In 1960, Sam, a lively four-year-old pointer with a transplanted heart valve, was named research dog hero of 1960 by the National Society for Medical Research.

A Stanford surgical research teamﾗincluding Dr. Norman Shumway, Dr. Richard Lower, and Dr. Raymond Stoferﾗoperated on Sam to perfect a new surgical technique for replacing irreparably diseased mitral valves in humans.