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By Alyce Collins
Senior Reporter
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After being away for a while, every dog owner dreams of the special moment when they finally get to reunite with their furry bestie. But that didn’t go to plan for Jordan and Joshua Dale, who were left stunned by what happened when they reunited with their pup.
Following their wedding on October 18, the newlyweds went on their honeymoon to Curaçao, a Dutch Caribbean island and were away for 11 days. When Jordan and Joshua finally returned, they couldn’t wait to see their two dogs, Matador and Hazel.
While they were checking in with the pet sitters throughout the trip, Jordan, of Lubbock, Texas, told Newsweek that she was “so overjoyed to hug” the dogs once they were home.
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Unfortunately, the situation took a turn when 7-year-old Matador got overly excited and appeared to faint in front of his horrified owners.
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“We were immediately concerned when he started getting wobbly, and both thought it was his IVDD (intervertebral disc disease) relapsing,” Jordan said. “Then about a second later, he was completely unconscious, and we both started panicking. I truly thought our baby had just died right in front of us.
“I immediately called the emergency vet, while my husband kept trying to talk to him and keep him calm. He kept his hand on Matador’s chest to monitor that his heart was beating (it was)."
After lying on the ground unconscious for approximately 30 seconds, Matador woke up “a little confused” and then returned to being his usual self. Needless to say, his owners were stunned and went through a range of emotions.
Matador was taken to the emergency vet nonetheless, where he received an EKG and an X-ray on his chest and lungs. All the results came back clear, and his scans appeared healthy, but the vet warned Jordan that it may have been a syncope episode.
A syncope episode is a temporary loss of consciousness which occurs when the brain doesn’t receive enough oxygen. Dr. Ann Marie Zollo, senior veterinarian and specialist in Emergency and Critical Care at the Schwarzman Animal Medical Center, explained that syncope can be linked to an underlying condition, such as arrhythmia, structural heart disease, pulmonary hypertension, anemia or respiratory disease.
Zollo told Newsweek: “Any time a dog collapses, the first step in determining the cause is to distinguish between a seizure, which originates in the brain, and a syncopal episode, which typically results from a temporary loss of blood flow or oxygen to the brain and is most often due to a cardiovascular issue.
“While it’s not impossible for a healthy dog to faint from overexcitement, this is relatively uncommon.”
There’s no doubt that witnessing a fainting episode would be shocking, Zollo highlights the importance of staying calm. Owners should ensure their dog is safe and away from any potential obstacles, and the fainting episode will likely be over in under a minute.
Jordan and Joshua Dale were urged by their vet to monitor Matador in the coming days and weeks.
The incident was captured on the pet cam, and Jordan couldn’t resist sharing it on TikTok (@jordandula2) once she knew her pup was alright. The video went viral with over 16.2 million views and more than 2.5 million likes on TikTok at the time of writing.
The online reaction is beyond anything the couple expected, as they never imagined Matador’s health scare would generate so much attention.
Jordan said: “When we first watched the footage back, we felt absolutely sick. But after a few days, when the fear all settled down, it became kind of funny to watch his dramatic flop. We were amazed at how kind and loving everyone has been. People are so concerned, and thanks to the comments, we realized we need to do a follow-up visit with the cardiologist to be safe.”
It was certainly a terrifying moment, but Jordan says that she will “do anything” to make sure that Hazel and Matador live happy and healthy lives.
Since the Furbo footage was posted online on November 1, the viral clip has already amassed over 3,300 comments.
One comment reads: “I've never seen a dog faint, why was that such a Hollywood death.”
Another TikTok user wrote: “I know it’s traumatic but I’m crying laughing because why is he so dramatic.”
While another person joked: “At least he didn’t overreact.”
Do you have funny and adorable videos or pictures of your pet you want to share? We want to see the best ones! Send them in to life@newsweek.com and they could appear on our site.
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