On March 15, in the middle of the night while on vacation in Amsterdam, Bushwick residents Mo Moran and Caitlin Carducci were awoken by a call from Stephanie Riservato, owner of Bushwick Pet Care and their dog-sitter. Riservato was calling from a car speeding towards Veterinary Emergency and Referral Group (VERG), an animal hospital in Brooklyn. Moran’s dog, Henry, a 10-year-old shih tzu, had been attacked by another bigger dog from their building while playing on the rooftop.

Henry had been in the bigger dog’s mouth for four minutes, according to Moran when she recounted the event a week later. He lost a lot of blood, but Riservato’s quick action in getting him to the hospital right away probably saved his life. A neighbor from the building—and a complete stranger—offered to drive Riservato and Henry to VERG. Once there, Riservato stayed with Henry while the vets took care of him. She even accompanied Moran and Carducci to Henry’s follow-up vet appointments as he recovered.

“She’s a neighborhood hero,” Moran said as a fully-recovered Henry wriggled around on her lap, referring not just to Riservato’s action that night, but to the dedication and love she has given to Bushwick’s pets since she launched Bushwick Pet Care last summer.