DANGEROUS SYMPTOMS

My roommate works at the local animal shelter. Since we live here in the progressive (:->) town of Chapel Hill, this animal shelter actually has an emergency rescue service for animals, replete with a special van outfitted with animal carriers as well as an around-the-clock hot line used to dispatch volunteers at any time of the day or night. Volunteers are typically assigned shifts of two or three day stretches -- such as weekends -- and carry a beeper and a mobile phone so that they can be easily reached.

Anyway, recently my roommate was talking with another volunteer, whom I'll call "Hugh". Hugh related that he was on duty one weekend and got a call in the early evening from a woman saying that her dog had been hit by a car. Hugh hurriedly drove the van over there to see a small pooch cavorting happily around the lawn. Hugh stopped the animal long enough to give it a quick examination, and could discover no serious injuries -- broken bones, dislocations, signs of internal bleeding, stuff like that. The only thing he found was a small cut on the dog's lip. He released the dog, which went back to playing, and he told the woman that there didn't appear to be any serious injuries and that the dog looked fine. The woman had been somewhat distraught, so Hugh added, "If he starts acting strangely, just let us know and we'll come right back out." The woman thanked him and he left. Apparently, end of story.

Not quite. Hugh goes to bed that night, gets awakened at 2 AM by a call. It's the woman. She's concerned about her dog. Hugh asks why.

The woman answers, "He's acting sleepy.".