Lady and Lachlan

Lachlan has just received his assistance dog, Lady. She has changed his world and ours immediately. He has multiple disabilities including cerebral palsy, global developmental delay & autism.

When Lachlan was born we knew there was something wrong, we had to fight for 22 months until the doctors & specialists actually took us seriously. He has had to fight for everything he has done in his life, he never crawled, we wondered if he would ever walk, which he finally did at 3 years old.

He's non verbal, but does communicate through sign language. We wonder if he will ever go to a mainstream school, go to university, get a job, do the normal things kids & adults do in their lives.

Prior to receiving the ADNZ trained dog, Lady, we were not able to function as a normal family, we couldn't go out to events, attend doctors appointments or some days even leave the house because they caused Lachlan too much stress & anxiety. Engaging with Lady has meant that Lachlan can now explore the world around him. We can confidently leave the house without causing him major stress or anxiety. Already in a week Lady means Lachlan has the confidence to attend events, try new things & engage with people & the world around him.

Assistance Dogs NZ have trained Lady specifically for Lachlan so she hit the ground running. She has been trained to support him with his balance, with obstacles & provide a calming influence. With public access they are able to go everywhere together, on buses, planes, public events etc. They are desperately short of funds to train more dogs and the waiting list is 5 years long. Help us pay it forward, we are attempting to raise $20,000 for a ADNZ dog for another child in desperate need.