The Pet Tree House - Where Pets Are Family Too : Special Needs The Pet Tree House - Where Pets Are Family Too : Special Needs
Showing posts with label Special Needs. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Special Needs. Show all posts

Monday, July 30, 2018

How to Choose the Right Pet for a Family with Special Needs


Did you know that the presence of guinea pigs in a room can increase social behaviors in children with autism?

Researchers at the University of Queensland in Australia recently published a study demonstrating a significant measurable increase in talking, smiling, laughing, looking at faces, making tactile contact and social approaches when children with autism and their peers played with 2 guinea pigs in a classroom.

Sooner or later, most families of children with special needs begin to think about adopting a pet for therapeutic reasons.  Of course, there are advantages and disadvantages to every type of pet.  Sometimes a pet is not logistically possible, but any pet has the potential to enrich family life.

Here are ten of the most popular pets for beginners, along with the pros and cons for each one.  If your family wants to adopt any type of pet, large or small, consider a rescue organization such as those listed on petfinder.com.

To read more on this story, click here: How to Choose the Right Pet for a Family with Special Needs


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Wednesday, January 24, 2018

Twin Special Needs Girls Adopt Disabled Pit Bull For Christmas


It’s not easy being different. Tianna and Gianna know that better than most people. The twin 10-year-old girls are legally blind, and Gianna suffers from autism. It’s hard for them to find someone who truly understands what they go through. Maybe that’s why this year they only had one Christmas wish. They wanted a disabled dog who would love them and understand them.

To read more on this story, click here: Twin Special Needs Girls Adopt Disabled Pit Bull For Christmas




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Monday, July 11, 2016

Lowes in Regina, Saskatchewan Hires a Special Needs Employee and Makes a Vest and Name Tag for His Service Dog


A man in Canada was having trouble finding a job. His support dog, Blue, accompanies him at all times because of his special needs, and most employers weren’t ready to take on a pooch employee in addition to his human. But one Lowes home improvement store in Regina, Saskatchewan was willing to hire the man and his dog, and they took it a step further.

The store created an employee vest and name tag for their new canine worker, and now Blue is waiting with his owner to greet you at the store. Take a look at the adorable doggy uniform! I’d be happy to visit stores that had cute dogs working alongside humans.

Some Reddit users have questioned Blue’s ability to assist customers with their needs. One user said, “Betcha he doesn’t know jack s**t about plumbing either.” Another user replied, “Nonsense. I’m sure he knows that the American standard wall mounted toilets with wide bowls are MUCH easier to drink out of, as opposed to the non-mounted elongated ones.” Maybe Blue will have some of the answers, after all!







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Monday, February 15, 2016

Family of Autistic Boy Launched a Fundraising Campaign to Get $12,500 Needed for a Therapy Dog: Taylor Swift Donates $10,000


Two schoolgirls who created their own version of one of Taylor Swift's most famous songs to raise money for their autistic relative have received a huge donation from the popstar herself.

Jordan Fox and Makaylee Duhon, who are both 12, joined together to rewrite the lyrics to Swift's hit 'Blank Space' as a way of helping Jacob Hill, who suffers from autism.

Jacob, who is five, suffers from the condition, which makes it harder for him socialize and he is prone to wandering off from his parents.

His mother Allison was keen for Jacob to be given a service dog, which would stop him from putting himself in constant danger.

His family then launched a fund-raising campaign to gather together the $12,500 needed to train a dog and his sister Jordan and cousin Makaylee decided to rework one of Swift's songs where they plead for donations.

The video of their song, their own take on Blank Space, was posted to YouTube and spotted by the hitmaker who wanted to help out the cause.

She then went on the appeal's Gofundme page and donated $10,000, meaning the family now have enough for a therapy dog.

Writing on the page, Swift and her mother Andrea Swift, wrote: “Jacob, we hope you love your new dog! Please tell your cousins that they did a great job on the song! Love, Taylor and Andrea Swift.”

And when the two girls were told that Ms. Swift had made the donation, they were shocked.

Makaylee told KPRC: “She was like, 2Taylor Swift just donated $10,000.
And we were all like, 'Oh my gosh!”

