Help Ruby Rescue Rosalie.
Donation protected
Ruby is a 5 month old Labrador Retriever and she’s amazing.
Everyone thinks their dog is the best dog in the world (and so they should!) but keep reading to found out what makes Ruby that little bit extra special…
Ruby was welcomed into our family of 2, making it a family of 3 in August. She was the last pup in her litter to find a home in the hopes that she would become an at home therapy dog for her little human, Rosalie.
Rosalie is an 8 year old girl who lives with Epilepsy that so far, medication isn’t working for in the ways that it should be. A lot of research was done in regards to the benefits of having a dog within the home of a child who has Epilepsy and the benefits are huge.
Ruby was 14 weeks old when she alerted to a seizure for the first time. She began barking (which she never usually does) and I thought it was strange because there was such an urgency with her bark and she was pawing at Rosalie. Minutes later, Rosalie felt an aura come on and she knew that she was about to have a seizure. Ruby sensed it.
The first time this happened I thought it was a fluke because there was no possible way?
She has had no formal training? How could she just… know?
The second time, I still convinced myself it was again a fluke because… how?
The third time, Ruby moved herself on top of Rosalie’s legs and she laid there perfectly still, unbothered by the seizing and she remained there during the postictal state. She was now both alerting before a seizure and responding during and after a seizure naturally.
Since then, Ruby has alerted to multiple seizures including at times when there has been distance within our home between Ruby and Rosalie. Ruby can still sense it.
We don’t know why Ruby does this or even how she does this. It’s believed that she can smell a chemical change within Rosalie’s body and that’s how she knows that something is wrong.
Now the real question being, why are we here and why are we asking for your help? To put it simply, Rosalie isn’t able to gain government funding because Epilepsy isn’t a recognised disability.
What does this mean?
The organisations that you automatically think will help, don’t. We’ve been refused twice now. For every piece of medical equipment that Rosalie has ever needed to help her have a better quality of life whilst living with the monster that we call Epilepsy. With the same words being repeated… “She isn’t disabled enough”.
Why wouldn’t we just get an assistance dog that was full trained and certified to begin with?
There is currently a 2-3 year minimum wait list to be matched with a fully trained and certified assistance dog. We didn’t have 2-3 years to wait for the benefits a dog would bring our family. Secondly, Ruby is a bit of a miracle. No trainer or organisation can say with certainty that they can provide you with a seizure alert dog because there is no way to train a dog to alert to a seizure. To respond, yes but not alert. It’s almost like Ruby was meant to be ours being the last pup of her litter available and knowing now that she has these abilities.
What do we need $5000 for exactly?
This is the estimated cost of having Ruby owner trained by a registered organisation who can assist us in training Ruby to become a Medical Assistance Dog and pass a Public Access Test.
If we can make this happen, Ruby and Rosalie will never have to separated. This training will ultimately lead to a certification that allows Ruby access to all public spaces as she will be recognised as “registered medical equipment” which in the end, provides Rosalie with a better quality of life.
This will allow Rosalie to live a life that she doesn’t have to be so afraid of because Ruby will be there to rescue her. Rosalie is your average 8 year old girl for the most part but underneath it all, she not only deals with the risks of having life-threatening seizures regularly but also the constant fear of never knowing when the next one will come and just how badly it may end.
Ruby not only rescues Rosalie but she rescues me in a way too. I’m a single parent who handles everything on her own. We have been very fortunate to receive kindness, love and support by our friends, family and even strangers since this journey began in August of 2022. My role never ends and my own anxiety and fears can get the better of me some days because I’m terrified of just how bad the next seizure is going to be and if it’s going to be the one that takes her from me. Since Ruby has become a part of our family, Rosalie doesn’t seem to be having seizures so frequently and never without a trigger which Ruby naturally helps reduce. Rosalie is at her safest with Ruby by her side.
Gaining the funds to help Ruby gain her certification will quite literally be life changing. For all of us.
Whether you are here to read about who Ruby & Rosalie are, whether you are here to share on your social media or whether you are here to donate, thank you. Just know that you played a part of my Rosalie being rescued by her Ruby and that is something I will never take for granted.
