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| Goodbye
Endal |
13
March 2009: Allen and Sandra Parton have today announced the sad
death of Endal, their beloved Labrador, who has died at the age
of 13.
Endal was voted 'Dog of the Millennium' and given both a PDSA
Gold Award and a Gold Blue Peter badge for his devotion to wheelchair-bound
Allen who was seriously injured while serving in the Gulf War. He
became a media favorite after being photographed by a national newspaper
helping Allen use a cashpoint
machine.
The
extraordinary story of how Endal came into Allen's life and gave
him a reason to live again was told just last night in a Sky Real
Lives documentary entitled 'The Dog That Saved Our Marriage' and
in the book 'Endal' published last month by HarperTrue. Endal made
his last public appearance on Saturday at Crufts where he accompanied
Allen and Sandra to a book signing.
Allen
and Endal's Story
In 1991 Allen headed out to the Gulf War. A month after he arrived,
his military car was wrecked in an accident and Allen’s body
with it. He woke six weeks later in a British military hospital,
his right hand side devoid of feeling and his mind even number.
His memory had been so horribly obliterated by the injuries he sustained
that he was unable to recognise his wife Sandra and had no recollection
of his children. He spoke, if at all, as he remembered: in disjointed,
meaningless fragments. Imprisoned by his wheelchair, trapped by
his fumbling speech, and dispossessed of his own past, Allen saw
no reason to have faith in the future. Twice he tried to take his
own life.
After five years of hospitalisation and rehabilitation, Allen at
last returned to his home in Hampshire. Sandra, who gave up her
job as a nurse to care for Allen, had volunteered as a puppy walker
for Canine Partners, an organisation that trains dogs to help disabled
people enjoy a greater degree of independence. One morning, in the
summer of 1997, the bus that had been due to ferry Allen to the
day centre he attended failed to turn up. Rather than leave her
husband to brood at home, Sandra took Allen with her to the Canine
Partners training centre.
There Allen sat, his wheelchair parked in a corner, as self-conscious
and withdrawn as he always was in public. Until, that is, his eye
caught a young dog, resting from a training session. The dog wandered
over to the wheelchair, accepted Allen’s offer of a welcoming
pat on the head and promptly dived on to his lap. It was Endal.
Allen’s life was about to emerge from night and into the sun.
Everyone saw that there was an instant bond between Endal and Allen.
After a few more meetings between the two, Allen decided to apply
to take Endal as an assistance dog.
With Allen still struggling as much with his word recollection as
his mobility, Endal’s ability to read the sign language with
which Allen was sometimes forced to communicate was central to their
relationship. Endal was soon as adept at shopping as he was around
the house. Allen simply issued the appropriate instructions from
his wheelchair.
He even helped to pay. Once Allen had tapped in his PIN, Endal would
gently retrieve the money and card from the cash dispenser.
The differences that Endal brought to Allen’s everyday world
weren’t just practical, they were therapeutic too. Where five
years of intensive speech coaching had seen little progress, Allen’s
urge to talk to Endal meant that he was becoming ever more articulate.
Endal gave him the confidence to re-engage with the world.
Perhaps most importantly of all, Endal restored Allen to his family,
allowing him the emotional strength needed to rediscover and renew
the bonds of human love.
A dog as talented as Endal is a difficult secret to keep. His prowess
at the cash machine was spotted by a journalist from a national
newspaper. After that the media floodgates opened wide. Reporters
and film crews from around the world have queued up to watch and
marvel as Endal, wallet in mouth, picks up Allen’s prescription
at the chemist’s or operates the electronic doors on a train.
What
really threw the spotlight on Endal, however, was the story of the
heroics for which he was awarded the PDSA’s Gold Medal. Invited
to attend a stand at Crufts in 2001, the pair had been exercising
in the car park afterwards when the vehicle, unseen by Allen until
the last second, struck him and threw him from his wheelchair. Endal’s
resolve and quiet control made headline news and won him that most
prestigious of animal awards.
HRH
Princess Alexandra presented Endal with the PDSA’s Gold Medal,
awarded to animals that have shown outstanding devotion to their
duties in time of peace. For his astonishing response to the accident,
he became one of only three dogs to receive the Medal since its
introduction.
Allen G Parton and Endal |
About Canine Partners
Officially launched in 1990, Canine Partners enables people with
disabilities to enjoy greater independence and a better quality
of life through the help of specially trained dogs.
Training
assistance dogs to transform the lives of people with disabilities
enriches human life in practical ways such as dressing and undressing,
supermarket shopping and vital emergency response procedures. In
addition it provides physiological, psychological and social benefits
that help keep people healthy and happy.
As a registered charity Canine Partners receives no government funding
and is wholly dependant on public donations and legacies.
For further information on fundraising, donations, volunteering
or applying for a Canine Partner, please call 08456 580480 or visit
www.caninepartners.co.uk.
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