While Jordan added: “I couldn't just look at this situation and ignore it, because he's my brother.

I love him a lot. He's really special to me.”

A service dog will now be chosen for Jacob and will take two and a half years to train before going to live with the family.








Schoolgirls Jordan Fox and Makaylee Duhon, who created their own version of one of Taylor Swift's most famous songs to raise money for their autistic relative Jacob Hill, pictured.


The two girls reworked the words to the song Blank Space and performed a music video to go with it, which they posted online.



After posting the video online for Jacob, left, it was spotted by Taylor Swift, right, who donated $10,000 to help him afford a service dog.


The hitmaker spotted the girls' song on YouTube and wanted to help Jacob afford to get his service dog.


When the two girls were told by Jacob's mother, Allison that Swift had made the donation, they were shocked.


Thanks to the popstar's donation, the family now have enough money to afford to train the dog.



The message that Swift and her mother Andrea left on Gofundme after making their donation.


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Friday, December 25, 2015

Twin Special Needs Girls Wanted a Disabled Dog Who Would Love Them and Understand Them: They Got Her


It’s not easy being different. Tianna and Gianna know that better than most people. The twin 10-year-old girls are legally blind, and Gianna suffers from autism. It’s hard for them to find someone who truly understands what they go through. Maybe that’s why this year they only had one Christmas wish. They wanted a disabled dog who would love them and understand them.

Well sometimes Christmas wishes come true. Carmela is a beautiful Pit Bull whose legs and spine are deformed, likely the result of being kept in a small cage her whole life until a grooming salon owner named Sandy Roberto rescued her. When the girls’ mother told Roberto about their wish, she knew that Carmela had to go to the girls.

Carmela showed up in a red Santa suit and surprised the little girls, who immediately loved her. Tianna says Carmela is their new best friend forever, and Gianna, who didn’t speak much, can’t stop talking about her new dog. The girls hope that everyone considers adopting differently abled dogs this holiday season. They have just as much love to give as any other dog.

Click on picture to start video







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Monday, May 18, 2015

Heartwarming Story: Two Teens, Both with Disabilities, Go to Different High Schools and Had Never Met, Until Their Service Dogs… Brought Them Together


Seniors Delaney Johnson and Nick Ackerman, strangers until a few weeks before their high school proms, both planned to skip the big night–that is, until they and their adorable service dogs Troy and Griffin met. What happened next is something you just have to see for yourself!

The two teens, both with disabilities, go to different high schools and hadn’t even met until their service dogs, in a way, brought them together.

Nick, who has a service dog named Troy, was interviewing Delaney, who has a service dog named Griffin, for a school video project on service dogs.

Making small talk, she asked him, “Are you all geared for prom?” When he told her he had no plans to go to his, she volunteered to go with him. He accepted.
With their service dogs along, they attended his school’s prom, then hers.

A Lansing State Journal columnist and photographer went along .

Delaney, 17, goes to Haslett High School, where, before she got her 2-year-old Dutch shepherd Griffin, she would faint or pass out up to 20 times a day due to narcolepsy.

Between medication and help from Griffin, that condition — and a second neurological condition called cataplexy — have been brought under control.
Her dog acts to distract her if she’s experiencing anxiety and, in case of an attack, he’s trained to stay with her, lying on top of her if she becomes incapacitated so that she feels protected.

“Since I got Griffin, I’ve not had any major cataplexy attacks at all,” said Johnson, a singer and songwriter who plans to take Griffin with her this fall to attend Grand Valley State University. “…He’s my own personal little bodyguard.”

Nick attends Forest Hills Central High School in Grand Rapids, where he’s a champion debater. His service dog Troy helps Nick, who was born without arms, do everything from carrying things to zipping up his coat.

Nick, who plans to attend Eastern Michigan University in the fall, met Delaney two weeks ago, when he interviewed her for a class project on service dogs and the subject of proms came up.

On May 2, they went to his prom. Last Saturday, they went to hers.

The columnist and photographer accompanied the foursome — from home, where they posed for family photos, to a sushi dinner and then to the prom itself.

“I was going to stay home and eat ice cream and watch movies,” Delaney said later. “I’m just so glad I went…It was an amazing time.”









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