Service Dog for Mackenzie
Donation protected
We have been blessed to have had Mackenzie became our daughter through adoption. She is a kind, sweet, and caring 17 year old who loves music, art, playing games, cats and dogs, and hanging out with friends, and has a heart for the Lord! Since birth, Mackenzie has dealt with numerous health issues due to having Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder. This “hidden disability” can leave an individual with neurological, behavioral, emotional, and physical impairments. It can make life quite challenging. We want Mackenzie to be able to reach her full potential, and become as independent as possible. We want her to be able to function as best she can, and pursue the dreams she has, such as getting a job and going to college and some day being able to live on her own. As much as she loves to go out, it brings anxiety because she is concerned for her ability to feel safe and secure. We just want to support her in any way we can and we believe a service dog would make a big difference for her. It will also give us as parents peace of mind that she has a dog with her that will be helping her and watching out for her.
Many people with FASD have benefited from having a service dog. We have been encouraged by others to pursue this avenue as a way to provide long term support for Mackenzie. A service dog specifically for Mackenzie would: Help with balance and better awareness of what is around her due to low muscle tone, poor depth perception, and limited peripheral vision; provide Deep Pressure Therapy due to sensory processing issues, or calm her when there is too much stimulation; alert her and/or us that she is going to faint due to an allergic exposure or pain; be trained to do different things to calm her when she has anxiety/panic attacks and alert us when it happens. (The brain of an FASD person gets overwhelmed and overstimulated quite easily causing anxiety and panic attacks.) Help her keep focused and on task. Even though she is an intelligent girl, she has slow cognitive processing and poor memory in some areas. She is limited to where she can go due to severe allergies to gluten and corn, as well as other allergies and sensitivities. This keeps her home more often than any 17 year old would want to be, and it can get quite lonely. Depression is a real issue for her as she deals with all these limitations, so a service dog can be her faithful companion, always there for her.
We are pursuing a hypoallergenic puppy due to allergies within the family. To buy a trained service dog is extremely expensive and is a long process. To keep costs down we will be training it ourselves with oversight from a trainer. Due to other situations in our family’s life, our current financial situation does not provide us with the funds to buy a puppy, pay for the initial set up costs, vet costs, and initial training. It will take some time to raise the puppy and to train it to meet her specific needs. Being able to start soon is what will be most beneficial for Mackenzie. She has already met a puppy she would love to bring home.The mother has served as a service dog and a pup from her previous liter has as well. The breeder is very knowledgeable and has offered to help us in any way she can as we go down this road. The puppy won’t be ready to leave the momma until the 21st of March. We believe this would be a wonderful match.
Every little bit helps! Please consider making a donation and taking a part in helping Mackenzie become more independent and to reach her full potential, and giving all of us peace of mind.
Many people with FASD have benefited from having a service dog. We have been encouraged by others to pursue this avenue as a way to provide long term support for Mackenzie. A service dog specifically for Mackenzie would: Help with balance and better awareness of what is around her due to low muscle tone, poor depth perception, and limited peripheral vision; provide Deep Pressure Therapy due to sensory processing issues, or calm her when there is too much stimulation; alert her and/or us that she is going to faint due to an allergic exposure or pain; be trained to do different things to calm her when she has anxiety/panic attacks and alert us when it happens. (The brain of an FASD person gets overwhelmed and overstimulated quite easily causing anxiety and panic attacks.) Help her keep focused and on task. Even though she is an intelligent girl, she has slow cognitive processing and poor memory in some areas. She is limited to where she can go due to severe allergies to gluten and corn, as well as other allergies and sensitivities. This keeps her home more often than any 17 year old would want to be, and it can get quite lonely. Depression is a real issue for her as she deals with all these limitations, so a service dog can be her faithful companion, always there for her.
We are pursuing a hypoallergenic puppy due to allergies within the family. To buy a trained service dog is extremely expensive and is a long process. To keep costs down we will be training it ourselves with oversight from a trainer. Due to other situations in our family’s life, our current financial situation does not provide us with the funds to buy a puppy, pay for the initial set up costs, vet costs, and initial training. It will take some time to raise the puppy and to train it to meet her specific needs. Being able to start soon is what will be most beneficial for Mackenzie. She has already met a puppy she would love to bring home.The mother has served as a service dog and a pup from her previous liter has as well. The breeder is very knowledgeable and has offered to help us in any way she can as we go down this road. The puppy won’t be ready to leave the momma until the 21st of March. We believe this would be a wonderful match.
Every little bit helps! Please consider making a donation and taking a part in helping Mackenzie become more independent and to reach her full potential, and giving all of us peace of mind.
Organizer
Anna L Stegink
Organizer
Byron Center, MI