A woman who claims she was ‘pronounced dead’ recounts how her dog’s quick thinking saved her life.
While pets often serve as a comforting presence, they can also play a critical role during emergencies, especially for those living alone.
Vaughn Marshall, a resident of Melbourne, Australia, can attest to this, as he shares his home with his dog, Luna.
Last year, Marshall encountered a life-threatening situation when he suddenly couldn’t breathe or move. His Jack Russell, Luna, immediately took action by running outside to find help.
Someone noticed Luna running unattended, followed her back to the house, and found Marshall in distress. They quickly assisted him, and after Marshall was taken to the hospital, he was diagnosed with a pulmonary embolism. Marshall now credits Luna for his survival.
In a similar incident, Susan Denker from Wyoming, US, experienced a heart attack at home in July.
On that day, Denker’s friend Karen visited but received no response despite calling multiple times. Sensing something was wrong, Karen noticed Lily, Denker’s dog, barking through the blinds.
Realizing Lily was trying to alert her, Karen went to the back of the house, peered through a window, and saw Denker unconscious. She immediately contacted emergency services.
Upon receiving the necessary medical care, it was discovered that Denker had suffered a severe heart attack.
Denker shared with Cowboy State Daily: “Lily kept barking at [Karen] and then running to the bedroom, and then back to the window and barking at her and again running to the bedroom. She did that four or five times until Karen figured out, ‘She’s trying to tell me something’.
“If it hadn’t been for Lily alerting Karen, and Karen being wise enough to listen to a dog, I would not be talking to you now, because they did pronounce me dead at one point.”
Denker had to stay away from her pet for two months during recovery, and their reunion was nothing short of emotional.
“They took her out of the crate, and she saw me and just went hysterical,” Denker recounted about reuniting with Lily.
“They put her up on the counter. She wrapped her legs around my neck. She tried to crawl inside my shirt. She licked absolutely every centimeter of my face, my lips, nose, eyes, she gave me a full wash.”
Denker continued: “I was holding on to her as tight as I could, and she was holding on to me too.”
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