Diabetes Diagnosis for MI Man: Dog Ate Toe

Most pet owners would be irate if their dog bit off one of their toes, but Jerry Douthett, of Rockford, MI is nothing but grateful: this canine feat may have saved his life. Douthett was alerted to the seriousness of a bone infection in his foot, resulting from previously undiagnosed Type II diabetes, when his terrier Kiko bit off his big toe while he was passed out drunk, according to The Grand Rapids Press

"Jerry had had all these Margaritas, so I just let him sleep," his wife, Rosee, a registered nurse told the Michigan paper. "But then I heard these screams coming from the bedroom, and he was yelling, 'My toe's gone, my toe's gone!'" He suspected for months something was wrong with his foot, but the 48-year-old musician had only recently scheduled an appointment to see a doctor. Douthett was rushed to the hospital by Rosie where doctors amputated the rest of his toe and diagnosed him with Type II diabetes.

http://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2010/08/dog_eats_rockford_mans_big_toe.html