I've searched through the forum and haven't been able to find anything about this. I'm sorry if it's been addressed before and I just haven't found it.
I'm wondering if anyone else here has a service dog?
I hadn't thought that there could be such a thing as a service dog for a Crohnie, until Dragon. My mother-in-law was getting a maltipoo and knew that one puppy from that litter needed to come home to me. I'd had a cat that was my heart for 13 years and I always said I wouldn't get a dog while Kapok was with me. Suddenly, over the course of a couple days he was diagnosed with a huge tumor on his liver and I lost him. I was an emotional mess and ended up with that puppy in June of '09.
That Christmas I had a partial blockage and he refused to leave my side, he knew something was wrong. After I got out of the hospital I would notice that Dragon would sometimes become unconsolable. After learning what he was telling me, I realized that he was telling me the pain was coming or something was wrong so I had time to react to it.
He's since had some formal training, but just so he's a good boy in public. Much of our training is me learning to read him. At first it was just pain and that's just wonderful, but then he went further. One day I was walking him outside at a truck stop. He kept dragging me to the doors. I finally let him lead me where he wanted and he took me directly into the handicap stall in the lady's room and sat down. He was right and if I hadn't been in the bathroom I'd have had a horrible mess. He's since done that numerous times when we're out.
His newest thing is telling me when my blood pressure is going wonky. From all the prednisone all these years I have very low blood pressure and a very high pulse rate. He tells me when things are going bad before I know it.
Now whenever Dragon is obviously upset and won't calm down, my daughter turns and asks me what's wrong. One day in Target - he has a carrier that sits in the child seat of the cart (he's only 16lbs) - he has been completely asleep. Suddenly he popped up and made a noise. I asked what was wrong and the pain hit me right after I spoke. Not bad enough to drop me to the floor, but enough that it shocked me.
How he knows this, I have no clue. I do know that he's since developed some of his own digestive issues and takes Pepcid AC. I figure it's due to our strange connection. But I don't know what changes in my chemistry that he's reacting to. Either way, I'm so lucky to have him and don't go anywhere, other than over night at the hospital, without him. And he has been into the hospital to see me, make sure I'm okay.
Am I the only Crohnie here with a service dog? I'm just wondering if I'm the only lucky one.
I'm wondering if anyone else here has a service dog?
I hadn't thought that there could be such a thing as a service dog for a Crohnie, until Dragon. My mother-in-law was getting a maltipoo and knew that one puppy from that litter needed to come home to me. I'd had a cat that was my heart for 13 years and I always said I wouldn't get a dog while Kapok was with me. Suddenly, over the course of a couple days he was diagnosed with a huge tumor on his liver and I lost him. I was an emotional mess and ended up with that puppy in June of '09.
That Christmas I had a partial blockage and he refused to leave my side, he knew something was wrong. After I got out of the hospital I would notice that Dragon would sometimes become unconsolable. After learning what he was telling me, I realized that he was telling me the pain was coming or something was wrong so I had time to react to it.
He's since had some formal training, but just so he's a good boy in public. Much of our training is me learning to read him. At first it was just pain and that's just wonderful, but then he went further. One day I was walking him outside at a truck stop. He kept dragging me to the doors. I finally let him lead me where he wanted and he took me directly into the handicap stall in the lady's room and sat down. He was right and if I hadn't been in the bathroom I'd have had a horrible mess. He's since done that numerous times when we're out.
His newest thing is telling me when my blood pressure is going wonky. From all the prednisone all these years I have very low blood pressure and a very high pulse rate. He tells me when things are going bad before I know it.
Now whenever Dragon is obviously upset and won't calm down, my daughter turns and asks me what's wrong. One day in Target - he has a carrier that sits in the child seat of the cart (he's only 16lbs) - he has been completely asleep. Suddenly he popped up and made a noise. I asked what was wrong and the pain hit me right after I spoke. Not bad enough to drop me to the floor, but enough that it shocked me.
How he knows this, I have no clue. I do know that he's since developed some of his own digestive issues and takes Pepcid AC. I figure it's due to our strange connection. But I don't know what changes in my chemistry that he's reacting to. Either way, I'm so lucky to have him and don't go anywhere, other than over night at the hospital, without him. And he has been into the hospital to see me, make sure I'm okay.
Am I the only Crohnie here with a service dog? I'm just wondering if I'm the only lucky one.
