Dog credited with saving master's life

LAMPASAS, Texas (KXAN) - Ray McCoy, who has a rare condition called Von Hippel-Lindau Disease , said his dog Excalibur saved his life.

The disease causes tumors to grow in McCoy's spine. Those cause chronic pain, and can even cause him to pass out.

" Sometimes my legs get weak and I fall.Sometimes I move the wrong way and it cuts off the flow to my brain and I black out," he said.

" There were times he would fall and lay outside or on the bathroom floor for two to three hours a time with nobody to help him," said his wife Michelle McCoy." Before we got Excalibur, I would call him a minimum of once an hour from work."

That's where Excalibur came in. Texas Hearing and Service Dogs trained the dog, and gave him free of charge to the McCoys.

"You don't realize how much it's going to change your life until you get a service dog," said Michelle McCoy.

" I drop stuff a lot, he can pick things up for me so I don't have to bend over," said Ray McCoy. "He can open and close doors.He can call 9-1-1 in the event of an emergency."

Ray McCoy said Excalibur took it a step further a few days ago, when Ray fell in the tub.

" The last thing I remember is falling. After that, I don't know how long would've passed, but he was pulling me out of the tub by my ankle," he recalled. "I probably would've drowned."

He said it wasn't the first time his dog saved his life.

Days after he brought Excalibur home, Ray McCoy fell in the yard. The dog ran for help.

" At that point I knew he was more than just a regular dog. It had to be something that God ordained," Ray said. " He's more than a hero. He's been life-changing."

" He's just been a lifesaver. It's a blessing from God," agreed Michelle McCoy.