Puppy saved owner’s life by snapping her out of a deadly seizure

By Debbie Luxon and Sally Murrer via SWNS

A hero puppy called Moose saved the life of his owner by snapping her out of a deadly seizure - by licking her nose and face.

Moose, a nine-month-old red labrador, found owner Leeanne Reed "blue in the face" after she had stopped breathing due to a non-epileptic seizure.

The pup, a trainee assistance dog, knew exactly what to do and began licking her nose and face to trigger a breath response and get her breathing again.

Leeanne, 22, who experiences non-epileptic seizures multiple times a day, said she could have died had he not come to her aid.

The woman from Milton Keynes, Bucks, said: "This seizure was a big one.

"It lasted about two or three minutes and I wasn’t breathing for all that time.

"When I came round I was blue from lack of oxygen. And all I could see was Moose’s big doofy face on top of mine.

"He was licking my nose, my mouth and even the inside of my mouth – which is exactly what he’s trained to do to get me breathing.

"He saved my life – there is no doubt.”

Non-epileptic seizures don't have a physical cause like electrical brain misfirings but often look similar to an epileptic fit.

This can include body convulsions, tongue biting, a blank stare or expression and losing control of your bladder or bowels.

Despite experiencing multiple seizures a day, Leeanne has trained Moose by herself.

She gave him scent swabs of frozen saliva to smell, taken when she was close to having a seizure.

Leeanne then rewarded him when he gave his paw when smelling the seizure swab, and rewarded him for inaction when given a plain swab.

She did the same strategy to teach him to respond when she has excessively high heart rates.

Moose now boops Leeanne's leg with his nose to tell her to sit down if she's in danger of passing out or going into a seizure.

The perky fox-red dog then lies across her legs to help bring her heart rate down.

Leeanne decided to train a dog herself after discovering she could not afford a professionally trained service dog.

Training her own dog means Moose can support her with her various needs as a multi-purpose assistance dog rather than just being trained for one medical condition.

The young dog is learning to help her with everything from seizures to her anxiety and self-harming 'stims' (stimulations) that are side effects of her autism.

Leeanne has trained him to support her through "meltdowns" and indicate when she's close to a panic attack, too.

But that's not all the clever dog can do.

Leeanne, who lives alone and doesn't work due to her medical conditions, said: "He can bring me my medication, my phone or a bottle of water.

"He can close doors and even turn lights off – he’s just like a human helper."

The handsome hound was adopted from a breeder from a line of working labradors.

Leeanne said: "He's still learning so doesn't always do everything perfectly, but he's a dog, not a machine.

"I wouldn't be here without him. I just want him to get the recognition he deserves."

The perky pup has now been nominated as a finalist for 'Animal Hero', an Animal Star Award.

He will be attending an award ceremony in November this year in recognition of his work.

Mary Burgess, Founder of the Animal Star Awards, said: “The Animal Star Awards, now in their 6th year, embody the core principles of animal welfare and animal rescue.

"Reaching the finals of the Animal Star Awards is a fantastic opportunity and I am delighted that the caliber of entrants keeps on improving and that we can give recognition to people and animals each year.

"All finalists have demonstrated exceptional drive and a love of animals during challenging economic conditions, especially for those in animal rescue.

"Many congratulations to all finalists and best of luck with the next stage of the awards, I very much look forward to the live awards ceremony in November.”