Astro Cosmo the Pitbull had a rough start to life. A year ago he was wandering the streets of El Paso, Texas as a stray dog when Bertha Martinez saw him and brought the young dog home with her.

But she was apprehensive, knowing the reputation Pitbull’s have for being an aggressive breed of dog. “To be honest I’ve always been scared of pit bulls and when we brought him home, I wasn’t sure we would keep him for a long time cause I said he’s going to grow up,” she said to local news outlet KFOX14.

But after the harrowing events of last Wednesday, Martinez is thanking her lucky stars that she took a chance on the abandoned dog. Martinez’s son had taken Astro out for a walk when he suddenly collapsed, in need of emergency medical attention. Unable to call for help himself, Astro jumped into action for his owner.

The dog took off in search of a human who could help, barking insistently until he finally attracted the attention of a passerby. Astro then lead the individual to his owner where 911 was called and an ambulance was soon on it’s way.

“Thanks to this, Pumper 15 and Rescue 31 were able to assist and transport the patient, saving his life,” El Paso Fire Department said in a Facebook post on April 14.

Apparently Astro Cosmo also tried to climb into the ambulance with his owner, not wanting to leave his side.

“We never in a million years thought he would do something like that,” said Bertha Martinez to the news outlet.

The EPFD was so impressed with the dog’s heroic actions, they held a special ceremony to honor the pup where he was awarded a medal of honor.

Ramon Herrera who represented El Paso Animal Services attended the ceremony and said of the four-legged friend, “He set an example for a lot of dogs that look just like him. The perfect example of looking past that exterior and truly seeing for the good quality that these pets carry.”