Ear licks and glimmers of hope for the future
Emma, Rhys, Max and Andy
02/12/2024
Story
Since welcoming Max the labrador to the family after attending Dogs for Good’s Family Dog workshops, Emma, mum to Rhys who has a variety of conditions including autism along with anxiety and sensory difficulties says 'everything changed'.
"We’re already seeing glimmers of hope for the future and I am absolutely sure this will grow into something life-changing."
"Of course it will take time, but I know it’s going to happen because it’s already started. We’re definitely seeing how Max is becoming a bridge to Rhys and how we can build on that in a positive way."
Because Rhys struggles to communicate effectively and has difficulty coping with social interactions, Emma felt like she didn’t get anything back from him. "Emotionally, it’s quite hard to cope with because obviously, he’s my son and I love him very much. But as I started to teach Max, I began to feel that something I was doing was actually working. It’s very powerful. I have 'smug dog mum' moments with Max which give me this incredible feeling of achievement and joy. Things that previously, I hadn’t really experienced."
Emma had always wanted a dog but felt she had enough on her plate supporting her son. But she took the plunge, did the training webinars and decided to see how she felt afterwards.
Emma joined the first workshop and says "It gave me so much confidence because the learning is all about small steps and keeping things achievable. In fact, the first workshop hardly mentioned training, it focused more on choosing the right breed for your family life, how to look after a dog and understand their body language so you can 'communicate' with them. It was so good that I decided I could have a dog!"
Emma says that the ongoing support she gets from the Family Dog instructor team and also the private Facebook group is incredibly reassuring.
"The instructors and parents in the group are always there to offer help. Very often I’ll pop into the Facebook group and see that someone else is experiencing something similar to me and I don’t feel so alone."
"One of the things that Rhys loves is when Max licks his ears; it makes him giggle. The other day Rhys was having a meltdown and Max was with me at a safe distance, just calmly observing. When Rhys was less agitated, Max decided to go and lick Rhys’s ears and it really helped him recover from the meltdown. I can absolutely see how, in the future, with the right support, Max could offer comfort to Rhys at an earlier stage to perhaps interrupt, prevent or change the direction of Rhys’s anxiety."
"I don’t think I would ever have got a dog if I’d not done the Family Dog workshops and I can’t imagine not having Max now. Having him means I get to go out for a walk every day, do something positive every day and have a purpose every day."
We can’t put a price on the life-changing connection with a dog
But your support will enable more families to benefit from our workshops, in turn helping them to make life possible in so many ways.
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