http://sg.news.yahoo.com/ap/20080916/twl-dog-dials911-1be00ca.html
By AMANDA LEE MYERS,Associated Press Writer AP - Tuesday, September 16
PHOENIX - "Man's best friend" doesn't go far enough for Buddy _ a German shepherd who remembered his training and saved his owner's life by calling 911 when the man had a seizure. And it's not the first time Buddy has been there for owner Joe Stalnaker, a police officer said Sunday. On a recording of the 911 call Wednesday, Buddy is heard whimpering and barking after the dispatcher answers and repeatedly asks if the caller needs help.
"Hello, this is 911. Hello ... Can you hear me? Is there somebody there you can give the phone to," says the dispatcher, Chris Trott.
Police were sent to Stalnaker's home, and after about three minutes Buddy is heard barking loudly when the officers arrived.
Scottsdale police Sgt. Mark Clark said Stalnaker spent two days in a hospital and recovered from the seizure.
"It's pretty incredible," Clark said. "Even the veteran dispatchers _ they haven't heard of anything like this."
Clark said police are dispatched whenever 911 is called, but that Stalnaker's address was flagged in Scottsdale's system with a notification that a trained assistance dog could call 911 when the owner was incapacitated.
Clark said Stalnaker adopted Buddy at the age of 8 weeks from Michigan-based Paws with a Cause, which trains assistance dogs, and trained him to get the phone if he began to have seizure symptoms. Buddy, now 18 months old, is able press programmed buttons until a 911 operator is on the line, Clark said.
Clark said Buddy has made two other 911 calls when Stalnaker was having seizures.
He said Stalnaker's seizures are the result of a head injury he suffered about 10 years ago during a military training exercise.
Stalnaker was not listed in the phone book, and he did not immediately respond to a request through police for an interview.
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When I came across this article, I was really amazed. This 18 months old dog was able to save his owner's life by making a phone call to 911. Isnt there really alot of communication going on here? Personally, i feel that there really is alot of communication going on.
To be able to communicate with an animal is something that alot of people find ridiculous. "Why would you want to talk to a dog? It would not understand you at all." This is something that many people have said to dog owners. Well, if this dog was unable to communicate with humans, the owner would have died already. This demonstrates to us that dogs are able to communicate with humans through the use of their barking, whimpering or even crying. If animals are able to communicate through their own means, why not humans?
Perception is the process by which we make sense of the world around us. It is physiological and cognitive in nature. It is influenced by psychological as well as social factors. Knowing this, how do we perceive this situation to be? Dogs are intelligent and they are aware of their surroundings more than humans. Therefore, can dogs perceive the information that their owner is having a seizure? I think so.. Humans develop a mental framework over time and it will affect our perception in the future, does this also apply to dogs as well?
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4 comments:
i read the article and even viewed the video over and over again! the dog is amazing, he actually remembered what he learnt at training. Definitely, his duties have gone beyond that of a mere pet, i would say a family or kin to have saved his owners's life over and over again :)
Hey! Amos here! it is indeed amazing that dogs do have some form of communication although many assume that only humans can communicate. For the longest time, animals have been communicating with one another among their own species in sometimes simple to complex ways that we do not even know? However it is interesting that communication can not only cross cultures and social status but also cross species? i.e from dog to man? This article has indeed brought a new and fresh perspective to how far the communication actually reaches. For most of the time, communication is usually mentioned between human beings and never between a human and an animal? Very interesting indeed to dwell in such field of thought and you have done it successfully to provoke interest in most of us! Dogs using communication skills with humans? interesting and definitely debatable. As we all know communication is both cognitive and psychological,it is actually plausible that communication can occur as long as the species has a brain? Think about that? :)
this is an interesting article =) i have came across a almost similar article of this dog saving his owner during an earthquake! it's really touching that this dog sacrifice it's life for his owner!
Hey! I love dogs! yeah, it is very interesting that how can a dog understand what you are talking about. They are very intelligent creatures. Dogs are really men's best friend! They lead a simple life just needing love and affective from owners. Unlike humans, complex creatures, demand many expectations. In my opinion, you must love the dog and build a strong bond and the dog in return will love you more than you love the dog. Agree?
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