THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO HAS HELPED US REACH OUR TARGET! 

We have met our target of £ 8000  through registered charity Tree of Hope to fund an Autism Assistance Dog for our son Tristan. Duffy is now living with us full time and we're loving every bit of having him here. He's helping us as a family and particularly my son massively. So thank you to everyone who has supported us!

We were really lucky to have been accepted onto the brilliant Supporting Paws scheme (a Kent based Community Interest Company which trains autism assistance dogs). They select and train a pedigree Labrador from just 8 weeks of age specifically to meet Tristan's needs and help him do the day to day things he can find so difficult. Training lasts a year and will cover everything from obedience to specific interventions tailored to Tristan.

OUR STORY

Tristan is autistic, has ADHD and sensory processing disorder. This means it can be incredibly challenging just getting him out of the house on a daily basis and keeping his anxiety at manageable levels. He has many challenges to do things other kids his age would take for granted.

Research from the University of Lincoln found that autistic children experience fewer meltdowns in the presence of a trained dog and their parents' stress levels are significantly lowered too. These special dogs can make a huge difference to a child's confidence and quality of life by reducing anxiety, improving communication, bringing people together and helping families stay healthy by getting out more.
 

If you would like more information about assistance dogs visit Supporting Paws website: www.supportingpaws.co.uk or follow them on facebook @assistancesupportingpaws 

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