Fate or Chance? 

A chance meeting on the way to the shops ended in Harriet meeting a dog who would change her life.

Back in 2019, Harriet from West Berkshire, began without warning to suffer from repeated seizures. These in turn led to many emergency visits to hospital A and E as the seizures caused falls and concussions. Without a diagnosis of her condition and with no way of controlling it, Harriet began to lose confidence. Her mental health deteriorated to the extent that she found it difficult to go to school.

‘It was a nightmare’, says Harriet. ‘I never went out unless I could help it. I was frightened I would have a seizure. It felt like too big a risk ‘.
Harriet and her family decided it would be a good idea to get a dog as a family pet and as something Harriet could focus on. At first they hoped to take on a rescue dog but with the arrival of covid the rescue centres closed to visitors, while at the same time breeder puppy prices began to rise steeply.

However a chance encounter with a dog trainer, who was about to pick up a 6 month old Sprocker puppy for rehoming, meant Anna came into her life. As school was closed Harriet took over the training of Anna and they spent all their time together. She noticed the dog would try to comfort her after a seizure and would even go to fetch help if her parents were in another room of the house.

Anna’s behaviour started to become more extreme before Harriet actually had a seizure. ‘She would go from being passive and calm to excited and almost frantic’, says Harriet. ‘She would also try to hold eye contact and sit down on the sofa staring at me. It took a long time to work out the connection between my seizures and the way she was acting. Luckily I saw a TV programme about Medical Detection Dogs and I recognised that she was displaying the same behaviours as alerting dogs. I got in touch with the charity to see if she would be eligible to join their own dog training programme and she started in 2022. Now here we are and she is fully trained’.

Harriet, who has since been diagnosed with Functional Neurological Disorder, credits Anna with giving her back her confidence, her health and her independence.

‘When she alerts I reward her, but try to carry on. Being aware that I could be on the verge of a seizure makes me feel more in control and I manage to avert it’.

Harriet who went on to pass her A levels, is currently studying to be a dog trainer herself. From never having had a dog, she now immerses herself in dog activities, particularly agility, which suits high energy Anna. Anna has also become something of a local celebrity, often fund raising for MDD in her distinctive working jacket. But like any other dog, in her downtime she enjoys the beach and muddy puddles. Harriet says ‘Anna is a complete lifesaver. She is everything I could ask for as she has given me the confidence to go out alone, to use public transport and meet up with friends. I’m so thankful she came into my life’.