The American Humane Association’s “Hero Dog Awards” will air on Friday (Nov. 11) on the Hallmark Channel in the US.

The ceremony took place in Beverly Hills in October. Thousands of votes were cast and the 453 contestants were narrowed down to eight finalists.

The top honour went to labrador retriever guide dog, Roselle, who was honoured posthumously for leading her blind owner, Michael Hingson, down 78 flights of stairs to safety in the World Trade Center during the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001. Roselle sadly passed away in June 2011.

Among the other dogs honoured was Sage the border collie who was recognised for her work during the September 11 terrorist attacks, Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, and the Iraq war where she was deployed to look for missing soldiers.

Each of the eight finalists received $5,000 to be donated to one of American Humane Association’s charity partners. Roselle won an additional $10,000 for Guide Dogs for the Blind.