A Rescued Dog Returns the Favor
By Nicole Pajer
When Don Callahan rescued Wyatt Earp, a one-year old terrier mix from a Detroit Zoo adoption event back in 2004, he saved the dog's life. Little did he know that five years down the road, Wyatt would return the favor.
"I was actually looking for a smaller dog," says Callahan who at the time was mourning the death of his Yorkshire terrier. Regardless of what he was looking for, Callahan's agenda quickly changed when he came face to face with Wyatt. "I saw this dog just looking at me and those eyes just poured right through me. I had to get him out of the cage and play with him and he was just wonderful," the 73-year old retired police officer explains.
Callahan took Wyatt home with him and the two instantly bonded to one another. "I love him more than I did the dog that I worked with in the police department for 10 years," he says. In addition to finding a warm nose to share his bed with, Callahan had landed himself a new walking buddy.
One particularly cold January evening, Callahan and Wyatt were outside taking a stroll when something went terribly wrong. "I am a cardiac and a diabetic and I cannot tell when my blood sugars change," explains Callahan who wears a continuous glucometer that has a monitor implanted in his abdomen. "It transmits to a receiver and it takes seven-day sensors. I have to change them every seven days but one night it failed." With a failed glucometer, Callahan had no idea that his blood sugar had begun to drop. It eventually dipped so low that he passed out face down in the snow. "It was close to zero degrees that night…10 degrees or something like that. I don't remember the temperature exactly, but I remember having my heavy boots and heavy coat on," exclaims Callahan.
When his owner went down, Wyatt sprung to action. "Instead of taking off, he went 75 feet to the corner—between a street light and the curb of this five-lane highway that I live on," explains Callahan. Wyatt sat under the light and began incessantly barking until a neighbor and her sister noticed him. Thinking that the dog might have been injured, the ladies put on their coats and crossed the street to check on him. Wyatt continued to bark and backed up to where Callahan was lying in the snow. Upon discovering his lifeless body, the women dialed 911 and firefighters arrived on the scene.
"They got me into the rig and gave me glucose but I didn't respond. They rushed me to the hospital and intubated me and started giving me warm IVs," Callahan explains. When Callahan's son arrived at the hospital, he was told that the doctors didn't know if his father would make it or not. Fortunately, after 18 hours in a coma, Callahan pulled through. The incident would have had a much different outcome, however, it if wasn't for Wyatt.
The doctors estimated that Callahan had been passed out in the snow for about a half hour. "I've been told that if I had not been found in the next 15 to 20 minutes that I definitely would not have made it," says Callahan.
With the two-year anniversary of the event approaching, Callahan knows that he owes his life to his dog. "I would not part with this dog for at all for any reason and I think that the feeling is mutual between us. I live alone with him and my cat and after that incident, I looked at him and I said Wyatt, you can sleep in my bed anytime you want," jokes Callahan.
Once fully recovered, Callahan and Wyatt resumed their daily walks. "I try to walk him two to three times a day—when I get up in the morning, in the middle of the day, and then before we go to bed at night." explains Callahan who says that his doctors are impressed with the impact walking with his dog has had on his health. "About a month ago, I saw my cardiologist and they did an EKG. When my doctor came in, he had a big grin on his face and he was holding this paper in his hand and he said 'Don, this is a classroom-perfect example of an EKG and it's yours. I never believed I'd see you—with 36 stents and 2 heart attacks—having a perfect EKG!"
Callahan's cardiologist has instructed him to make regular walks with Wyatt a part of his daily routine—"The dog is saving your life, one walk at a time!"
"We have a mutual love affair," says Callahan of his canine companion. "I can't imagine being here without him. He's with me every place I go and is by my side all the time."
