Man's best friend gets message in a bottle (and saves a life)

IOL ^ | August 08 2003 | Sapa-dpa

[knighthawk]

London - A sheepdog roaming away from his owner's farm retrieved a bottle with a message from an ailing homeless man and took it home to his master, allowing Scottish emergency workers to arrive in time to save the man who had not eaten or had any water for days.

The Guardian newspaper reported on Friday that Ben the border collie crossed three fields to a deserted farmhouse in the Falkirk area to find the plastic bottle on which Robert Sinclair had scribbled a hasty note.

Sinclair, 55, who has lived rough in the area for 27 years, had not eaten or drunk anything for more than a week, after an asthma attack.

He managed to scribble his note on a piece of cardboard, put it in a plastic water bottle and drop it out of the window.

Ben's owner, Brian Besler, 56, found Sinclair in the old farmhouse and summoned the emergency services.

Sinclair was discharged earlier this week after making a full recovery.

Inspector Alistair Tate, of Central Scotland police, said: "It was really a great stroke of luck for Robert Sinclair that the dog found his note and Mr Besler came looking, or we would be looking at a very different outcome."

[knighthawk]

Ping

[austingirl]

Good doggie bump.

[7thson]

Yes, a good doggie bump. However, a cat would have ignored the note.

[bedolido]

owner teaching pooch to retrieve bottles...hmmmm. Can he open the frig?

[Hank Rearden]

Yes, a good doggie bump. However, a cat would have ignored the note.

No, a cat would have thought "Now, how does this get me more food?"

[austingirl]

Those darn cats, always out for themselves. Did you see the overweight cat thread - it is hilarious.

[Squantos]

What that Lassie ?? Little Timmy Bobby has fallen down the well ?................and can't reach his beer ? OHMYGOSH !!!

Stay Safe !

[ActionNewsBill]

The Guardian newspaper reported on Friday that Ben the border collie crossed three fields to a deserted farmhouse in the Falkirk area to find the plastic bottle on which Robert Sinclair had scribbled a hasty note.

I've seen "Lassie" on the television accomplish such feats, but I don't believe this is possible in real life.

Something doesn't seem right.

Sinclair, 55, who has lived rough in the area for 27 years, had not eaten or drunk anything for more than a week, after an asthma attack.

He managed to scribble his note on a piece of cardboard, put it in a plastic water bottle and drop it out of the window.

Findis his owner, yes I would believe that. But finding the water bottle of a homeless man from three fields away....Nope, no way.

[ActionNewsBill]

Findis = finding

[Mr.Atos]

Likely there was a previous relationship between this man and Ben. Perhaps there was a history of communication this way between Mr. Sinclair and the Dog's owner. I would not be surprise if that was the case in a rural area such as Fallkirk. This is not all that strange. Dog's were used extensively in WWI as couriers. Sheepdogs like Groenendaels and Border Collies operate independently, are extremely intelligent and very fast. We easily trained our Groenendael to deliver items between my wife and I and even to find our son when he's out of sight. This is most likely the missing part of this amazing story.

[ActionNewsBill]

Likely there was a previous relationship between this man and Ben. Perhaps there was a history of communication this way between Mr. Sinclair and the Dog's owner.

That's indeed a possibility I hadn't thought of. I can see how that might explain how this may have happened

[Mr.Atos]

Eliminating that little bit of information (if true) changes the tale from a spooky fantasy to rational action. Dogs are amazing creatures, but there is no mystery about them. A dog can, will, and wants to learn. A well-trained dog is truly man's best friend.

An ignored one is a furry yard ornament ...a bored, useless, poop-making machine that eats the hose and barks at the moon.

[sky_dog]

'owner teaching pooch to retrieve bottles .. hmmm can he open the frig (sic)'

My bleedin cat can open the fridge and eats anything it can steal. However,that's as far as we can get, it still won't bring me a cold 'un when ordered to do so. It will make a great pair of mittens though when the heatwave is past here on Airstrip One.

;o) sky_dog