The first UK mother to deliver her child in hospital equipped with a bedside pet dog has been born.
Charlotte Beard (24) from Dorset has suffered three miscarriages and has both a heart condition as well as post-traumatic stress disorder.
She got Flump, a Maltese multipurpose assistance dog, two years ago, and the pooch has been trained to detect her seizures as they are about to happen.
Charlotte went through 50 hours of labor at Poole Hospital. Flump was there for her throughout. Alfie was born December 4, weighing 6lb 10oz.
She told The Times Flump and Alfie are ‘brothers’, adding: ‘We say Flump is like my partner or an extension of myself. The idea of doing such a momentous moment in my life, also such a vulnerable point, without Flump by my side just didn’t seem right.’
Charlotte Beard (24 years old), a Dorset woman who has non-epileptic seizure, was the first to have her baby in a UK hospital that had a dog at the bedside.
Charlotte went through 50 hours of labor at Poole Hospital. Flump was there for her throughout. Alfie was born on December 4, weighing 6lb 10oz.
A doctor suggested Charlotte, who was working as a wildlife rehabilitation specialist before having to quit due to her health, find an assistance dog. This would help her build confidence.
Flump was just 10 weeks old, when Flump’s mother adopted her. Since then the pair have lived together in complete harmony.
Charlotte, along with Ash Pheonix (29), had three miscarriages while trying to have a child. Flump was there for support.
Alfie was getting closer and closer to his due date, so she began to be concerned about her PSTD.
Charlotte adopted Flump when he was just ten-weeks-old, and the two have been inseparable ever since (pictured in hospital)
Charlotte required assistance in the bathroom on one occasion. Flump found a nurse who could help her.
Flump was with her once again as she was brought into the hospital in December to have her baby.
Ash, Ash’s partner, made sure that he received regular walks and was fed.
He was with me during labour, as planned. I was only absent for scheduled breaks. He already loves his little brother so much.
Charlotte is pictured here with Ash Pheonix. She also suffers from a heart condition that causes faintness, chronic pain and post-traumatic stress disorder.
Three miscarriages have occurred on the couple’s journey to starting a family. Charlotte has PTSD.
A doctor suggested Charlotte find an aid dog for her confidence.
Flump, Alfie, and she were admitted to the hospital five days after giving birth.
Now Charlotte wants to see the policy of medical assistance dogs being permitted into more hospitals, saying: ‘You wouldn’t ask someone to go to hospital without their wheelchair so, as long as it’s reasonable, an assistance dog has the right to attend and assist their handler.’
Since the advent of the guide dogs for blind and deaf dogs in the 1930s, medical assistance dogs’ skills have increased exponentially.
Recent research by psychologists has shown that petting animals may be a way to ease mental symptoms and help with many other mental illnesses.
Ulrika Jonsson, a TV host and presenter, credited her English bulldogs with helping her recover from depression after the breakup of her marriage.
James Middleton, on the other hand, has been open about his support for his dog during his battle with mental illness.
Emotional support is not the only health benefit.
Dogs’ acute sense of smell can now be trained to detect, and help prevent, fatal epileptic and diabetic attacks, and triggers for people with allergies.
Even more remarkably, the latest research shows that dogs can even spot signs of cancer in blood – a medical advancement yet to be cracked by cancer experts.
Britons in danger of sudden seizures are already being provided with at least 55 dogs to aid them.
A mother in America shared her story last week about how her dog, “hero”, saved her baby’s lives by entering her room when she realized her pet had lost her ability to breathe.
Kelly Andrew is a Boston author who explained that her little girl was feeling unwell and Henry the Boston Terrier was worried.
The 24-year-old worked as a who worked as a wildlife rehabilitator before she had to stop because of her health (pictured)
Flump was by Charlotte’s side every step on her way to having Alfie. (pictured in the hospital).
He tried to open the nursery door with his head, so he could see the baby girl. It saved her’s life.
She said that Henry started to make her mad because she was sleeping and kept getting up. Henry knew something was amiss, but he continued to insist.
One point when she was trying to drag Henry from the room, the baby stopped breathing. She started turning blue.
Jeff, the wife, and she rushed the child to the hospital. The doctors were happy to remove the baby from the airways.
Charlotte refers to Flump as her ‘brother” to Alfie and hopes that women with medical assistance dogs will now be allowed to bring their pets along to labor.