Other than the part about the grandmother not letting the bee-covered dog inside to escape the swarm, this is a pretty cool little story. The boy clearly cares deeply for his dog, whom he’ll always consider his hero.
Dogsters, do you think the puppy somehow knew the boy would react severely to the bees, or was she just a curious pup who got her nose (and ears, and paws) in the wrong place at the right time?
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It is great to hear that Pinky saved the boy’s life especially since it could of cost her- her own life, but was upset to hear that the grandma did not try to save Pinky’s life.
GREAT JOB PINKY
Your My HERO PINKY!!!! We are so happy you and your boy are all better.
Grandma needs a wake up call.
I definitely think Pinky knew her boy was in big trouble and came to the rescue, the boy has a very serious condition and easily could have died from to many bee stings.
BOO to Grandma.
I think she was just a curious puppy wondering what kind of game her kid was playing. Goodness sakes! It was so exciting, he was running away from them and they were everywhere! What a game! But it hurt…. Definitely glad that they’re all better!
She is a very cute puppy! I hope she never runs into another bee again!
Look I love dogs as much as anybody, but what was grandma suppose to do. Let the dog in, so that the bees could sting everyone again. I see people, not happy with grandma but no one has offered up what they would’ve done, if they’re grandson was being stung by bees, screaming, crying, and pretty much general chaos. I love the dog, and had it been just myself I would’ve tried to do something. I can’t say the same thing, if I had a grandson to protect first. I am not even sure what she could’ve done, other than let the dog and the bees indoors. It’s a tough one to call. I don’t know how many bees there were, whether they were the Africanized ones(probably were from the sounds of it though). I just don’t know on this one. I think a grandmothers first priority is always going to be their grandchild though. I hate that the dog was left outside to suffer through this. I don’t however know what could’ve been done with what I think were the African bees.
I agree with Brad completely. I think that I’m decent mental and physical shape (or so I like to think) and I’d be hard pressed to know what to do at the spur of the moment or if I could shut the door fast enough; not seeing the way the swarm was behaving it would be very hard to know if there was anyway anybody could have done better for the dog, never mind a grandmother, who’s shaken up by her grandson in pain and, very probably because of her age, can no longer react as fast as she’d like. Sure, I’d like to have a pressure hose or smoke to stun/kill the bees, but I dobut one always has one of those close by inside the house.
Regarding the corageous pup, I don’t dobut for one second she went to help him, tough being a pup, she probably didn’t know what she was up against, nor what she’d do, and still, she helped him! God bless her little puppy-self and may she have a long life filled with love from everybody!
I would also have to agree with Brad. However, I’m sure she could have called the police or someone for help.
I do agree the grandmother could have done something for the dog
Pull the kid in the house; a quick check to make sure all the bees are off of him and killed. Then run outside to the water hose or grab a can of Raid and and towel/coat/sweater and head for the dog. Spray the water straight on the dog or with the Raid, spray around the dog and yourself; use the towel to knock the bees off and away. Don’t just leave the dog at the mercy of the bees. Sounds like grandma has the “it’s just a dog” mentality.
Amber, is right on the money! Check the kid, then save the dog. Though to be fair to Grandma, hind sight tends to be 20/20. Also Grandma, took action she checked the kid and took the dog to the vet while not ideal compare it those who just freeze in these situations. Pinky, and all involved,(except the bees!) deserve our THANKS.
Brad stated it very well. What was Grandma to do? The dog was rushed to the vet. So it’s not like the family stood around and let her suffer and die. Geesh, people can be harsh!
I agree with Brad, make sure the kid is safe and then help the dog. After the kid is safe (he is allergic, people can die from that!) hose the remaining bees off the dog and send her to the vet. If the grand ma had let the dog inside, then the bees would of stung everyone else and that wouldn’t of solved the problem.
Another dog to the rescue and another happy ending thanks to Pinky! Grandma I think did what most people would do under stress and thank God everything turned out. This little boy will always have a deep love for canines for the rest of his life and likely give back many times over!
GD
I agree that Grandma and/or Mom should have done something to help the dog. Turn on the hose… Something, anything! In my oppinion, the boy must’ve been poking at the nest or disturbing it in some way. Bees don’t swarm unless provoked. I also think that the dog just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Took the brunt of the attack, but not by choice.
I think Pinky wanted to play with the bees but soon changed her mind after being stung. So she ran and freaked out and the bees swarmed her instead. I don’t see any thinking on the dog’s part of saving the boy.
Please rethink your tendency to credit our beloved friends with human traits that generally exist in the mind only. This does a dis-service to canines and often gullible humans as well. This story is only another in a long line of ‘hero’ (?) pets that are in reality only normal canines. (As if this weren’t enough.) I’ve been considered an ‘over the edge’ dog lover but that dog didn’t exhibit any special trait entitling it to the hero description. If anything, the poor pooch didn’t have sense enough to get away from a swarm of ‘africanized’ bees (?) quickly enough.
Dog lover and former bee keeper
@Heywood, actually I didn’t credit the dog as a hero — I put out the question to our readers about whether they thought she did this on purpose or it was just an accident. The international news media went nuts with the hero angle, and while I love the idea that there’s a possibility she could have been doing a “bee intervention” out of the goodness of her heart, the possibility of her just being in the wrong place also seemed pretty strong, and more likely. But it was a question mark, and our wonderful readers responded with their usual range of interesting, insightful, fun answers.
Nowhere did I say her statue should be bronzed in front of city hall.
But thanks for the perspective, esp from an avid dog lover and former bee keeper!
Glad to see that my ‘perspective’ was not misinterpreted. Also glad that your perspective as a blog editor does not conflict with my own. At least not directly.
The media has a continuing history of distorted information about bees. Let a kid poke a stick in a yellow jacket nest, and it turns into a terrible swarm of bees. Having a member of my own family who had a legitimate allergic reaction to bee stings, I see, all too often, a kid who is stuck for life with a fear of the great outdoors only because it makes for a better story. Not saying that happened in this case, but swarming bees do not attack even when provoked. In this case, it was possible that the boy and dog were the target of africanized bees which are known to pursue much further and aggressively than honeybees. Even those attacks do not resemble a swarm which is clustered around a departing queen.
But enough about bees. My favorite TV episodes were the ones on Bonanza years ago (and recently re-run) where Hoss and the old Miner and his dog were cornered in a shack by dastardly villains. The bad guys were continually outsmarted by the dog Ralph who appeared in the skit as a bedraggled mutt who spent his time sprawled out sleeping, but was credited by the old Miner with originating every clever plan to foil the bad guys. I guess my funny bone is easily tickled, but I remember those few episodes to this day with ill concealed guffaws.
In posting my 57 cents to your blog, I also included a web site which has nothing to do with bees, boys or perspective, but does contain a picture of my own canine, of whom I’m inordinately proud. Just coincidentally I have ( highly unlikely) stories about how he arrived, his parentage, my naming him and on and on. I’ll spare you that and…
Remain,
A really senior dog lover here — 11+ dog lifetimes