Service Dog for Caidin

Caidin is my wonderful and charismatic 14 year old son.  Shortly after turning 2, Caidin was diagnosed with Autism.  It was a diagnosis that did not come as a surprise to those of us that were the closest to him.  He was a child with very particular, and peculiar, interests.  A child that did not believe in sleep, did not talk, engaged in repetitive and self-stimulatory behavior flapping, twirling, endlessly oral).  He was not interested in other kids or in doing things that other kids did, nor had he ever.   Very shortly thereafter, Caid and I moved across the country, to an area that offered incredible services and schools that Caidin so desperately needed to pave a pathway to a life where he could more happily function.

At this time, in ways, Caidin is doing great.  He has very high language skills for someone on the spectrum and he is intelligent beyond bounds.  It's just roping that intelligence and focusing it that seems to be the problem.  In the past year and a half, he has also taken to bolting and eloping, or in lay speak, running away.  And he does it everywhere.  We have had to rekey our entire house and gates and we wear the keys around our necks 24/7.  It is next to impossible to go shopping with him or take him to public events, because he runs.  I know all the cops in our neighborhood very well and 911 is a routine call in our house once he has gone... We have taken so many precautions.  He wears ID 24/7, we have papered hundreds of houses whith fliers about who he is, his condition and his tendencies.  It is often a kind neighbor a mile away that has found him.  He has this urge to get into other peoples houses, to see their computers and their video collections.

It is at this time that we consider a Service Dog.  We already have an amazing and emphatic 2 year old Golden Retriever (Gio) that we would like to have trained.  He is very attuned to Caidin.  One of the benefits of a service dog is that it would always be at Caidin's side, and when we went out, he would be tethered to Caidin. Therefore, if Caid did escape he would be right by Caidin's side making it much easier to find him.  And at other times, it would make the possibility of escape obsolete.  One thing an Autism Service Dog is trained to do is that when their handler begins to run/ bolt, they sit down emphatically.  Being that they are tethered together, it gives us enough time to get Caidin before he is gone and before the cops need to be called.  The dog would also help curb self-sensory stimulation by giving himself (the dog) to pet or laying on Caidin, giving him the deep pressure that he needs to calm and stabilize him.

We already have the wonderful dog with the correct disposition, now all we need is training.  Training costs anywhere from $8000 to $12000 to complete.  Quite high and quite out of our budget.  We have chosen a very respected agency that is close to home and only does Autism Service Dogs.  This is a dire complication in all of our lives and I fear the day that someone finds him  in their house and something violent happens.  It scares me beyond measure.  I ask that if you are able, you contribute what you can so that we can get Caidin his Service Dog and help him maintain his independence.  If you have any questions, please ask. Sincerely, thank you.