking about what took place on this day fifteen years ago can get complicated, especially when considering the question of who actually did this to us.
When the towers fell many, many people rushed to Ground Zero to dig for survivors and tend to the wounded. Three hundred rescue dogs were part of that effort. They were able to go into places where people could not. They were able to use their keen sense of smell to find buried survivors as well as remains of the deceased. Many of them also served as impromptu therapy dogs.
The dogs don't know or care about how it happened or who was to blame. They simply did their job.
Here are a few beautiful video tributes to man's best friend.
Bretagne, the last surviving 9/11 rescue dog, returned to New York with her handler for her 16th birthday and enjoyed the royal treatment. She died just short of her 17th birthday.
Here's an article that appeared in one of my favorite political blogs four years ago: The few, the proud... the dogs of 9/11
Another article: Rescue dogs of 9/11: the drama's unsung heroes
Finally, here's a documentary that aired three years ago. The password is HD911 : Hero dogs of 9/11