Super dog “Gustav” is her best hope: 57-year-old Susanne suffers from an autoimmune disease. She has an extremely allergic reaction to perfumes and is in danger of suffocating. The specially trained four-legged friend can help her, because “Gustav” is the first dog in Austria that can sniff out problematic perfume ingredients.
Susanne worked as a nurse for 38 years, caring for patients in the neurology department, emergency department and retirement home who needed to be mobilized. Although she is not yet of retirement age, the 57-year-old is now a physical wreck as a result of her heavy work.
“Nursing was my dream job”
“Nursing was my dream job. “I have always stood for people, worked a lot with great pleasure, but unfortunately lost my health,” emphasizes the woman from Linz, who is bravely fighting a whole series of serious disabilities. “For example, I have a sinus vein thrombosis in my head (blockage of drainage in the brain, mind you), which is causing me severe pain,” said the 57-year-old. She also suffers from rheumatism, osteoarthritis in almost all joints and fibromyalgia (chronic pain disorder with stiffness in the muscles).
Muscle and autoimmune diseases
She was also plagued several times by hernias in her spine and a hematoma in her thoracic vertebra. “I also suffer from the muscle disease myasthenia, which causes a disruption of the conduction of stimuli between the nerve and the muscle. The result of this is that things suddenly fall out of my hand or my eyes close,” says the Linz resident.
But the autoimmune disease rosacea also occurs again and again: “I get a red face that burns and itches terribly.” She is also incontinent as a result of an accident caused by someone else. She also suffered a traumatic brain injury, which negatively affected her vision.
“Having an allergic reaction”
The most problematic thing for her right now seems to be her allergic asthma. “Unfortunately, there is a long list of substances to which I am extremely allergic. “I then get severe choking attacks, which can be fatal within ten minutes,” the former nurse explains. She has had 17 such incidents. “Once I even had to be resuscitated because of a small piece of apple with a meal.” In addition to foods such as stone fruit, kiwis, figs, tomatoes, carrots, nuts and rye, she is especially bothered by perfumes. “But because I no longer have a sense of smell, I don’t notice when things become dangerous for me.”
Assistance dog smells dangerous perfumes for woman
That is why an assistance dog is now being trained especially for her, which will immediately warn her of any dangers. Royal Poodle “Gustav” – he is 17 months old – lives with Susanne and accompanies her in daily life. The training is given by experts from a dog school in Kirchdorf an der Krems, lasts two years and costs a total of 22,500 euros. “An amount that I cannot raise on my own,” sighs Susanne and hopes for support from the “Krone” family.
Training already brings success
“Gustav” will be Austria’s first dog to sniff out and detect problematic perfume ingredients. Training for the four-legged trainee is already starting to take root. “I was recently sitting in a waiting room. Suddenly he put his paw on my lap. That’s when I knew something was wrong. When I asked the audience if anyone was wearing a strong perfume, a woman responded. She then left the room and the danger was averted.”
Source: Krone
I am Wallace Jones, an experienced journalist. I specialize in writing for the world section of Today Times Live. With over a decade of experience, I have developed an eye for detail when it comes to reporting on local and global stories. My passion lies in uncovering the truth through my investigative skills and creating thought-provoking content that resonates with readers worldwide.
