Help Lucas get a therapy dog.

Lucas is a delightful nearly 6 year old boy who is very loving, intelligent and adventurous. He has always been a full on child who has shown himself to be determined to do everything ahead of time, he is very talented academically and physically but is really struggling to make emotional connections and understand the social world around him.

Since starting school it has become very clear that Lucas is battling with the turmoil of being in a structured environment where he is constantly being socially stimulated and overwhelmed by his surroundings. This has manifested itself in high anxiety and poor social interactions in the classroom and playground. He has high sensory needs and will chew anything and everything he can get his hands on, this has extended to things such a glue sticks in the classroom, his school uniform and his finger nails. He gets very frustrated easily in social situations and will often react by getting overly physical with his peers, he can not read their social cues to say that they are not enjoying the play any more and he gets very defensive when they can't see his way of thinking.

Lucas finds it very difficult to focus on tasks and needs constant support and guidance to achieve the simplest tasks such as getting dressed in the morning or eating, he escalates into manic states of hyperactivity that can only be controlled and eased though physical pressure and calm reassurance. His sleep is deteriorating rapidly, he often takes over an hour to go to sleep due to his brain running through every little detail of his day and his body being restless, and he is waking every few hours and needing the pressure and reassurance of cuddles to settle him back to sleep. Lucas responds well to animals and is often at his calmest when in pet shops looking at the animals, particularly the puppies.

Through work with his teacher, his out of school care providers and a qualified family friend Lucas is now being assessed for Aspergers Syndrome and ADHD as well as looking at ways to manage his anxiety.

Through our own personal research we have found Kiwi Pride Labradoodles (https://www.labradoodle.co.nz) here in Tauranga who are training Therapy dogs that will be trained to provide children like Lucas with the calm support that they need as well as knowing when and how to apply pressure to bring him down from his manic states. Understandably this comes at a huge cost and it is not something we can afford on our own. Please help us to get the support our son needs.

Lucas also has a younger sister (2 years old) who is showing very similar signs to Lucas at the age who the Therapy puppy will also benefit greatly.