A Furry Guardian for Warrick

Thank you for taking the time to visit this page for our Warrick (Bubba James❤️). In the Down Syndrome community we have seen numerous times the extraordinary benefits of service animals and have always had a deep hope to one day unite War with a furry companion. Assisting him with his needs and offering an extra layer of safety for his day to day life with therapies, outings and school. Warrick has always had a tremendous love of animals, particularly dogs, so much that during playground and park outings he will attempt to run towards any dog he sees while yelling “Dog! Dog!” and patting his thigh in sign language for “dog”. And therein, ironically, lies the concern. Warrick is now 7 and very physically capable of running, getting out of his room at night and all with an innocence that does not see the potential harm/danger involved with such actions. Learning these skills are of the upmost importance to us and always have been, but long past are the days of baby gates. A service animal would be trained also as a sleeping buddy for Warrick to help with the wandering as well as his restlessness. We have cameras, front and back door locks and chains as well as all chemicals and sharp objects placed up high as well as unplugging everything. Everything we possibly can, but there is always the immense fear of not hearing him get up and wandering the house. We want everyone to feel safe, including War when home. It’s what all of us want right? Home should be the safe place where you can relax and focus solely on being a family ❤️. A furry guardian would be the missing part of that family security for us. The extra watchful eye helping War have more independence and helping safely guide him in scenarios outside of the home too.

Lucky enough for all of us there is a group called ‘Unleashed Academy’ right here in Spokane that specializes in training service dogs for individuals just like our Warrick. Provided is a lifetime of support for the animal as well as the family. Our first goal with this page is to get a fully trained service dog for Warrick (not a puppy in training) who we could, working with Unleashed Academy, integrate into our family, home, school and therapy routines.

We know it’s a big goal and big hope and a big ask and we so appreciate you coming to this page, learning about Warrick and hoping along with us. We will never stop fighting for War and his independence and above all… his happiness. Thank you 

-The Arnold family