A Dog For Deeds- Let's Make This Happen!

Drawing by JC Little

The internet is a strange thing. It's grown from being education-related to porn central into something bigger, something greater than the sum of its parts. Now I find that I'm exposed to more people, more situations that I'd never have known about, and I can actually use this internet thing for good!

For example, this week I picked up a new Twitter follower called @LittleAnimation. I hopped online and went to look at her blog and found the most adorable illustrations I've seen in ages. Then I saw this one and I had to know more about it.

Turns out Deeds is an adorable little boy who just happens to have been diagnosed with Autism. I spent hours reading through his parents' blog, learning about what a sweet, wonderful little boy he is. I also learned that Deeds really needs an autism service dog.

See, Deeds has some issues that go with Autism. He loves to wander, but lacks that awareness of danger that most kids develop. He's not afraid to wander off alone, he sees heights as something new to jump off of, and has no fear of water. This terrifies his parents, obviously. Deeds also has seizures, probably because of his being born prematurely (if I'm not mistaken).On top of all this, he was recently burned and is having to go through lots of medical treatments and doctor visits for that. (That's why his lil face is all pink.)

The drawing on this photo was done by JC Little.
Isn't she wonderful?

A service dog would be a wonderful help for all of these. Service dogs are trained to gently guide autistic kids, interrupting their meltdowns and their repetitive gestures, keeping them away from dangerous places, and warning that a seizure is coming on so that parents can get the child into a safe space. Basically, a service dog would drastically improve life for Deeds and for his whole family.

So, I'm sure you're asking what they need to get this dog. I wish I could say it was the usual $100 to get a dog from the pound, but it's not that easy. Service dogs like Deeds needs are hard to get, and they don't come cheap. Overall they need not only the dog but training and learning how to interact with the new dog. It comes out to around $6,000, money that insurance won't pay.

The good news is that they're almost halfway there already! This is where we come in- it's gonna take a lot of work and a lot of people working together to help Deeds get his dog. I know the economy is rough right now. But when people pull together, miracles can happen. So here's what I'm thinking...

If we all work together, we can make this happen. If you have a few extra dollars to toss in the Dog4Deeds fund, great. If not, pass the information on. Do you have a blog? Awesome- write a post. Do you use Twitter? Follow @dog4deeds on twitter, and follow the #forDeeds hash tag. How about Facebook? Like A Dog 4 Deeds on Facebook, and pass the link on to friends. And let's not forget the Dog 4 Deeds website, where you can read all about Deeds and his family, and see just what a life-changing event getting this dog would be for him.

We can make this happen. Work with me, and let's give this little boy the freedom that a service dog can bring. Let's make his life a little brighter.