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
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
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!
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.
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.
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.”
