Benjamin and Hope had no doubt that their family dog Killian loved their son. They were happy that Finn had some company, as he was an only child.
The story began in 2012 when the couple decided they needed to find a nanny to look after Finn while they were at work.
Alexis Khan
They hired a girl named Alexis Khan. Benjamin and Hope believed she was the perfect fit for this position, as she had plenty of experience and seemed like a great person overall.
Oh, how wrong they were...
Their Dog Started Acting Strange
For the first few weeks that she babysat their son, everything seemed fine. But after the fifth month of Alexis staying in their house, Benjamin and Hope started noticing changes in their dog's behavior.
Killian was acting distant, but only towards Alexis.
He Started Barking At Her
Every time Alexis entered Finn's room, Killian would start barking and growling at her.
That wasn't like him at all. Killian was a friendly dog who never showed any signs of aggression. Something wasn't right.
It Was Getting Worse And Worse
"He was very aggressive towards her, and a few times we actually had to physically restrain our dog from going towards her," Benjamin recalled.
He had no idea why their dog was behaving this way towards Alexis. It was only a few weeks later did they realize what was going on at home while they were at work...
Killian Was Trying To Tell Them Something
In their eyes, Alexis wasn't a bad nanny by any means. But Benjamin and Hope began to suspect that Killian was trying to communicate something to them about their son's babysitter.
So, Hope decided to set up a test to see what was going on at home. One day before heading off to work, she put her phone under the couch and activated a memo-recording app on it.
She Was Horrified
When Hope returned home, she played the video. She was horrified by what she saw.
The video started off with Alexis cursing at their son. But then, it got even worse. Alexis can be heard hitting and slapping Finn for several minutes.
They Were Devastated
Benjamin and Hope felt like they had failed as parents. They hired a monster to look after their baby, and now their son would be scarred for life.
Now, they finally understood why their dog was acting weird around Alexis. He had to witness the abuse every single day. Alexis was sentenced to three years in jail. But Benjamin and Hope didn't think this was enough.
She Has A Permanent Record
However, the real joy came when the couple found out that Alexis has a permanent record, which means that she can't work with children ever again.
It didn't take long for the media outlets to hear about the cruel nanny and how their brave dog saved little Finn.
They Can't Stop Thinking About It
To this day, they still think about the video, wishing they could erase this memory forever. “It started with cussing,” Benjamin recalled.
“Then you hear slap noises, and his crying changes from a distress cry to a pain cry. I just wanted to reach through the audiotape, go back in time, and just grab him up.”
He Blames Himself
Benjamin blames himself for everything.
"To know that five months I had handed my child to a monster, not knowing what was going on in my house for that day."
A Her Dog
Benjamin went on to say, “Had our dog not alerted us to the trouble, had my wife’s instincts not said we need to make something happen, it could have been Finn that was killed by the babysitter. You never know.”
They feel so lucky to have Killian in their lives.
Don't Ignore The Signs
The couple hopes that their story will encourage other parents not to ignore any signs that their children could be in danger.
“He is a very personable dog so for him to show aggression toward anyone is a sign that something was wrong,” Benjamin said.
She Could've Killed Him
He believes that if it weren't for their family dog, they might've lost their son.
But what is Alexis up to now?
She Served Her Time In Prison
After pleading guilty to battery and assault in the Charleston Circuit Court, Alexis served her time in prison and will remain on a child abuse registry.
We hope that she will never get her hands on another child again!