Tiny
Terrier
Detects Breast Cancer in Woman A
Yorkshire Terrier saved her ow ner’s life af ter jumping up and down on her chest to alert her to a cancerous lump. Eleven-year-old pooch Bella Boo wouldn’t settle in her usual sleeping place and kept trying to lie on Karena Kirk-Drain’s chest despite being pushed away. The dog’s odd demeanor continued over the next three weeks, and she even started to cry. When she wouldn’t stop weeping, it left Karena concerned about her health—but baffled vets confirmed that she was fit and healthy.
Bella Boo
Karena called it "a heartbreaking cry," and thought the dog was "obviously trying to tell me something." She continued licking and hopping on the 53-year-old’s chest. “Bella started bouncing on me, and at one point I actually thought she’d bruised me, as I was very sore there.” “And I was feeling around, and I actually felt a lump, and I was thinking, ‘Is that a lump inside?’” Then, doctors confir med it was breast cancer. The Blackpool, Lancashire woman then underwent life-saving treatment
and believes the disease would have been missed if it wasn’t for Bella-Boo’s actions. “I didn’t think dogs could detect cancer, I thought it was a lot of hoo-ha really, but this proves that they can. I’m just so lucky to be here; little Bella-Boo saved my life. Bella always slept on the back of my legs, but she kept lying on my chest. Every time I took her off me, she’d crawl back on again.” The doctor said the cancer had spread to her lymph nodes and Karena thinks that’s why Bella was getting more determined—because it was spreading. After the whole ordeal, the woman traveled around the world, having realized how lucky she was to get her diagnosis early enough. “I didn’t believe in that type of thing. I didn’t believe that dogs could detect cancer.” “Once I got the cancer removed, she stopped straight away, and she started lying behind my legs again.” Karena now urges pet owners to pay attention to their strange behavior in the future. “Maybe if people see their dog start acting strange, they’ll be able to think twice. People underestimate dogs and cats and all animals. But they are amazing creatures.”
Bella Boo and Karena
36 4 Legs & a Tail
Summer 2022
