Dog Helps 10-Year-Old Pull Out Loose Tooth

— -- When 10-year-old Sidney Vasquez's loose tooth refused to fall out, her dad Carlos offered this suggestion: tie the tooth to a string with the other end tied to a door knob. Then slam the door.

"For the past few months, my daughter's tooth was giving her such a problem," Carlos Vasquez of Temescal Valley, California, told ABC News today. "It was hanging by a thread and refused to leave. But, whenever we'd mention it she'd get upset. She refused to have the dentist touch it. It was such a hot button for her."

On June 5, Vasquez said he and his son suggested the string idea again -- but with a twist. Instead of a door knob, the string would be tied to their dog Panzer's tail.

Sidney thought it was a fun plan and finally agreed to part with her tooth. The family left the dinner table, went outside and threw a ball. As soon as Panzer chased after it, Sidney's tooth flew out of her mouth, Vasquez said.

Sidney's brother Carson, 14, captured the event on video, and shared it on Facebook where a local news site saw it and picked up the story.

"She loved it 'cause she wants to be a news reporter when she gets older," Vasquez said of his daughter. "I think it's something we all can relate to. We've all had a tooth issue, but it's fun to laugh about it. It's a good story."

Instead of waiting for the tooth fairy, Sidney hopes for a "Frappuccino" drink from Starbucks and a new cellphone, her father said.