I gave birth in a hospital — with my dog by my side

This dog is proving that anything is paw-sible.

Belle, a 2-year-old Staffordshire bull terrier, is believed to be one of the first dogs allowed to accompany someone giving birth in a UK hospital.

This doggy “midwife” escorted her owner, Amee Tomkin, 33, to appointments throughout her pregnancy and waited for her in the hospital when she gave birth to her son, Olly.

“Belle was waiting patiently in the hospital room when I went to theater to have my baby,” Tomkin told South West News Service.

She continued: “And when I was wheeled back, she was the first to meet Olly — I couldn’t have done it without her.”

From the time that Belle was just a puppy, she has been trained by Tomkin to act as her service dog, helping her with her autism, OCD and panic attacks.

Belle, whom Tomkin adopted in 2021, can even detect the symptoms of Tomkin’s panic attacks and help her find exits in crowded places.

“She presses buttons on lifts, and she even holds my debit card against the machine to pay for things when we’re shopping,” Tomkin explained.

“Basically, without her, I’m too anxious to leave the house,” she added. “I’d just stay indoors all day and every day.”

So when Tomkin got pregnant with Olly after undergoing 12 years of fertility treatments, it was only natural that Belle would continue to stick by her owner’s side.

The two attended Tomkin’s scans and appointments, with Belle garnering praise for her “beautifully calm nature.”

Tomkin claims Belle learned to listen to her and her baby’s heartbeat during the pregnancy.

“It was as though she was checking the baby’s heartbeat when I was pregnant,” she said.

“She even learned to tell the difference between the baby’s heartbeat and my own … It was such a reassurance.”

And when the day came for Olly to come into the world in April, Tomkin’s midwife asked Milton Keynes University Hospital in Eaglestone, England, if Belle could accompany her owner on the floor.

Hospital bosses reportedly gave the OK.

Tomkin explained it was too nerve-racking to think about giving birth without Belle by her side.

She gave birth by cesarean section, with Belle even sleeping on her hospital bed.

SWNS contacted Milton Keynes University Hospital for comment.

“Belle was allowed to stay with me before I went went to theater, and we were given our own room so she could stay with me and the baby afterwards,” Tomkin said.

And, when Olly arrived, Belle immediately took to him. The two are now the best of friends.

“As soon as she saw Olly, she gently sniffed him then gave his face a tiny lick to welcome him … Since then she has never left his side,” Tomkin gushed.