Patsy The Dog Saves 900 Sheep From Being Killed In Massive Bushfire

Now that a lot of the bushfires that have ravaged Australia have died down, stories are emerging about heroic efforts in the face of a life-threatening situation.

One of those comes from Corryong, Victoria, near the border with New South Wales, where a dog managed to save hundreds of sheep when a fire rolled through.

Several homes were lost when a bushfire was sparked just before the new year and many people were evacuated to the Corryong College.

Stephen Hill had to battle the raging inferno when it started encroaching on his property, but he also needed help protecting his livestock.

Thankfully for him, Stephen's six-year-old Kelpie Border Collie cross, Patsy, picked up the slack. According to CNET, the dog herded a whopping 900 sheep into a paddock that was away from from the bushfire and ensured their safety.

Stephen told the news site: "I'd have been stuffed without Patsy. She's earned front-seat privileges for the rest of her life."

He honoured her with a post on Instagram, which has since gone viral.

"This is Patsy just after she and her human brought the sheep to safety on the morning of New Year's Eve," he wrote. "Cool as a cucumber, Patsy waited with him until the fire got close enough to fight with a tractor and water pump. What a team!"

Stephen added: "When I stood in this burnt black paddock after the fire ripped through our family farm in Corryong, all I wanted to do was show our friends and family that we were okay, that we were still here, and that even in all the devastation we still had so much to be grateful for.

"So many others have lost quite literally everything they have. These fires are not over. Not even close to being over. They will burn for weeks, months even, and communities all over Australia are going to be hit just like Corryong has been."

But Patsy isn't the only star canine that is being praised for their work in the bushfire season.

Two trained dogs are being heralded for finding seven koalas alive in bushfire ravaged Queensland.

The two detection dogs, named Taz and Missy, used their incredible noses in Maryvale on Queensland's South Downs.

On the first day of their search through the burnt-out forest, the two dogs - along with their handlers - managed to spot a koala and her baby.

Koala conservation ecologist Olivia Woosnam said: "The joey was out of the pouch and independent. They were in the same tree and they were moving around and seemed okay, we did a visual check of them and we've got no immediate concern for their safety."

The team combed through a whopping 10 kilometres of forest in Maryvale and came across five more of the marsupials. According to ITV, despite bushfires tearing through the region more than two months ago, they managed to find areas that were still smouldering.