Miracle Dog Rings In New Year At Rose Parade

After being sentenced to death, Daniel the Beagle miraculously survived a doggy gas chamber and was featured in the Tournament of Roses Parade on New Year's Day. INSIDE EDITION has his amazing story.

Daniel, the 20-pound Beagle who escaped a gas chamber got his own float in the Tournament of Roses Parade.

Two years ago, the pup was sentenced to death after no one adopted him at a shelter in Alabama.

Animal rights activists shot video of a stainless steel kill box, like the one Daniel was put in, along with 17 other dogs. Carbon Monoxide gas is pumped into the container. It was a certain death sentence, but somehow, Daniel survived.

Debbie Rappuhn, who rescues dogs, was at the shelter when it happened and snapped photos of Daniel after he came out of the kill box wagging his tail.

She told INSIDE EDITION, “It is a miracle. That is all I can say. There's just no way to explain how one dog can come out alive from that.”

Daniel has been adopted by Joe and Geralynn Dwyer, of Nutley, New Jersey.

Joe said, “He is a miracle. He had a purpose and he is meant to be.”

But, the Beagle's lucky life didn't end there. Daniel was the star of a Rose Parade float that celebrates dog rescues.

Watch More of Daniel's Owners Talk About Adopting Him

On New Year's Day, he was riding on his doggie float, sharing the spotlight with other rescue dogs. It was a moment in the sun for a dog that somehow defied the odds.

The shelter where Daniel was initially ordered to be put down no longer uses a gas chamber, but, the practice is still legal in 31 states nationwide. An estimated three-to-four million dogs are put down each year due to overcrowding at shelters.