What a Doodle Can Do.

[Mary Walker]

Okay as per request...here ya go Leigh. There is a little boy in Canada that we placed a dog with in June. This little fellow was only three but severely Autistic. Beautiful, sweet little boy. They decided after seeing his face light up when dogs would come on TV that he might benefit from a dog. There are only two service orgs in Canada that train Autism Support Dogs and they both charge in excess of 19,000 dollars. Waiting lists were about two years. So, somehow through God's will they found me and I accepted them into the program immediately. This boy's biggest problem was getting from point A to point B safely, and without melting down, screaming, or begging to be held. Going on about 40 lbs he was getting too heavy for mom. Who knew if a dog would help or not but hey...let's try right? I began to search for a dog just like I am for this other little boy. Kendra Vestal from Noble Vestal Kennels in Indiana stepped forward and donated a doodle for this little boy. Months and months of training later we were off. I want you to know, that on day two, this little boy who had accomplished walking maybe 25 feet in his whole life walked 1/2 a mile with his Doodle "Buddy". Day three we went to a shopping mall and he walked all around for an hour looking at everything. He had a blast while we were all in tears. Anyway, here is a picture of that historic walk. If you don't notice anything else, look at the smile on this kids face!

[Kelli, Fenway, & Dustin Pedroia]

What an amazing and touching story! I just love to hear about success cases like this. Doodles are great companions and I can't imagine that there is much of anything that they cannot do.

[Leslie and Halas]

Wow! Thanks for sharing that story. You and Kendra are wonderful for helping this family.

[2itampco1w9fa]

Wow, what a great story, I teared up just looking at the picture. How neat to be able to bring so much joy to a child! Great job!

[2widfg8okrqg5]

What a beautiful boy and a beautiful dood! They are lucky to have one another!!!

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

Thank you. I work with special needs children so I know first hand how difficult their lives are. What joy that pup is bringing to his life. You and Kendra have certainly earned your stars in heaven with this.

[Mary Walker]

LOL nahhh. I just love helping. Training dogs rescued me from teaching school which for me was a miserable profession. I did not want to be there any longer and when I got pregnant with my first child it was the excuse I needed to get out. Learning how much I love being a mom gave me the motivation to stay out and work on building my business here. I want to help as much as I can and I know I offer a fantastic and caring program.

[Maya]

Such a wonderful story, my eyes are tearing up. I don't know ANYTHING about this topic (dogs helping special needs kids) - please enlighten me - do Doodles have some specific characteristics that make them good companions for special needs kids, or are they easier to train, or are many breeds OK for this 'job' ???

Also - that cute boy looks straight at the camera and smiles! I always thought that severely autistic kids are very non-responsive, kind of in their own world... maybe it's the dog that's making him more responsive?

[Mary Walker]

Yes its the miracle of a dog. That little guy has started making a lot more effort communicate and notice surroundings especially when his dog is with him. I think that Doodles certainly have a knack for this kind of work. I love using Labs too, but if there is an allergy involved, or if the dog will be attending school with the child then I recommend a doodle almost every time. If you want, I have a website www.heritagespecialtydogs.com if you want to check out what we teach them to do and what they can do.

[Janie]

What a fantastic story..the boys smile is awesome. Kendra and you did a fabulous thing.

[Wendy and Eddie]

This is not nearly as amazing as your story, but my doodle, Elmo, wakes me up at night when my hands fall asleep. And last year when I got strep throat and the antibiotics weren't working, every time I woke up with the chills, I'd find both doodles stretched out on either side of me. (My cats used me as a heater whenever my fever rose, then vanished when I got cold, traitors!)

Sorry if I'm not supposed to go off topic, I'm fairly new to posting on groups. Wendy

[Mary Walker]

I don't think you are off topic at all. I appreciate it the sharing. This community is awesome. Dogs are amazing. My chocolate lab woke us all up even before the smoke detectors went off when our house caught fire. If she had not, the house would have probably been a total loss with us in it. It was only seconds away from getting into the insulation in the walls and ceiling downstairs which would have been the floor upstairs where we were. She was just a baby then, but her instincts said, "we are in trouble". LOL about the cats. Yeah they can be pretty rotten sometimes. I keep a couple just as assistant dog trainers but I am not a huge cat person.

[Wendy and Eddie]

That is amazing! Dogs are great!!