"On the day that Jacqueline was going to the home, she was advised by text that the dogs were, as they normally were, out of their crates, with no warning to be extra careful or anything like that," John Durand told TODAY by phone from Coppell, a suburb of Dallas.

Picture: Alex Coppel.Source:News Corp AustraliaThe odds of having a heart attack at all were 11 per cent lower in single dog owners.“A very interesting finding in our study was that dog ownership was especially prominent as a protective factor in persons living alone,” said study author Tove Fall, “which is a group reported previously to be at higher risk of cardiovascular disease and death than those living in a multi-person household.