Prior to moving to the rest home, my mother was waking and rising from bed almost every night. We were alerted to this by a reindeer bell we had fastened to her door handle. Mom would whip the door open and the bell would clatter. It always woke us. Most of the time, we’d catch her at the top of the stairs - half dressed, sometimes with her “hair” on, always confused. Her pocketbook would be filled with the strangest things; a doll from her bureau, an empty makeup case, a pair of worn socks. One night, unbeknownst to us, Mom had removed the bell.
Lulu, one of our kitties and the youngest of four in the house (though not the smallest as you can see from her picture), jumped up on our bed one evening and sat at Dan’s feet. She began to give her short-bursted meows (more like barks) which she does only in the mornings when we’ve slept too late and she is hungry. She has never given us this call in the middle of the night because it means one thing – GET UP. Dan woke instantly and Lulu bark-bursted again, looked at him and then at the door. The house was ablaze with lights. We could hear my mother rustling downstairs. When I reached her, she was very confused and sweating. She was talking nonsense. I guided her back to her bed, removed the shirt she had put on backwards and the one sock from her foot and eased her back into bed.
We would never have known if Lulu didn't alert us and who knows what my mother would have done or where she would have gone. The idea of it sends me crazy and I hug my little Lulu and thank her with little kitty kisses.
Have you had an experience where an animal has alerted you to danger? I'd love to hear about it.
