Jul 19, 2012
The amazing helpfulness of a faithful service dog [13 pictures]
Kate Cross is 49 years old and suffers from Ehlers Danlos syndrome. This makes her joints so weak that she can dislocate her shoulder simply by opening a door. Obviously, many of the daily tasks we do without even thinking are impossible for her.
Enter Byron the Golden Labrador…
Cross hadn’t left home by herself for over 18 months before receiving Byron in 2007. Now he is always by her side…
He does laundry…
He makes the bed and fetches milk for tea…
He can operate a cash machine so that all she has to do is enter her PIN…
He helps her shop…
And he even pays!
When he’s hungry, he gets his own dishes out and ready…
And after a day of work and errands, he helps Cross put her feet up…
Cross calls Byron her best friend…
He’s given me my life back — I can live independently and not have to rely on my husband or other people doing everything for me because Byron is always there.
He never gets fed up with helping me – it’s all a big game to him, but I’d be lost without him.
(via Reddit)
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Are you telling me they don’t trust this dog with their ATM pin number? Sheesh, he seems trustworthy to me.
He’s working on it….almost has their complete trust…
Oh my gosh. That is a devoted dog. This made me cry, haha.
He deserves a Knighthood.
He’s definitely earned it unlike William Shatner…
In the 5th picture i wonder if the dog helps her drink beer also….?
boddingtons is like flat beer
bravo to the folks who trained him!! WOW
Wonderful!
Wow! Where can I get a dog like that?!
This is really cool and all, and the dog looks smart as a whip, but nearly none of the tasks the dog performed in the photos seemed potentially joint dislocating to me?
Also, it seemed just a tad gross to me to have to have everything(my wallet, milk jugs, atm card, bed sheets and blankets, groceries, laundry, etc.) covered with dog saliva. Ick!
The text mentions that she could dislocate a joint by merely opening a door, so it seems like potentially any of these activities could cause her issues if she met with any resistance at all.
I suppose you’re right. But then, seems scary to get feet propped up like that in the next to last pic…I guess I just don’t know enough about the condition this lady has.
Hi, I also have Ehlers Danlos Syndrom and can give a (very) brief summary of it.
Basically it’s a condition where the body produces faulty collagen in your body – collagen is what holds your tissues together in your body. Most common form is that the ligaments and tendons around the joints become stretchy.
Imagine every time you move – there are strong bands around your joints like tight elastic that keep those joints moving in set ways and directions. In Ehlers Danlos Syndrome those bands are too stretchy and slip easily so every joint movement has the potential to “go off track” and dislocate.
This is, as I’m sure you understand, damaging to surrounding soft tissues and the bones themselves so minimizing repetative and avoidable movements is one of the few ways of managing the condition.
I hope that helps you understand the joint problems associated with Ehlers Danlos Syndrome, it’s a very broad condition that can affect many different organs and blood vessels – so every little bit of understanding helps greatly :¬)
There’s one in every thread…
And what’s more… dogs trained to do this LOVE it! They like having a job, they love the praise and attention, and if they didn’t enjoy it, they wouldn’t do it. I love our four-legged friends!
Wow. That’s one awesome dog.
Dogs are so great :)