JohnLloydJones Posted March 8, 2014 Report Share Posted March 8, 2014 My ex-foster boy, Tad, got adopted by a family who already had a border collie, Shadow. The two boys are similar age and got on well right from the start. Unfortunately, Shadow started to get seizures. Medication helped in the beginning, but it's effect has been waning. What is wonderful is that Tad, who was always concerned about his "brother" has developed the ability to predict the seizures. Tad does a low growl, barks, gives me the Lassie look and I follow him. He is now able to predict a seizure up to one minute before one occurs. Shadow has his own "seizure dog" who calls for help when an attack is coming on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gideon's girl Posted March 8, 2014 Report Share Posted March 8, 2014 Good dog!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maja Posted March 8, 2014 Report Share Posted March 8, 2014 Such a buddy he has. My heart goes out to the family. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alligande Posted March 8, 2014 Report Share Posted March 8, 2014 What a great friend Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sue R Posted March 8, 2014 Report Share Posted March 8, 2014 Sounds like Tad is right where he needs to be for more than one reason! I spoke to someone whose Border Collie self-trained to alert for the owner's blood sugar episodes. The dog will alert when the owner's blood sugar gets problematic (don't remember if it spikes or dives) and, if the owner is asleep, the dog will wake her up while she can still deal with the blood sugar level. You can't put a price on that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GentleLake Posted March 8, 2014 Report Share Posted March 8, 2014 How wonderful for Shadow and Shadow's family! Dogs are amazing creatures. My first foster, probably an Aussie mix, maybe with BC, went to a woman who taught in school for children with developmental disabilities. She took him to work with her. One day he became very agitated at started going back and forth between the teacher/adopter and one particular student. The teacher couldn't figure out why . . . until the child began to seize. He continued to alert after that whenever the child was going to have a seizure. Bodhi knew when I had cancer, though I didn't realize until afterwards that that's what was going on. He used to smell in what most humans consider to be an inappropriate area -- I don't stop my dogs from doing this at home because it's normal dog behavior, but this was extreme. I just put it down to some male quirkiness on his part. Then I was diagnosed with uterine cancer. When I came home from the hospital after having a hysterectomy, he took a few good smells the first day, then checked me less intensely each day for about a week afterwards, and then he stopped completely! I only ever saw him do this to one other person. Like all dogs, he'll take a quick sniff now and again when he meets someone, but it's very brief. He smelled this woman like he used to smell me. I struggled with whether I should say anything to her or not, but I finally decided I should, starting out with "I really don't want to alarm you, but . . . " and told her my experience. She didn't freak out (whew!), but said she'd talk to her doctor . . . who, I'm sure, thought she was crazy. I wish I knew what happened with her, but I've never seen her again. Amazing dogs! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnLloydJones Posted March 9, 2014 Author Report Share Posted March 9, 2014 Sounds like Tad is right where he needs to be for more than one reason! ... You can't put a price on that. ^^^ Absolutely Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gcv-border Posted March 9, 2014 Report Share Posted March 9, 2014 What a wonderful story. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maja Posted March 9, 2014 Report Share Posted March 9, 2014 My dog knew when my migraine was coming on when I was still completely clueless. I was very distinct because she would look more at me than at the sheep. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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