Love blossoms as tiny dog helps ailing owner

Image: The first-aid symbol, courtesy wikipedia. 

CANINE tails can wag over a relatively tiny increment of the data that emerges from the never-ending analyses of internet usage.
Today, our best friends can receive a special pat with the announcement that dog-related stories have consistently rated in the top five subjects in the online version of this column over the past eight years.
The website, www.classiecorner.blogspot.com, is  just a speck in a virtual universe but nevertheless illustrates the amazing relationships between human and canine.
This, indeed, is Love (capital deserved).

ONE tail that can wag faster than some others is that of Ruby, a Chihuahua-silky terrier cross, which lives at Capalaba with Lynette Pickett and her partner, Mick.
Mick bought Ruby for Lynette as a birthday gift, and she now describes the tiny two-kilogram dog as “my little mate” and her saviour.
Lynette says she had an athletic and active life before her health deteriorated. An Australia Post courier, she felt unwell for “quite a long time” and symptoms worsened. Her nausea became so bad during work hours she had to stop her car to vomit.
Three years ago she had brain surgery. “I have two aneurysms (bulges in the blood vessels) and three stints,” she says. “My life has changed considerably.”

LYNETTE says the arrival of Ruby in her life 18 months ago marked a turning point, giving her an interest and an incentive to keep up the battle against her health problems.
“I was quite sporty before all this and I got quite 'down' in recent years,” she says. “Walking is good for mental health and it's the only thing I can do now.”
Walking with Ruby on Ney Road on September 25, Lynette blacked out and fell to the pavement.
When she regained consciousness, a group of people was around her. One bystander looked up the 'last number' from the call records  on Lynette's phone. The number was Mick's, and he was there within five minutes.

LYNETTE placed a Classified notice thanking “everyone involved” in helping her and taking care of Ruby.
She can remember few specific details of the incident but wanted the people to know she appreciated and was grateful for their care.
Lynette says she previously had a black-out at a shopping centre. “The ambulance crew told me that two men who went to help me had almost come to blows while I was unconscious.
“One fellow tried to roll me into the recovery position and the other thought that was the wrong thing to do. They apparently had a very heated argument.”

THE message may be that the population needs to know standard first aid. Perhaps the high schools should make a bigger contribution to lifting the bar on this.

This column has appeared in the Redland City Bulletin.