Service Dog

Post Reply New Topic

We went yesterday to meet some of the service dogs. Maddy who is my daughter with Classic autism latched onto a white lab named Grouchy (who was not grouchy btw). He will be fully trained and ready next year when it will be time for me to get my service dog. He got out of the big pen they had and refused to go back in (they use what they call "soft training" so they dont force them to do things that are upsetting to them) so they put a leash on him and my husband was talking to the lady holding him and Maddy walked over and stroked the ladies arm and then took the end of the leash. She took Maddy's other hand and showed her how to pet Grouchy. The rest of the time we were there (a bit over and hour) Grouchy stayed with Maddy and even when he sort of pulled to see some other dogs she held on . She sat down on the floor and he laid next to her and she was so calm and so happy just sitting there stroking his fur (he liked it too)...Ive never seen her so calm and quiet, she is either screaming, running, squirming or talking non stop about her tea parties or Lalaloopsy's or echoing commercials, TV shows or singing.

The lady told us it will be easy for me to get a service dog and after we "bond" then Maddy can use him as a calming tool as well. I have several bone diseases and connective tissue disease and something wrong with my nerves that we have not determined yet (hopefully not Multiple sclerosis, we are hoping its coming from my back). So when I get my dog hopefully next year which depends on supply and demand of the dogs and of my issues....surgery ect. I stay at the facility for two weeks which costs 200 euro and then I get to take my dog home. It is free but the dogs belong to the company and if you dont care for them (or the dog turns out not to be a good fit) then they take them away.....which would never happen in our case. They dont care that we have other animals, they teach the dogs to be kind to rabbits and other small animals, cats, other dogs. We have a rabbit, three cats and two dogs....one that is my sons dog (he has aspergers and the bunny is his too) and we have our elderly collie who is my husbands dog. Im excited about having my dog and Im excited that he or she may be able to help Maddy as well. When our dog is 10 or so they retire them and we get the choice to keep them or not which is nice, Im definitely keeping my dog! I think this will help me be more self-sufficient and happy....Im somewhat depressed over my conditions and my 24 year old sons recent death. Also my dog will also help me with my French and maybe talking to people. I have to learn more French (I have a year) as my dog has been trained in French.

A lot has happened recently, I have a wonderful pain doctor. I am going to the Geneticist and my new Neurosurgeon next week. My Neurologist did a study on my nerves and she says I have deep root nerve problems that are coming from my brain (MS) or my back (fingers crossed). Im hoping the Neurosurgeon wont be Mr Ego like a lot of them are and I hope that he will do the surgery on my back so that I can sit. My spine is bowing out so far poor Maddy thinks Im pregnant as its pushing out my stomach and her aide is pregnant and one of our aides for the house are as well.

I think these dogs (they were all labs and goldens btw) are awesome for our kids. For my son our little Bichon Mix is what calms him and he enjoys training him, he is a smart little dog. I know in the US you have to raise money for you dog and you have to pay about 12thousand or so.....but maybe its worth it....or you can relocate to Lyon France . Its good that we have to wait a year because, as said, I have surgery (the ortho surgeon was too scared to do it, he is afraid he will cause paralysis....but if they dont do the surgery my artificial disk is going to slip and could damage my spinal cord or tear my blood vessels and I could bleed to death.) Its very scary and frustrating that doctors are actually afraid to treat me. At least my neurologist told my Rheumatologist that for my mental health I needed an electric wheel chair.....so neener on stupid doctor who I fired who refused to give me one. I also have a new doctor who will fit me with the right type that I need....right now I need one that tilts backward as I can not sit long.....its very painful and dangerous. Standing or laying is the best thing but I cant stand long and when I walk its like a drunk person thanks to the nerve issues.

So hopefully next year things will be better....who knows maybe Ill get Grouchy who Maddy insists is named Charlie !

So glad you gave us all an update! The service dog sounds wonderful for both you and Maddy. What tasks will he assist you with? It is a shame that insurance and Medicare don't cover these dogs in the US. Seems as effective as many of the other medical devices out there.

we are going through the process of applying for a service dog for our Aspie son. We find out next week if he is accepted into the program. One of the things that really stuck out to me was that she said when matching the kids and dogs that there are dozens of times where they thought they would make one match but it didn't turn out to be a good match. She said the most successful matches have been when the dog chooses the child. Just like that the dog will approach the child and stake his claim like it was always meant to be. She said in the 20 years of doing this, those instinctual dog matches have been the strongest.

For me, my dog can pick things up and help me to pull off my clothes and shoes/socks. He can also help with my depression and my social issues. Maybe I can pick up more French when I am out with him/her. I feel more comfortable when someone is with me so my dog is sort of like someone. He or she will be trained to walk by my wheel chair and I will have to learn all the commands in the two weeks I will be there.

I was really upset yesterday, I have serious nerve issues, my feet drop and I cant even cross my legs....me legs are like leg. Its a strange almost paralysis type of thing but I can feel my legs and feet....they just hang like they are paralyzed! The neurosurgeon i was sent to doesnt want anything to do with me. She just does simple things like cut parts of disks when they are pressing on nerves. I dont know why my Neurologist sent me to her! She basically told me no one will operate on me other than putting in a pain pump. I will know more about what is going on after my big nerve test but the neurologist says it takes a long time to get in for that test. So Ill just wait!