Everyone thinks their dog is the best dog in the world (and so they should!) but keep reading to found out what makes Ruby that little bit extra special…
Ruby was welcomed into our family of 2, making it a family of 3 in August. She was the last pup in her litter to find a home in the hopes that she would become an at home therapy dog for her little human, Rosalie.
Rosalie is an 8 year old girl who lives with Epilepsy that so far, medication isn’t working for in the ways that it should be. A lot of research was done in regards to the benefits of having a dog within the home of a child who has Epilepsy and the benefits are huge.
Ruby was 14 weeks old when she alerted to a seizure for the first time. She began barking (which she never usually does) and I thought it was strange because there was such an urgency with her bark and she was pawing at Rosalie. Minutes later, Rosalie felt an aura come on and she knew that she was about to have a seizure. Ruby sensed it.
The first time this happened I thought it was a fluke because there was no possible way?
She has had no formal training? How could she just… know?
The second time, I still convinced myself it was again a fluke because… how?
The third time, Ruby moved herself on top of Rosalie’s legs and she laid there perfectly still, unbothered by the seizing and she remained there during the postictal state. She was now both alerting before a seizure and responding during and after a seizure naturally.
Since then, Ruby has alerted to multiple seizures including at times when there has been distance within our home between Ruby and Rosalie. Ruby can still sense it.
We don’t know why Ruby does this or even how she does this. It’s believed that she can smell a chemical change within Rosalie’s body and that’s how she knows that something is wrong.
Now the real question being, why are we here and why are we asking for your help? To put it simply, Rosalie isn’t able to gain government funding because Epilepsy isn’t a recognised disability.
What does this mean?
The organisations that you automatically think will help, don’t. We’ve been refused twice now. For every piece of medical equipment that Rosalie has ever needed to help her have a better quality of life whilst living with the monster that we call Epilepsy. With the same words being repeated… “She isn’t disabled enough”.
Why wouldn’t we just get an assistance dog that was full trained and certified to begin with?
There is currently a 2-3 year minimum wait list to be matched with a fully trained and certified assistance dog. We didn’t have 2-3 years to wait for the benefits a dog would bring our family. Secondly, Ruby is a bit of a miracle. No trainer or organisation can say with certainty that they can provide you with a seizure alert dog because there is no way to train a dog to alert to a seizure. To respond, yes but not alert. It’s almost like Ruby was meant to be ours being the last pup of her litter available and knowing now that she has these abilities.
What do we need $5000 for exactly?
This is the estimated cost of having Ruby owner trained by a registered organisation who can assist us in training Ruby to become a Medical Assistance Dog and pass a Public Access Test.
If we can make this happen, Ruby and Rosalie will never have to separated. This training will ultimately lead to a certification that allows Ruby access to all public spaces as she will be recognised as “registered medical equipment” which in the end, provides Rosalie with a better quality of life.
This will allow Rosalie to live a life that she doesn’t have to be so afraid of because Ruby will be there to rescue her. Rosalie is your average 8 year old girl for the most part but underneath it all, she not only deals with the risks of having life-threatening seizures regularly but also the constant fear of never knowing when the next one will come and just how badly it may end.
Ruby not only rescues Rosalie but she rescues me in a way too. I’m a single parent who handles everything on her own. We have been very fortunate to receive kindness, love and support by our friends, family and even strangers since this journey began in August of 2022. My role never ends and my own anxiety and fears can get the better of me some days because I’m terrified of just how bad the next seizure is going to be and if it’s going to be the one that takes her from me. Since Ruby has become a part of our family, Rosalie doesn’t seem to be having seizures so frequently and never without a trigger which Ruby naturally helps reduce. Rosalie is at her safest with Ruby by her side.
Gaining the funds to help Ruby gain her certification will quite literally be life changing. For all of us.
Whether you are here to read about who Ruby & Rosalie are, whether you are here to share on your social media or whether you are here to donate, thank you. Just know that you played a part of my Rosalie being rescued by her Ruby and that is something I will never take for granted.
Organizer
Lani Tobler
Organizer
North Tivoli QLD