Dog shoves kids into lake so he can play the hero

In a story straight out of a cartoon, a Newfoundland dog in 1908 Paris found a unique way to earn his meals. As reported by The New York Times over 115 years ago, this dog became a local hero for rescuing children from the Seine River. However, his heroics had a twist – he was the one pushing them in.

The dog's owner lived near the Seine, just outside Paris. One day, a child playing on the riverbank fell into the water. The dog, hearing the cries, leaped over a hedge and dived into the river to save the child. The grateful father rewarded the brave dog with a succulent beefsteak.

The truth, when discovered, was both amusing and startling. The dog had realized that rescuing children earned him steak. So, he began nudging children into the river and then heroically rescuing them to secure his reward. His cunning scam was soon uncovered, but not before he had established a profitable routine.

This incident alone was heartwarming, but the story took a bizarre turn. As days passed, the dog’s rescue missions became suspiciously frequent. Almost daily, a child was saved from the water by this canine hero. The community grew wary, suspecting a mysterious criminal at work.

Redditors had a field day with this story. User Hamstersham humorously commented, "I think after like the third baby ends up in the river, it's fair to blame the parents who are letting their unsupervised babies play next to the river." Meanwhile, ocient chimed in with, "It’s 1908, these children should have had jobs in the factory. The side of the river is no place for a child."

One particularly apt comment from scottfreckle read, "Pavlov would be so proud," referencing the famous experiment on conditioned responses.

The story even drew parallels to modern incentives. Timbukthree noted, "Performance-based metrics are a double-edged sword," while stixyBW added, "When a metric becomes a goal, it ceases to be a good metric." This anecdote from 1908 amusingly illustrates how incentive structures can lead to unintended (and sometimes hilarious) consequences.

Reflecting on this story, one might think about the classic dogged determination to find an easy meal. This clever canine took it to the next level, gaming the system in a way that still brings laughs over a century later.