By Jessica Kellogg – For most of his nine years, Kaden and his family have been living a rather isolated life. Beth, Kaden’s mom, describes Kaden as a “friendly and social, but quiet and reserved boy.” He was diagnosed with Level 2 Autism when he was 3 years old. Commonplace activities like shopping for groceries or going out to dinner as a family were insurmountable obstacles, because Kaden could quickly become overwhelmed. Beth recalls how in the early days of Covid shutdowns, their daily lives continued without much change. “Having to stay home all the time actually helped people understand …
autism assist dog
Autism Assist Dog Bonnie Brings Happiness and More to Ellie
Eleven-year-old Ellie loves stuffed animals. She has a sloth named Sunny, a penguin named Pip, a dog named Bluey, a shark named William, and many more. She says, “My stuffed animals make me feel happy.” Now Ellie has a new animal in her life: a black Lab Autism Assist Dog named Bonnie. Born with Cri du chat syndrome, a rare genetic disorder similar to autism, Ellie was not expected to walk, talk, or eat on her own. Her mom, Kari, says, “It was a pretty grim diagnosis, but, since day one, we’ve really done everything in our power just to …
Ian and Dewey “Walk on” Toward Greater Security
Ian, Autism Assist Dog Dewey, and Ian’s mom pose for a photo. Ian lives in a full house with a busy family, which includes his parents, an older brother, a younger sister, and several family pets. Yet making room for Autism Assist Dog Dewey was no problem for this 8 year old and his family. Ian’s parents, Laura and Chadd, heard about Can Do Canines from friends whose son received an Autism Assist Dog from us not long ago. They were excited, but the moment Ian met Dewey was even more thrilling than they expected. Laura says, “I knew that …
A Lab to Calm the Storms
When Kim and Eric began considering an Autism Assist Dog for their son, Noah, they were hoping not only for a wonderful companion Noah could have growing up, but also a calming presence in his life. Noah’s autistic tendencies caused him to have what Kim describes as regular, lengthy meltdowns multiple times each day. Can Do Canines knew that Xavi, a 3 ½-year-old black Lab, could be the perfect calm within any storm. So when Xavi entered Noah’s life, the change was sudden and dramatic. Noah’s meltdowns have drastically decreased and are shorter in duration. Kim says, “I won’t even …
Demi Offers Extremely Helpful Benefits
“It’s been a very emotionally challenging eight years as a mother,” admits Tiffany, mother of not only 8-year-old Lucas, who has autism, but also two younger children, including another who has autism. Tiffany explains that Lucas struggles with his emotions. “[His] brain tells him everything to the extreme, sad, mad, nervous, even excited; it’s heightened.” As he has grown up, Lucas has had a tendency to do what is called “elopement” if something would upset him. Tiffany says, “He would just take off running because he wanted to avoid those feelings.” If it happens while they’re on their way somewhere, …
Receiving Autism Assist Dog Xenith May be a High Point in Gideon’s Journey
The word xenith is equated to “the highest point.” However one of main responsibilities Autism Assist Dog Xenith has with his forever person, Gideon, is to keep emotional highs in check. Joe, 11-year-old Gideon’s father, explained, “The biggest problem we’ve been dealing with has been emotional regulation.” Diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder as a toddler, Gideon sometimes feels frustrated when trying to interact with people. Joe explained, “Social interaction is a real stressor for him because he doesn’t intuitively understand the rules, but desperately wants to interact, so our hope was that the dog would also provide an opportunity to …
Autism Assist Dog Pippi Becomes the Center of Giovanni’s World
Ten-year-old Giovanni loves to go to the park. His parents, Alex and Kristy, explain that since he has Autism Spectrum Disorder, park outings sometimes meant that Giovanni would lose track of where he was in relation to the adult providing supervision. As Alex says, Giovanni would “get in his own world.” Now, however, Giovanni has Autism Assist Dog Pippi in his world. “She keeps him aware of his surroundings,” says Alex. “He knows she’s around and he looks for her.” And it’s not difficult to pick out Pippi. She’s the black Labrador Retriever with the bright eyes and the tails …
Working Together to Lick the Fears
“He came out of his shell,” says Andrea, speaking of when her 8-year-old son, Jaxson, received Autism Assist Dog Natalie from Can Do Canines in late 2020. Jaxson, who has a combination of diagnoses in addition to autism, including anxiety, used to struggle to be by himself. Andrea explains that not only was Jaxson afraid of leaving their Prior Lake house, he couldn’t even go into a different room of the home, including the bathroom, without someone else. Natalie’s loving and calm presence has changed that. Andrea says, “He seems a lot less worried about being alone.” She illustrates, “Once …
Big Enough to Overwhelm a Dog, Smart…and Calm…Enough to Not Want To
At age 13, Preston is big for his age at 5 feet, 10 inches and 160 pounds. He’s also fast, being able to easily outrun at least his mom, if not his dad. In the past, Preston’s Autism Spectrum Disorder has caused him to bolt from his parents and to have emotional meltdowns in public. When he was a toddler, those situations weren’t nearly as dangerous and troublesome, but parents Nikki and Corey knew to get help for Preston before their situation got out of control. They applied with Can Do Canines when Preston was just 3 years old and …
The Journey of Fear to Friendship
Gavin deals with a disability that is more than what meets the eye, especially considering eye contact has been a challenge for him. At 5 years old, Gavin was diagnosed with autism, after spending several days testing at Mayo Clinic. His mother, Jenny, didn’t know other children with autism, but some resources at Mayo had suggested an autism assistance dog. Then, a family friend who was involved with Can Do Canines introduced Jenny to this organization. Gavin had been initially fearful of dogs, but during the application process time period, he began reading to a therapy dog at school and …