Feature Writer Romeo Edmead – A Life-Saving Dog Treat
When Rockford, Michigan native Jerry Douthett came home and passed out after an evening of excess drinking, he eventually awoke to find himself a bloody mess, his nightmare was just beginning because he then noticed that the source of the blood was coming from his foot, where upon further examination Mr. Douthett discovered he was missing a chunk of his big toe. Between the screams of astonishment, he realized his 1-year-old dog Kiko was lying next to him, and eventually concluded that the Jack Russel terrier just could not wait for his next meal.
Speaking of eating, that aspect of the story just serves as the appetizer. As it turned out having part of his toe gnawed off was the least of Mr. Douthett’s problem. In fact, Kiko’s actions may have saved his life because a visit to the hospital revealed that Mr. Douthett had type 2 diabetes, which caused his toe to become infected. Even though doctors said that his blood sugar was more than quadruple the amount that is normal, he can still live a relatively healthy life as long as he takes care of himself from this point.
Ironically, his wife Rosee is a registered nurse and speculated that he had diabetes all along. Coupled with the fact that his toe was very abnormal looking, Ms. Douthett also knows that her husband’s brother succumbed to complications from diabetes several years prior. Mr. Douthett is beginning to put everything together now, too. He recalls that for the last several weeks that even his friend’s dogs would constantly sniff his foot. The fact that dogs have a keen sense of when medical attention is needed is not a surprise to doctors. In fact, dogs are trained to assist people who live with various medical conditions and are legally allowed to travel with their owners everywhere as service animals. Despite the fact that Kiko playing the role of surgeon does not constitute the duties of a service animal, a woman from Illinois once had a pet dog who did the same thing. In that case the animal was put down, but Mr. Douthett does not want to say good-bye to Kiko. He is now the toast of the town and his owner can not stop coming up with comedy about Kiko’s exploits. For instance, Mr. Douthett is a musician and joked that he should have a concert and call it a “toe-jam.” Finally, prior to having the remainder of his toe amputated he had one last question for the nurse. Mr. Douthett inquired, “Is there any chance I can get whatever’s left of my toe, so I can give it to Kiko as a treat?”
To read the original article, please go to http://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2010/08/dog_eats_rockford_mans_big_toe.html