More than fur and wet kisses

Most of you know that Polar was deaf and partially blind since birth.  In rescuing him and his deaf and blind sister, Pearl, I knew I would be taking on ALOT of responsibility.  Essentially I was to become their therapy human-their eyes and ears to the world.

What they taught me in the long run, obviously I have discussed AT LENGTH.  However, I was lucky that they came into my life, because even as special needs dogs, they were instrumental in helping me learn, grow, and love.

And they were/are just house pets.  However, many people rely on specially trained animals to survive-sensing oncoming seizures, dangerous drops in blood sugar, serving as the eyes/ears of their humans.  Some dogs can even help in socialization and emotional growth-in fact most do!  Regardless of the therapy-these dogs are mucho expensive-up to $20,000, but their service provided is priceless.

Rett Syndrome is a disease passed to 1 in 10,000 children (mostly girls survive), on the x-chromosome.  A mutation in a specific protein results in a reduction of neuro development-specifically children grow and mature normally for a few months, then they exhibit a slowing down or stagnation of skills, such as use of their hands and gait movement.  Over time, motor problems may increase and maximum assistance with every aspect of daily living is required.  You can read more about Rett's here.

In our bloggy world, I have learned about a sweet little 3 year old girl Chickadee with Rett Syndrome.  Her mom blogs about her and is trying to get her a therapy dog-a $6000 therapy dog.  Sure that is a great price that Midwest Assistance Dogs is willing to cut, but ALOT of money for just about anyone.  However, the services that this future dog could provide to little Chickadee are definitely worth it.  Since Chickadee is not mobile, this dog will be specially customized for Chickadee's issues, and could serve to alert for aspiration (sucking down food/liquids etc into windpipe), alert her mom when Chickadee is distressed and unable to alert her mom, and importantly help her socialize and grow confident in spite of her disabilities.

SOOO...I KNOW money is tight, especially right after the holidays, but if you can help donate to get this dog, I'm sure you will sleep even better at night.  But even if you can't give, follow her journey (what's one more blog anyway), tell your friends, and when you DO win the lottery-remember Chickadee!

Because let's face it, most of us have been affected positively by our animals, and everyone should be able to experience all these furry guys have to offer.