In dogs we trust

By Hum
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Grand Master

Hum

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In my documentary "In Dogs We Trust?", I discovered that dogs are capable of so much more than we humans could ever imagine.

In this latest programme, I let the viewers see just how much Renton and I have progressed since those early days.

I was also keen to find out about how dogs are helping or assisting, other people who have a variety of disabilities, and illnesses.

Some of them help in ways that is hard even for me, as an assistance dog user, to comprehend.

For example, would you trust your dog to save you or your family's health or even life, on a daily basis?

Well, for one mother, Serena, that is exactly what she does every day when she trusts the family pet Molly to let her know when her 10-year-old son Steven is about to have a diabetic hypo.

Molly can do something that science can't.

That is, she can let Steven and his mother know, in advance, that his blood sugar level is falling to a potentially dangerous level and that he has to take his medication.

How can Molly do this? Well, the truth is, no-one really knows and any science published on the subject has been inconclusive, and yet everyone sees the dog being successful at it.

Diabetes is not the only condition being managed by a canine companion.

During the programme, I met Lynn Ratcliff, who 14 years ago was diagnosed with epilepsy.

At the time she never knew when her next seizure would come but now this has all changed due to her getting a seizure alert dog called Dougle.

The dog alerts her in advance of her having a seizure.

In this instance the dog cannot be trained first and then sent to someone to help them.

The dog has to be tuned into the individual owner's seizures, training cannot simulate what happens between the owner and the dog.

Lynn is adamant that her dog is accurate 100% of the time, giving her confidence to go out and live her life normally.

If all of that wasn't impressive enough, we meet another dog which is being trained to detect one of the most prevalent deadly diseases to humans - cancer.

Every two minutes in the UK someone is being diagnosed with cancer and in recent years there has been no shortage of anecdotal stories of dogs finding cancer in their owners.

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Grand Master

Growled Member

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Molly can do something that science can't.

That is, she can let Steven and his mother know, in advance, that his blood sugar level is falling to a potentially dangerous level and that he has to take his medication.

How can Molly do this? Well, the truth is, no-one really knows and any science published on the subject has been inconclusive, and yet everyone sees the dog being successful at it.

Dogs are such amazing creatures.

Grand Master

DocM

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My now deceased dog Spike (110 lb Rottweiler & Rhodesian Ridgeback mix) knew exactly when I was in pain and getting unsteady due to an old nerve crush injury of my knee. He would sniff the leg, fuss over me then go get someone - almost dragging them to my location. If I fell and stayed down he'd raise Heaven, Earth and Hell while looking for help, returning to check me, until help arrived.

Dogs are f'ing amazing..

Grand Master

DirtyLarry Veteran

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I love my dog like I love any other human being! His name is Sam, he is a Borador, Border Collie / Labrador Retriever mix (Full name: Samuel. L. Jackson :) )

A lot of people hate me when I say this, but I personally think it is easier to love your pet more than most human beings.

As proven by this story, they are special creatures for sure.

And when you form a bond with one the way most normal pet owners do, well, they show you an unconditional love that is pretty much impossible to recreate with another human. You can come close, but it is never quite as powerful as it is with a pet.

So they really are the best and worse thing to happen to humans IMO.

Best because they are, well, the best. Just awesome when you have a great pet.

The worse because it is such a bummer that their life expectancy is so short.

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anthdci

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A lot of people hate me when I say this, but I personally think it is easier to love your pet more than most human beings.

As proven by this story, they are special creatures for sure.

And when you form a bond with one the way most normal pet owners do, well, they show you an unconditional love that is pretty much impossible to recreate with another human. You can come close, but it is never quite as powerful as it is with a pet.

So they really are the best and worse thing to happen to humans IMO.

Best because they are, well, the best. Just awesome when you have a great pet.

The worse because it is such a bummer that their life expectancy is so short.

very true. There is nothing better than coming home from work after a really crappy day to have your dog welcome you, so pleased and excited to see you that you cant be grumpy with it. Cheers you up straight away.

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