a world of difference A boy and his dog
Each morning my husband and I are greeted by a black and white spotted standard poo- dle, a service dog. She paws at the floor and rubs her side up against the bed as if to say “My boy is awake. Mama, get up, my boy is awake”.
Kaid is her boy ~ Kaid is our son ~ Kaid is a boy with an Autism Spectrum Disorder
Kaid struggles each and every day of his life. He has difficulty socializing with others, communicating, exhibits repetitive behav- iors and struggles with the way his brain pro- cesses sensory information. These struggles are often accompanied by extreme behav- ioral challenges we call “meltdowns”. Lizzy is his helper, companion, his best friend!
Lizzy is always letting us know what is go- ing on with her boy. She alerts us if there is something wrong or if he is in danger or even if he just needs a little extra help with something.
The day we received Kaid’s diagnosis we knew that our family was faced with a world of differences and struggles that were hard to comprehend at the time.
Almost a year after receiving Kaid’s diagno- sis we began working with Allie Keaton of My Service Dog, Inc. to see if Kaid and our family would be good candidates for a ser- vice dog.
The day we met Lizzy is a day not to be forgotten. The instant bond between Lizzy and Kaid was amazing! Lizzy was so content to be by Kaid’s side. We knew she would make a world of difference in his life.
Lizzy is always by Kaid’s side helping him throughout his day. She does everything with Kaid. She attends school with him, helping him through the transitions of the day. She is there watching him on the playground. She is there when he needs sensory input help- ing him by providing a socially appropriate outlet by giving him a “bear hug” rather than him rolling on the floor or crashing into the walls. She is helping him with his academics by sitting under his desk so he can rub his feet on her if he begins to feel overwhelmed or anxious about a test which before would
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by Susan Qassom My Service Dog, Inc.
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have resulted in him rocking back and forth and pulling on his hair. Lizzy loves going to school!
Lizzy helps Kaid in so many ways! She helps to provide safety for Kaid by not letting him wonder off when we are in public. She helps to remind him to look both ways before crossing the street and watch for cars in a parking lot. Lizzy also helps him when we go to a restaurant to eat. Lizzy sits under the table right by his chair and Kaid rubs his feet on her obtaining the sen- sory input he needs, which allows him to sit through the meal (she helps with this in the lunch room at school and at home too). When we go out in public because of his SID Kaid has a hard time with spatial awareness, which makes it difficult for Kaid to walk in a straight line; he tends to always be in someone’s way, on the floor, running into things or wandering away. Lizzy helps Kaid walk in a straight line with the family and transition from one location or activity to the next. She will not allow him to wan- der more than 10 feet away from us.
When Kaid begins to go into “meltdown mode” Lizzy is once again by his side. Lizzy can sense that he is becoming upset and needs help; to help him, Lizzy begins to nuzzle him with her nose. We then help Kaid to lie down on his stomach and she is able to lay across his back with the front half of her body providing a deep pres- sure sensation that helps him calm down very quickly. Prior to Lizzy’s help we were having 30 to 45 min. meltdowns. She also is very helpful in the car. Riding in the car for any longer than 15 minutes proves to be disastrous. Lizzy rides right next to him
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