Charles Isbell, a religious studies professor, did not know a routine visit to a Slidell, La. pound would save his life.
Isbell said he and his wife are active in research on mastiffs, a breed of dog that grows to be very large and boxy. He said in some instances, these dogs go to the pound and die soon after. He said he tries to retrieve the dogs before death and find them homes.
“Because of their size they’re hard to place,” he said. “We got a notice about one in Slidell so I drove down there to get her. I had no idea what she’d be like.”
The dog, Lilith, turned out to be what his wife describes as his “little angel sent down to protect him.”
He began bringing her to campus after Sept. 11, 2001 because he received many threats from students. Isbell, who taught a Judaism, Christianity and Islam class, said one day four students surrounded and yelled at him making him stumble off the side of a curb.
“After talking with the administration we decided there was no way campus police could stay with me all the time, and they let me bring the dog to campus,” Isbell said.
He said Lilith’s responsibility soon became more than just his body guard after he had a heart attack.
“I began having reactions to medications after the heart attack and she became aware of things,” he said. “Like if my heart rate or blood pressure raised, she’d put her paw on me and go ‘woof.’ I’d just take a nitroglycerin tablet or sit down and she’d calm down.”
He said the first time he noticed Lilith’s ability was while he walked across campus one day. He said she is very good with staying by his side when they walk, but on this particular day she jumped out in front of him and herded him to a nearby bench.
“I didn’t know what she wanted at first,” Isbell said. “I thought she just needed to go to the bathroom. But as soon as I sat down I got light headed and dizzy.
“Somehow she knows the rhythm of my heart beat,” he said. “I wouldn’t argue with anyone who says that’s impossible, but I just know that’s how it is.”
Lilith accompanies Isbell to classes. He said Lilith will not move once he tells her, in French, to sit and lie down.
“I talk to her in French because I’m comfortable with that language and because I don’t want anyone else to be able to tell her what to do,” he said.
She never moves from her commanded spot in class unless she senses a problem with Isbell, he said, and she gets along with everyone.
“When she’s relaxed I know I’m okay,” Isbell said. “I like to walk around in class and every once in a while she’ll come to me during class and make me sit. She’ll just sit in front of me and look up at me.”
Lilith’s reaction to Isbell on the second day of classes restricted the professor to his chair for 25 minutes. He said after walking around in the August humidity and taking the three flights of stairs to his office made him weak.
“She literally put her paw on my chests and leaned on me and she wouldn’t let me get out of the chair,” he said. “I don’t mean to be gushy, but she’s remarkable.”
Stephanie Johnson, a School of Veterinary instructor, said training dogs to be able to detect medical complications or irregularities is in the works, and there are many theories about how dogs can do this.
“Most of these cases are by happenstance, but people can train dogs to detect cardiac problems or even skin lesions,” she said.
Beverly Swartz, executive director of All Purpose Canines in Aberdeen, S.D., said there are several theories floating around. She thinks part of this phenomena is due to a change in body odor when human have health differences.
“I’m assuming dogs pick up on chemical reactions and can alert their owner to take medicine before a seizure or even an asthma attack,” Swartz said.
One way Swartz said a dog can know what to be aware of is by giving them the scent of their owners sweat when they start to show symptoms of heart or diabetes problems.
Swartz said some breeds are better for this, such as labradors or retrievers, and very few dogs have this natural ability.
Isbell said Lilith, a bull mastiff with 40 percent bull dog and 60 percent mastiff, is small for her breed weighing 100 pounds. He said she does not bite and is trained to stop someone if they attack, and hold them down until a police officer gets there.
“She’s far more famous than I am. Kids know her name and they have no idea who I am,” Isbell said. “I can’t explain it, but I guess she thinks, ‘My daddy got me out of jail so I have to be good.'”