A family Doberman’s obsessive behavior alerted a Somerset mother to her six-month-old son’s life-threatening heart condition in September 2026.
Kim Reynolds, a 41-year-old former canine hydrotherapist and first-time mom living in the UK county of Somerset, noticed her dog, Saraya, whining and refusing to leave baby Alexander’s side on September 3.
Saraya’s behavior was like a noise playing in my mind,
Reynolds told the Somerset County Gazette. It was bugging me that she was trying to tell me something wasn’t right. I was confused why she was being so needy and obsessive.
Medical staff discovered the baby’s heart racing at 280 beats per minute, which could be life-threatening if left untreated.
Doctors found he was in supraventricular tachycardia, and they knew they had to act fast. Alexander screamed his head off as doctors tried to trigger the diving reflex by briefly immersing his face in ice-cold water, but his heart rate failed to drop after two attempts.
They did it twice, and his heart rate still hadn’t come down,
Reynolds said. After doing it for 10 more seconds, she could not bear it anymore and asked doctors to try intravenous medication instead.
Three doses of IV medication later, his heart rate went back to normal. Alexander was sent to Poole Hospital, spending two days there before being diagnosed with Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome, a congenital condition of the heart that can trigger dangerous arrhythmias.
Doctors explained his condition involves an extra bit of tissue in his heart, which basically means electrical pulses can get through where they shouldn’t, and that is when he cannot calm his heart rate.
Although Saraya is not a trained service dog or medical alert canine, Reynolds stated that she 100% trusts her dog’s instincts. Saraya knew his heart rate was higher than it should’ve been,
Reynolds noted. I had no idea. She sensed it. I dread to think what would have happened if I just put him in the cot and walked away.
Reynolds recalled finding the dog next to Alexander’s bouncer, licking his hands and staring at her, which immediately triggered fears of another cardiac flare-up.
My first thought was ‘oh god we are going to go into [a flare-up] again’,
she recalled of the moment she found him in his bouncer with Saraya next to him licking his hands and looking at her.
This time, thankfully, the hero dog had noticed something much more benign in her little boy: a case of tonsillitis.
Now, Alexander is 9 months old, needs three doses of beta blockers every day, and may eventually need surgery. A pediatric cardiologist notes that dogs sometimes spot medical troubles first, likely by sensing changes in smell or sound.
Reynolds credits Saraya in this case, urging parents to always trust their gut, while the viral story shared on Facebook by We Rate Dogs amassed over 53,100 likes, 790 comments, and more than 1,000 reshares after being posted on November 3, 2026. I had no idea,
Reynolds noted.