talent hounds segment of max and chester.

Max and Chester were featured in a wonderful short film about dogs helping people living with Autism featuring National Service Dogs and our family with NSD Chester our "healing balm". These dogs can make such a difference in lives. The film is from the documentary Talent Hounds that airs on the Pet Network. Check out www.nsd.on.ca and www.talenthounds.ca.

an autism service dog for max.

Chester, an autism service dog from National Service Dogs (NSD), joined our family on October 26th. We applied to NSD for an autism service dog two years ago. While the wait list was lengthy (I think it's down to 18 months now), at the time, Max was only 4 years old. We weren't ready for a dog quite yet - I figured that when Max was 6 years old, that would be about the right age. During our wait, Milk-Bone generously sponsored Max's service dog for $18,000. NSD also raised money for Max's service dog through their annual Easter Egg Hunt For Dogs Event. When I got the call in September that Max would be getting his service dog in October, I was excited and nervous and OMG is this really happening??

I rushed out and bought a dog bed for Max's service dog "to be". Max, who has never slept on a pillow, immediately claimed it as his own. I rushed back out and bought another dog bed for Max's service dog. In the meantime, Animal Planet aired an episode featuring National Service Dogs and two families who had autism service dogs for their sons who have autism. I watched it and bawled my eyes out. I wasn't sad, but uplifted with the possibilities that were opening up for Max. We started talking with Max about the fact that he was going to be getting his very own dog. While he was excited, he didn't totally understand what it would mean to have an autism service dog. In retrospect, neither did we.

And then came Chester. The incredible trainers at NSD matched Chester to Max by reviewing 2 weeks of Max's behaviour data, Max's busy schedule, and meeting for a follow-up with myself and Max two weeks before team training in Cambridge. They also took how well I worked with him into consideration. As lead handler, they had me work with all seven of the service dogs that were going out as part of the Fall 2012 class. I like to think Chester and I had a special bond right off the bat, but really, he was terrific with all of the families. The picture of him chewing on his bone was the first picture I took of him when they brought him to me and told me he would be Max's autism service dog at the end of the first full day of team training. I was on cloud nine. And after a week of team training in Cambridge, I headed home with Chester to introduce him to "his boy".

We had been told not to expect any Disney moments when introducing our new autism service dogs into our homes. Often children with autism take months (some even years) to bond with their service dogs. It took Max a couple of hours to feel comfortable to even approach Chester. He started out by petting Chester with his feet and worked his way up to petting him with his hands. At the 3.5 hour mark, Max was laying on Chester, and I started to cry with relief.

Later that night, Chester passed out on the couch (it had been a long week of team training for both of us). Max was very happy having Chester with him on the couch and one of my favourite photos of them was taken as Max reached out to pet his dog. My heart continued to melt.

The next morning, I went to check on Max and Chester, wondering how their first night sharing a bedroom went. They were chilling out together, neither in a hurry to get moving. Truly amazing. Later that day I took Max on his first walk with Chester. He wasn't even hooked up yet, but he held onto the handle attached to Chester's harness like his life depended on it. For the first time in Max's 6 years, he did not try to bolt when we went on a walk together. More tears on my part.

Over the last two weeks, we have continued to settle in as a family (of five!). Max refuses to go to bed if Chester isn't with him.

When Max is playing with his iPad on the couch, he counts on Chester for support.

When we're on the road, Chester keeps a close eye on his boy.

When Max has to go to the dentist, Chester keeps him company in the waiting room.

On walks, he reminds Max to stop and look both ways before he crosses the street.

And when Max isn't feeling well, he has his back.

There is so much more to say, but the thing that stands out the most is that we feel blessed to have Chester as part of our family and most importantly as Max's autism service dog. He has brought peace to our home, and a calmness to Max that brings joy to our hearts. We are only two weeks in and I can't wait to see what the future brings for Chester and Max. Stay tuned for more of their adventures!

one step closer to max's autism service dog.

This past Sunday was a very special day for our family and a certain future four pawed member who will be joining us at some point in late 2012.  We were presented with a cheque from Milk-Bone for $18,000 at the All About Pets Show.  This money will be used by National Service Dogs to fund Max's Autism Service Dog.

