Many animals dig: moles build mounds everywhere, voles too, although somehow not so impressive. Raccoons dig small holes, as do badgers, and even a little larger ones. And while you can’t blame them personally – instinct wins – it can be very annoying, especially if it happens in your yard. But what if man’s best friend started digging right outside your door? Do you scold? Do you let him have his way, taking into account his gaming instincts? Or do you have the feeling that he wants to tell you something?
At least that’s the feeling Chanell Bell had when her four-year-old male husky, Kobe, started digging around her backyard fence just before Christmas. “I trust her judgment because this is not her typical behavior,” Bell told the magazine People. “He has good instincts and never digs holes unless he helps me dig.” Because there had recently been a gas leak in the quiet community on the outskirts of Philadelphia, Bell trusted her “her intuition” and procured her gas detector.
It turned out that the hole was actually leaking gas, and a lot of it. Chanell Bell alerted city officials. They immediately dispatched a repair crew who discovered two more large gas leaks in the Bell neighborhood. The repair took three days.
Apparently the leak could have even been fatal if Kobe hadn’t discovered it in time. “We were told it could cause serious health consequences, such as breathing problems, brain damage and even death,” Bell said. If a spark had come close to the gas leak it would have caused an explosion. On the one hand we learn that Philadelphia should urgently replace all its old gas pipes. But most importantly, sometimes you should let animals dig – they usually have better noses.
Read other episodes of the column and other good news Here.
