Sydney  - A mongrel called Diesel received a bravery award and the biggest bone in the butcher's shop Friday after proving to be man's best friend.

Diesel put his life on the line last month to save a 3-year-old boy from a deadly brown snake on his family's farm in Queensland, in north-eastern Australia.

The courageous canine took two bites when he put his body between little Drew Beaston and the 2-metre reptile.

"Diesel propelled himself sideways in the air and attacked the snake in mid-strike," the boy's grandfather, Stan Gralike, told local paper The Noosa Journal. "This action alone saved Drew's life as the snake was massive and the bite would have been lethal."

Diesel collapsed after his heroics and needed a double dose of snakebite antidote and two days at the veterinary clinic to get back on his paws.

Over half the snake-bite deaths in Australia are attributable to the brown snake.

Michael Beatty, Queensland spokesman of the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, who granted the award, said it was important to recognize positive animal stories and 23-kilogram Diesel had proved himself a role model for humans as well as canines. (dpa)