A few years ago, Booker T proved just how instinctual our Boxers really can be. And what a great capacity they have for therapy and assistance work.

One evening I was busy in the kitchen while my husband was in the back bedroom taking a shower. I picked up a phone call in the living room and received some very exciting news. I threw the phone down and went running towards the hallway and the bedroom to tell my husband. I turned sharply to the left and felt my feet skid out of from underneath me on the carpet. I was barefoot. My knees bent and I went sliding into the wall. Unfortunately the center of my right kneecap slammed hard into the corner of the hallway wall.

Pain shot through my entire body as my kneecap made connection with the corner. I fell completely to the ground and lay there kind of stunned. I took a few shallow breathes and slowly opened my eyes. I stared at the carpert for a few moments. I could not control my legs and felt like my right leg was on fire. The wind had been knocked out of me, so breathing seemed strange. I tried to yell for my husband, but no words would come out. Everything seemed to move in slow motion.

As I tried to compose myself and take stock in the situation, Booker T showed up at my side. I was afraid he thought this was playtime, so I put my hand up and simply patted his back. We wrestle on the ground all the time when we play. Thankfully he seemed to know something was wrong because he maintained just standing next to me and watching me. I tried to stand up but my legs would not listen. They would not move. I became very panic stricken that I had broken my leg. It certainly hurt enough to have broken it. And I felt the jarring action against the wall as I hit it. Booker T stood solidly alongside me and I got an idea. I wonder if I could use him to at least pull myself up to my knees?

I put one hand solidly on Booker T's back and the other one on the floor. I both pushed and pulled myself up a bit and tried to at least move my legs underneath me. At this point they were kind of all over the place. Booker T shifted his weight and I got worried he was going to move away. But No, he stayed put. He was simply trying to make himself more stable. Somehow; he knew. So I began again to pull myself up onto his back and pull my legs under me to at least kneel up. Booker T did something amazing at that point; he actually leaned into me! That is amazing when you realize this dog has no formal training in assistance work. He is just a housedog who chases butterflies and rolls around on my bed. But he clearly knew what I needed and he was doing it. I was able to pull myself up onto my left knee and just kind of left the other leg alone. I was pointing towards the bedroom since that is how I fell, so now I wondered if I could crawl there with Booker T's help.

I proceeded to inch myself forward on the one knee while maintaining my hold on Booker T's back and just dragging my right leg. I tried to talk again but still did not have a voice. It honestly was the strangest feeling. I was terrified but knew it would be okay if I could just get to my husband. Slowly Booker T and I made it down the hallway and into the bedroom. He was incredible. He stayed with me the entire time and never pulled away from the pressure I was putting on his back.

We made it into the bedroom and in front of the master bathroom. I was able to get out a very weak "Ken" so my husband would notice me. For a brief second he thought I was playing with Booker T. But he quickly realized I was hurt. As soon as he realized that, I found my voice and started to cry. My knee was on fire and something was definitely wrong. So he took me to the Emergency Room.

Now, of course this was not a life threatening scenerio. But the display Booker T showed with these incredible instincts was definitely impressive to me. It is not natural for a dog to allow a grown adult to pull their body up by using the dog's body. This is something that is usually trained into a service dog. Booker T has always been my baby boy and he continues to amaze me on so many levels.

Am/Int'l Ch Rosend's Booker T, SOM CGC TT



Christina Ghimenti

Website created and maintained by - Christina Ghimenti
All Content and Images © PawPrint Boxers
No material, photo or graphic may be copied from this website!