While 911 calls are typically associated with emergencies, one recent incident in Lakeville, Minnesota, brought a touch of humor to the police department.
The situation began with repeated 911 calls from a house, where the dispatcher could only hear the sound of dogs barking. Two officers were dispatched to investigate the source of the calls.
Upon arriving, the officers found no people at the residence but were greeted by two exuberant dogs. “It was just kind of weird. Usually people come to the door. Seeing two dogs go hyper is not something I see all the time,” Officer Emiles Bares shared with Fox 9.
Initially, the officers assumed the calls were accidental and prepared to leave. However, dispatch informed them that a total of 16 calls had come from the house, prompting a more thorough investigation. They contacted the homeowner, who was at work, and received permission to enter the home.
Inside, the officers encountered the two friendly dogs again. Officer Roberts explained, “I did check if they wanted to go outside, if that was their reason for calling. They weren’t interested. They were more interested in being pet at that point. I went to his office where the cell phone was. It was on Emergency Call Only. So in theory, a dog could have dialed 911, it would just have to push the screen with its paw.”
The officers concluded that the dogs had inadvertently triggered the calls, seeking some sort of assistance. Fox 9 reporters attempted to interview the dogs, but they were more interested in the microphone than providing comments.
The homeowner later acknowledged learning a valuable lesson and vowed to keep his phone out of the dogs’ reach in the future.
Interestingly, there are ongoing efforts to train dogs to intentionally contact emergency services. Melody Jackson from the animal-computer interaction lab at the Georgia Institute of Technology is working on teaching dogs to use touchscreens to call 911, particularly to assist the elderly or those with medical conditions. “The dog could go over to a touchscreen and touch a series of icons on the touchscreen and call 911 with your location,” Jackson told CNN. “We think that, literally, this could change lives, make lives so much better, and be a life-saver.”