Max did remarkably well at the show, especially considering the presentation was an hour later than we had prepared for.  I don't think I'll bring him to another huge show like this anytime soon though as it was very stressful for him (and the rest of us!).  Hopefully having a service dog will make experiences like this easier for Max.  A big thank you to Milk-Bone for helping Max get one step closer to his dog!

photo essay: easter/birthdaypalooza weekend.

This has been a whirlwind of a weekend.  I don't know where to start.  We have been on the go since Friday and while we have had a lot of fun, I think we are all breathing a sigh of relief that things will get back to *normal* tomorrow (normal? what does that even mean around these parts?).

Thursday:
My folks arrived from BC (yay!!).  Cameron was so excited when they arrived that she couldn't stop running from one end of the house to the other, grabbing every toy she could find to show it to them.  I think they liked their personal pint size welcome wagon.

Friday:
The National Service Dogs For Autism Easter Egg Hunt (for dogs) was held at Bronte Park.  The entire family went to the park to take in the wondrous site of what seemed like hundreds of dogs romping around the park searching for eggs (filled with Milkbone treats).  I swear, you have never seen so many well behaved dogs in one place.

Scott took on the job of making sure Max stayed out of trouble.  With such a wide open space, Max was interested in running and running and...running.  I think Scott had a good workout.

I took a lot of photos of dogs.  This little guy (Archie) was my favourite.  Look at that face!

Cam collected a bunch of eggs (the organizers were kind enough not to scold her, as only the dogs were supposed to be collecting eggs!).  Every time she came back with a handful they took them and put them back out in the park for the dogs.  Check out her new shades (thanks Grandma!).

Beautiful dogs:

Tomorrow: Birthdaypalooza photo essay!

national service dogs for autism.

This Fall, I applied for an Autism Service Dog for Max from National Service Dogs. Part of their application process is to have an in home interview with the family. We received a visit last night from Janine and her ambassador dog, Nikon. She spent 2 hours with us going over the program, answering questions, and no doubt observing us to make sure we are up to the task of bringing a service dog into our home.

Max typically likes animals. Whenever we are on a walk he is interested in the dogs he sees and will pet the animal if the owner stops and says it is okay. I think that Max was a little bit overwhelmed last night as we have never had a dog that size (Nikon is 80 lbs!) in our house, and we also had the entire Carefoot crew in attendance. With Janine, that made 5 adults, 2 kids and a dog. Nikon is an amazingly patient dog. While he isn't a working service dog, he has received all of the service dog training and stayed calm through all of the noise, screaming, getting poked and prodded by Cameron, having Max rest his feet on him, and being the centre of attention.


 
Nikon is a very observant dog, and he kept his eyes locked on Max for most of the visit.  It was interesting to me that even though we didn't specifically try to have Max and Nikon interact, Nikon seemed to know that Max was the reason he was at our home.  Janine explained that it can take a fair bit of time for a child with Autism to bond with their dog.  The main reason for an Autism Service Dog is for safety precautions.  With a  service dog, I wouldn't have to worry about Max bolting.  We will be able to take Max places we aren't currently able to go to (even travel) once he has a service dog because safety issues will be addressed.  Also, once Max is bonded to his dog, his dog becomes his constant, instead of his environment.  Right now Max always sleeps at home because being in his bed is his constant.  Our hope is that once he has a dog, he will be able to sleep over at his Nana and Bumpa's house, because he would feel comfortable and safe as long as his dog is with him. 


I didn't want Nikon to leave.

I had a soft spot for Nikon because he reminded me so much of my mom's dog Scout.  The Autism Service Dogs are typically labs, retrievers, or lab retriever crosses.  They are bred by National Service Dogs in Cambridge, Ontario, specifically for working with children Autism.  The dogs are matched to a child based on their personality traits and the needs of the child.  The current waiting period to receive a service dog is 2.5 years, so if we are accepted into the program, Max would receive his dog sometime in the Spring of 2013.  I have been asked by several people how to donate to National Service Dogs.  You can even donate in Max's name so that your contribution is applied towards his dog! I'm really excited about working towards Max having his own dog.  It's a ways off, but time has a way of flying by so I have a feeling we'll be adding a four legged friend to our family before we know it!