Loyal four legged friend stays by hospital bedside of young autistic boy

And if an autistic seizure occurs when James is alone with Mahe, the dog whines or barks to raise the alarm.

Photos of a nine-year old boy from New Zealand and his service dog are going viral online and tugging at the heartstrings of viewers around the world, TODAY reports.

James recently attended an MRI scan to diagnose the cause of seizures he has been suffering from. However, there is one special friend James can always rely on: Mahe, his black Labrador assistance dog.

“He got his face really close to James, who was asleep by that point, and he reached in to sniff him”, Isaac said. “It was quite touching”.

Mahe has not only changed James’ life, but the whole family’s as well, Isaac said. What’s more remarkable is that James, who doesn’t speak and would experience severe anxiety before Mahe joined the family, usually recoils from the touch of his parents and family – but when Mahe curls up to him, he stays calm and snuggles right back, as made evident in the sweet photos.

‘But when we got Mahe, James would just sit there waiting for us to finish our coffee, ‘ she said.

James Isaac and Mahe are inseparable.

“He is a real part of the family now”, Michelle said.

A series of photos posted on Facebook shows Mahe keeping a watchful eye on James as he went about his visit earlier this month.

“For Mahe, James is his best mate, he is all about James”, his mom, Michelle, told the New Zealand site Stuff.