CHERYL & SADIE LADY
In January 2004 Sadie saved Cheryl's life. Cheryl had a heart attack. She was 
having chest pains and her arm was aching. She was moaning and Sadie watching her for awhile. When Cheryl started to lay down, Sadie wouldn't let her. Sadie went to the door and barked and barked. Sadie would go back to the bed wake her up and then back to the door and bark and bark. Sadie did this for some time until someone finally came. The neighbor called the paramedic's and Cheryl was taken to the hospital.
Cheryl Dudley and her service dog, Sadie Lady, have only known each other for a year, but for Cheryl, disabled with Muscular Dystrophy and relying heavily on Sadie for day-to-day tasks, the bond they’ve formed has not only kept her from being lonely, it’s also saved Cheryl’s life.
Sadie Lady is a Golden Retriever-mix, trained as a medical alert puppy.
When she became too old to be useful in that program, she was scheduled to be put down. But destiny stepped in and she became part of a program sponsored by the SPCA called Pups on Parole. In this program, dogs are trained by prison inmates to detect certain physical conditions in patients, and keep the patients alert until help comes.
The first time Sadie rescued her owner was when Cheryl was having chest pains and tried to lie down and sleep. Sadie Lady kept going to the bed to rouse her, then to the door where she barked nonstop. She repeated this behavior until someone came to the door and took Cheryl to the hospital, where it was discovered she was having a heart attack. Another time Cheryl was having a diabetic reaction and tried to sleep. Sadie kept nipping her under the arm until Cheryl got up and ate, something she needed to do to stabilize her blood sugar.
According to Cheryl, Sadie Lady has saved her life six times during this year.
So when Sadie was bitten protecting neighborhood children from an unfriendly dog that was too close, Cheryl was frantic. The wound got infected, Sadie became ill, and the cost of treatment ($72) was impossible for Cheryl to pay on her disability check. Klaich Animal Hospital called the Shakespeare Animal Fund. Once the case was deemed eligible, a check was sent to the hospital. Sadie got the medicine and care she needed.
There are many people out there like Cheryl who rely on their animal companions and would be devastated without them. Help us help others like Cheryl. Please give what you can today to the Shakespeare Animal Fund!
