Family's Dog Saves 5-year-old from Cancer

Hooray for Phoebe!

5-year-old Kendall Sendall is a little camera shy and so is her best friend Phoebe, a 6-year-old Australian Shepherd. But luckily Phoebe wasn't shy about something else.

“She decided she wanted to be an inside dog,” Heidi Sendall, Kendall’s mother, said.

And that was Sendall's first clue that something wasn't right. Every time Phoebe came inside she went straight for Kendall, who at the time was 3.

“As soon as I would walk in the room she would place her paw on the baby,” Heidi said. “Kendall kept sleeping, so she kept pulling us and when she was awake she would actually pull her to us.”

The Sendall’s called the doctor. Heidi says she was told, ”Don't worry about it. It's an ear infection we'll write a prescription.”

But the doctor in Phoebe knew it was something else and she started to get more adamant.

“She came in and kept putting her paws up on us and biting us and pulling at our clothing,” Heidi said. “It wasn't any of the other children, just specifically Kendall, and pulling her or me to each other so we would meet, like there's something wrong, look at the baby. She actually ripped some of my sweatshirts. She was that desperate.”

Heidi got the picture after three days of pestering from Phoebe and took Kendall to the emergency room. The diagnosis was acute leukemia.

“It had gotten into her joints already,” Heidi said.

Phoebe knew it all along.

Kendall is now just a normal, healthy 5-year-old. The cancer is in remission, thanks to her family pet.

Phoebe was honored by the Franklin County Humane Society. They presented her with a trophy and gave the family $700 to help with Kendall’s medical expenses. They also decided not to exchange gifts among the staff members, and instead spent that money to buy everyone in the Sendall family, including Phoebe, a Christmas present.

Phoebe is now a permanent member of the family who sleeps inside with Kendall, who she is still watching over.

“She's never left her side since,” Heidi said.