Assistance Dogs on the move
Ayear has passed since we farewelled our faithful Assistance Dog Lobo. He developed a sudden illness and died on 1st March 2021, less than 24 hours after he displayed any sign of distress. It is hard to believe that was twelve months ago - where does the time go?
Our whole family was impacted by this change, but it was especially difficult for Georgie, whom Lobo had helped for six years.
After several months, we made the decision to take on another Assistance Dog and Willow came to live with us in July.
She was such a different dog. Bouncy and engaging. She loves physical contact and resting her head on your knee or lying on your feet. She settled in well, sleeping in Georgie’s room and getting on well with our cats. She loves playing fetch and is great at retrieving a tennis ball. She loves her food! At Christmas, she had a great time staying at our family’s farm and playing with the other dogs there.
The new year meant starting Year 8 for Georgie. Her final year at primary school. Planning ahead is a regular feature of our life and so we started talking about how Willow would fit into the classroom. We decided we’d start the transition in term 3, pairing this with visits to college.
In January, we started noticing the odd wet patch around the house. We also thought Willow was licking herself much more than usual. During February this seemed to escalate and we took her off to the vets.
Blood and urine tests ruled out infection and diabetes, but there were ‘other’ things that could be causing her incontinence.
After several phone calls, Tracy from Assistance Dogs came to visit us for the six-month follow-up and the decision was made that Willow would return ‘in-house’ with her.
Her medical needs required further investigation and potentially she could need life-long medication. She
could not really continue to work as an Assistance Dog with such a condition as reliable public access is an important component of the Trust’s accreditation.
Willow now needs a situation where she has ongoing interaction with her human and can spend her days with someone who can attend to her health.
Georgie’s needs have changed, too. No longer the little girl who is non-verbal and who runs away and hugs strangers. She has grown so much, developing her speech so well. She has recognised that Willow is a loving dog and that she helped so much during Georgie’s time grieving Lobo. But she also realises that she didn’t miss having a dog - she missed Lobo.
Our family has made the decision not to have a third dog. It has been too hard. An emotional rollercoaster is
a fair way to describe the past year.
We remain, however, committed to our support for the Trust and their work. We will continue to advocate for them, perform public speaking engagements when we can and fundraise for the charity. The fundraising achieved by our community reached a staggering $20,000 for Lobo and $5,000 for Willow. We could not be more grateful for this help.
Even though we won’t have a dog anymore, the Assistance Dogs Trust has had a lifelong impact on our lives, and we will support them long into the future. We will continue to sponsor a puppy - that’s $5 per week we’re happy to pay - and follow the stories that other families like ours will create. You can too, at assistancedogstrust.org.nz