Assistance Dog For Baxter

Thank you for visiting our fund raising page.

This is Baxter and he has just turned five. At the age of 2½ we received multiple diagnoses of Austism Spectrum Disorder and Global Development Delay. He has brain malformations that most likely contribute to his symptoms.

Baxter had developed normally until around 15 months old, but rapidly regressed, losing speech, eye contact with others, ability to point or wave, and went into a world of his own, full of repetition and sensory obsession. He has extreme sleep disturbance, no sense of danger, and runs away (very fast and quietly) when in open spaces. He has significant delay in acquiring life skills and barriers to learning.

Baxter lives with Mum, Dad, sister Jamie (2), brother Austin (6). He has just started school at Miramar Central School, in their special needs unit. He has had speech, music, occupational and physical therapy, and attended Riding for Disabled for a short time, winning an award for his ‘courage and determination.’ We are so proud of him.

Baxter is a happy kid, very much an outside boy and always on the move. Family trips out of the house such as the park or beach are challenging and often abandoned or avoided. Our family often splits up to enable our other children the simple things they deserve while keeping Baxter safe and happy with a different activity.

We have no family in Wellington to assist on a regular basis, and an assistance dog will change not only his life, but the lives of everyone in our family unit.

We know two families with children of similar age and challenges, and have seen first hand how an assistance dog has positively impacted their lives. We see the assistance dog being Baxter’s guardian, leader, enabler and perhaps most of all his companion.

Assistance Dogs, when properly trained, can:

• Help improve a child's socialisation and behaviour skills.

• Create freedom for the child and family members to go out of the house safely and confidently.

• Expand a child's capabilities to experience more of life and to grow.

• Calm the child thereby giving them an increased attention span and greater aptitude for learning.

• Increase safety levels and alleviate the bolting behaviours (common in children with Autism) by acting as an anchor when tethered to the child.

• The dogs are trained to a high standard, just like guide dogs for the blind and have the right to go into any public place - including, supermarkets, shopping malls, food outlets, motels or hotels, movie theatres and restaurants. They are also entitled to travel on all forms of public transport.

It costs up to $48,000 to raise and train an Assistance Dog throughout its life. Recipients of ADNZ Assistance Dogs are required to help the Charity by raising money towards the costs associated with training an Assistance Dog. The Trust relies totally on community generosity, our fundraising goal is $25,000.

Please follow his page on Facebook and be there when his dog arrives!

https://www.facebook.com/assistancedogforbaxter