A mum has shared touching photos of her home birth, including several shots in which her dog seems as concerned as anyone else in the room, and offers comfort to his human during the whole thing.
Let me explain: Brooke Ellington is a doula. That’s a woman who is not a member of medical staff, but provides emotional support or physical assistance before, during, or after a birth to make the whole process as easy as possible for the mother.
Now, Brooke was giving birth to her second child at home in a birthing pool – sort of like an inflatable paddling pool, but definitely not for playing around in. She invited Kristin Waner, a birth photographer, into her house to document the whole thing.
Once the whole ordeal was over and she had given birth to her second child, they reviewed the photos that had been taken and spotted that Ranger, Brooke’s tiny Corgi dog, had been there for every step of the way.
Kristin wrote about the experience for Bored Panda, saying: “He was very curious as to what was going on.
“He laid under the bed watching her rock back and forth. He was a calming presence when the power and intensity of her contractions started.
“Every once in a while he would jump on the bed to give her a reassuring kiss to let her know she could do this.”
Bless. We don’t deserve dogs, do we?
Even once the whole labour process became more intense, the contractions became painful and the shouting began, he was right there by the side of the birthing pool, offering a bit of moral support.
Kristin added: “Ranger sat on the couch watching her, making sure everything was okay.”
Even once Brooke’s daughter had entered the world and the ordeal was over, he was still trying to be a part of everything, welcoming the new addition to the family.
Kristin continued: “He watched every moment, from her getting weighed to her first outfit change.”
This brought back memories of Brooke’s first birth, when her son Boyd was born. Back then, she had a corgi called Ryder, who also performed the ‘doula’ role during the birth.
Sadly, Ryder died not too long after that, but the old dog can rest easy knowing that the role is still being performed with aplomb by Brooke’s new furry friend.
For Brooke’s part, she didn’t realise the role that her faithful dog had performed until after the event. It was only once she saw the photos that she realised.
She told Buzzfeed: “It was like he really knew I was hurting and wanted to make sure I was okay.”
