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I started a thread some time ago about my dog Dave who seems to gravitate to injuries or similar problems. The contributions that were made to the thread set me off on doing some research on dogs who actually detect cancer. Something has happened again that makes me think this is real and there is something to it and perhaps even a little more than I thought. Last Saturday late in the afternoon I left the house without the dogs to go to my truck. The dogs were just hanging out and did not really care if I left. They came to the door but settled down as soon as I went out according to my wife. A few minutes later my youngest dog Dave went to the door and was having a fit to get out. He was causing such a disturbance that he got my other two dogs into the act. As it happens I slipped on some ice and fell and broke two ribs. I spent a few minutes on the ground catching my breath and got up and went back to the house. Dave was all over me. I went to the hospital to have an xray to check for problems and when I got home Dave was again all over me. He slept in my bed that night, he is constantly coming up to sniff me and he will not leave my side. As I am writing this he is laying under my desk on my feet. He will not allow me to go anywhere or do anything without him. When I go to bed tonight he will jump up beside me and not move all night. He gets so stressed out when I am not close to him that I am just going to let this happen and watch it. I am not surprised by this but I am a little surprised at the behavior Dave displayed while I was outside alone. Have you ever encountered anything like this.

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Did he see you fall, or were you out of his view?

 

Something kind of like that happened today. I was walking Pete. Sometimes there is a Border Collie in a yard who is very aggressive. Pete is the same way when we pass and is very aggressive back to her. Her yard is about 3/4 of the way down the block, past a certain street.

 

Well we had just passed that certain street, basically still in the intersection, when Pete started going nuts. There was no way he could have seen her. Somehow he knew she was out in the yard! When we got about three houses from her yard, I could just barely see her hiding silently in the corner under a bush, waiting for us to pass so she could ambush us.

 

I have no idea how Pete knew she was out in the yard, from 3/4 of a block away. When she is not out in the yard, he has no reaction.

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This is a little different but along the same lines.... I ride horses competitively and Boots always lays by the arena and watches. The other dogs will be running in the surrounding fields and search for bunnies in the blackberry bushes, but Boots is always very close typically just watching. I used to always feel bad for him and wish that he would play with everyone else. Two years ago I was on a young horse and was bucked off. This was the first time I had come off a horse since Boots had been a part of my life. He came flying across the arena and layed his body over me facing the horse. As the young horse ran around the arena bucking he continued rotating his body to face it and barked when it got too close. I was fine, but poor Boots hardly let me up off the ground he was so concerned about it. We now have a routine that as soon as I'm done riding and start my cool down I invite him over and he jumps up with his paws against my leg, it's only then that he will start to play with the other dogs, what a sweet heart :rolleyes:

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Like Jumpin Boots, mine is a little different. DH & I moved my mom in with us back in Jan '06 after she had surgery. A few short weeks ago, dh & I were in the kitchen fixing supper one evening. My mom was at the kitchen table playing solitaire on her computer. (We have her computer set up at the table so she has to come out of her bedroom to use her computer.) She got up, walked to the opening between the living room and kitchen and stopped. I asked my dh "What is she doing??" Of course, he didn't know so I kept watching her. The next thing I knew, she turned to her right and grabbed hold of the countertop with both hands. I dropped the spatula and went to her. When I asked her what was wrong, she told me her legs were weak. When I started to look down to her legs, my eyes stopped at her arms. They were shaking so badly it was unreal. As I reached up and grabbed her, I told my dh "Les, I need a chair. NOW!!" It only took him seconds to get a chair to us but by then my mom had lost all strength in both legs. A 115 lbs might not sound like much but when it's dead weight, it's more than I can handle for long. Here I am trying to hold my mom up and poor dh is trying to get a chair in between the 2 of us. It didn't work. About the same time, dh & I decided it would be best to just go ahead and sit her on the floor. All 3 dogs were good about staying away until then. When mom was on the floor, Jake and Josie tried to come up to her. I kept yelling "Jake, no!" "Josie, no!" "Back it up!" "Go in the living room!" After a few minutes, we were able to get my mom to her bedroom. Later that evening, dh told me Jake and Josie sure were worried about mom. When I asked him what he meant, he told me the 2 of them paced for quite a while afterwards. And even though that happened a few weeks ago, Jake still sticks to my mom very closely.

 

DTrain, I hope you mend quickly!

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This is strange. No Dave did not see me fall but he may have heard me in distress. I have no idea what sounds or comments I may have made but that could explain his first reaction. He has been stuck to me like glue since and I have also noticed if I need to cough or sneeze Dave is right there before it happens. I am sure he is reading my body language when I am about to sneeze and have a lot of pain but my question is, why would he take an interest like this at all, why does he appear to be showing such concern. It is like this situation has turned on some sort of nursing instinct. He does not want to play with me as he usually would, he seems to know that would be wrong at the moment. This is a great opportunity to observe Dave and make note of some of the things he does.

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A couple of years ago I had a kidney stone. From the time the pain started until it passed, Sammie slept every night with his back up against mine, right at the place where the stone was. This was for almost 2 weeks.

 

Once it passed, he stopped doing that and went back to sleeping at my feet.

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When I was pregnant with both my children Kirby was my constant companion esp in the later points. He would lay his head on my stomach and listen. He wouldnt allow me to go in the bathroom alone.

 

Dally is very similar when I had surgery he would figure out a way to come upstairs to lay gently by me. They are amazing.

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Angel Kitty is our nurse/mother/comforter. When we were working on trying to give Duke sub q fluids, he screamed and fought and howled. Angel, who doesn't like strangers and thus stays in a bedroom when we have visitors, came running out to the living room, tried to jump up on the table to be with Duke, then followed him very closely back to the bedroom, wrapped herself around him and groomed him until he calmed down.

 

After we'd bring Buzz home from his chemo treatments, he'd hang out in his usual spot under my desk. Angel Kitty took to laying down just a few inches from him and staying there with him for a few hours. I'd never seen her do that before, and she only did it on his chemo days.

 

She's a very very sweet kitty.

 

Ruth

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