Homeless man jumps into freezing river to save pet rabbit thrown off bridge — it changed his life forever

Love, in its purest form, is blind to wealth and status. This profound feeling does not care if your bank account is full or empty. In fact, true connections are often forged not through grand gestures but through simple acts of kindness. For John Byrne, a homeless man from Dublin, Ireland, his world revolved around his dog, Lily, and rabbit, Barney.

In 2011, Byrne drew attention when a video of him rescuing his pet from the River Liffey went viral on the internet after being uploaded to YouTube by Sebastian Dooris (@SebDooris). According to HuffPost, a ruthless passerby named Gary Kearney snatched the rabbit from Byrne's arms and threw it into the river.

Without a second thought, the homeless man leaped into the river to save his beloved rabbit. Firefighters later rescued both. Notably, Byrne was honored with the Compassionate Citizen Award by the animal charity Aran for his bravery. "I was not going to leave him there. I had to jump in to get him. Barney died in my arms. I got him under the bridge and gave him the kiss of life," Byrne shared with The Crazy Teacher.

Meanwhile, Kearny, who was charged with animal cruelty and torture, pleaded guilty at the Dublin District Court. His attorney, Maura Kiely, said her client apologized for his behavior. Reflecting on the Court's sentence, an overwhelmed Byrne stated that it sent a strong message to those who abuse animals. Moreover, the homeless man revealed he was begging on O'Connell Bridge with his rabbit and dog, Lily when Barney was snatched.

"I was scared. Wouldn't anybody going into freezing cold water? And there is a seal there that would have eaten Barney. I can swim and I had done life-saving before. Only for that I was gone. The current would have pulled me under," he added.

Since the horrifying incident, Byrne stopped taking Lily out begging on the streets. Although his other furry friend, Roxy, was often spotted with him, they never went near the Liffey River. "I've always had animals on the street with me to keep me company and to keep me happy. I think the world of animals. Rabbits are very intelligent. I treat them like they're my kids. They get everything. They're spoiled rotten like kids," Byrne shared.

This heartwarming story was recently shared on Reddit by u/lastwarfare753. The post received an overwhelming response from people who appreciated Byrne for his resilience and blasted Kearny for the cruelty. 

u/calm_astronaut4620 commented, "What kind of piece of s*** do you have to be to throw a rabbit over a bridge? This got my blood boiling. Wow! So glad the dude has such a beautiful heart and saved his pet. Respect to the man!" Similarly, u/cielmerlion wrote, "Our current dog was a puppy that someone dumped in the middle of the woods. My girlfriend, who worked in the parks service, found it when driving on a fire road. F*****g disgusting."

Meanwhile, u/ardal added, "Lucky that rabbits can swim like fish otherwise, I think the rescue might not have occurred. The really bizarre thing about this is why, why would you do that to any animal let alone the pet of some poor who's down on his luck, dude."