If laughter is the best medicine, dogs are perfect MDs! Funny pet videos are the lifeblood of the Internet, helping to lift our spirits when we’re feeling down.
No one knows this better Tess Eagle Swan, Crufts agility course dog mother, darling, Kratu. The poodle, whose name is a Sanskrit word for “strength,” entered her life in 2014. She hopes a special bond will form between them. Instead, she found something much bigger: a way to help her cope with past trauma, anxiety, and late-diagnosed autism.
“Krazy Kratu”
Baron Kratu von Bearbum started his life in Transylvania, where he is nowescaped from a “dangerous camp where dogs were beaten and starved” when he was only a few weeks old.
After being adopted by Swan, Kratu began her agility training with the help of the Woodgreen Pets charity. In addition to the reward, the happy lucky dog also accepts laughter as a reward. So it’s no wonder he started “playing for laughs” while navigating stunts.
He started competing at Crufts for the first time in 2017. Instead of racing through the agility course, Kratu walks around, sniffing different obstacles as if he were walking on Sunday. The crowd loved it!
“Kratu clearly made a wise decision and it was a pleasure,” Swan told TODAY. “He loves people and is fun. And the appeal of the audience in the present moment and in the arena is much greater than doing what he is told. ”
Crufts’ video, “Krazy Kratu Kreates His Own Kourse” went viral, cementing Kratu’s reputation as “Kourse Klown”.
Coming to the competition in 2018 (and every year that followed), Kratu did not disappoint. His antics include spinning in the middle of tunnels, running to the curb to greet onlookers, and stealing picket posts instead of jumping over them. But according to Swan, Kratu is more than just a silly performance.
“Kratu is the reason I wake up every day.”
In Swan’s new book, “Incredible Kratu: Lucky rescue dog changed owner’s life,“She describes how the dog has helped her cope with trauma from childhood and early adulthood.
Swan is a survivor of abuse, kidnapping, rape and drug addiction. As a result of her past, she suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety, bulimia, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, and self-hatred. She also has autism, which went undetected for five decades.
After being diagnosed with hepatitis C in 2011, Swan set out to turn her life around. When Kratu came along, he filled her days with purpose, exercise, and laughter. She found that caring about him left her with less time for negative thoughts.
Kratu helped Swan overcome another major obstacle by inspiring her to attend Crufts for the first time. Crowds were one of the causes of her illness, but Kratu’s mental health therapy and companionship made it possible.
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Together, Kratu and Swan visited university students in Romania to help change perceptions about rescue dogs like pet. They also appeared on Autism’s Got Talent, a video-based contest platform for adults and children with autism.
Kratu has even volunteered as an ambassador for the UK’s All-Party Parliamentary Dog Welfare Advisory Group, which seeks to improve the health and wellbeing of dogs and their people.
Swan hopes that her story can help others struggling with mental illness.
“Your dog doesn’t come and kick you out of bed and go, ‘Get up and shower.’ You decide to drop the cover, go to the bathroom, brush your teeth. You make that decision,” she said. “If you want to be empowered, healthy and whole, you have to say, ‘I’m doing this for me, because I deserve it and I want to do it.’ And to be present for your dog. ”
RELATED: Rescue Dogs attempt one last agility course before retiring. Seriously fail!
In addition to self-care, Swan advises people to take care of the mental health needs of their dogs. She is a proponent of non-violent training/positive reinforcement. Stronger methods may have made Kratu a fiercer competitor, but where is the fun there? We like our Kratu silly and carefree!
Follow Kratu on Facebook for more fun videos and inspirational updates.
