A PsychService Dog

Hi there! My name is Lily.

I have diagnosed PTSD & have been unable to leave my house alone with our son for nearly a year and a half now. Lately my symptoms have worsened despite being proactive about self-care and medication and I am becoming unable to leave our home even accompanied without experiencing a severe anxiety attack.

My therapist is in agreement that what I need is: an outlet to limit self-harm, something to focus my energy on that I can involve our son in as well, and a sense of urgency or a task that will make me feel obligated to go outside, and some way to help me feel less afraid of an anxiety attack while outside.

A puppy to train as a service animal accomplishes all these tasks. I have done months of research on this subject and option and I genuinely believe it will help me.

All money raised from this will go towards: purchasing a healthy puppy from a reputable local breeder, vetting, the dog's training, and items for caring for the dog.

• Why do you have to purchase from a breeder?
The strain of being a service animal can be incredibly stressful- physically and mentally for an animal. It's imperative that the dog I choose will:
- be closely bonded to me and no one else so they will be focused on noticing signs of an oncoming attack.
- has the correct temperment to be a service dog. A dog that is easily made nervous or excited would be unsuitable & testing a dog in or from a shelter will not be accurate as they're in a stressful environment. Mixed breeds can also carry undesirable agressive traits from one or both of their bloodlines.
- has a clean bill of health. There's no way to tell if a dog from a shelter has hereditary health problems or will be prone to develop them later in life. Reputable breeders have the parents tested for health problems that their respective dog breed may be prone to, in order to insure pups whelped will be healthy and less likely to have those problems.

• What will a service dog do for you that a pet dog cannot?
While a pet dog would accomplish most of the things I need, a service dog however would be specifically trained to mitigate my PTSD symptoms & respond to warning signs or triggers. This requires special training and a very specific temperment. A service dog is more than a pet, they are a person's first response team and caretaker.

• What training specifically is required for a dog to be a service dog?
A service dog is trained to complete tasks. These tasks can vary and are tailored to their handlers needs. They are also trained to be calm and focused on their handler in any environment, especially busy public venues. 

• What tasks do you need & why is a service dog necessary? 
The tasks that I personally need my service dog to preform would be the following:
- Backtracking, in the event of a disassociative episode that has me wander away from my home or to an area I am unfamiliar with. 
- Alert, self-harm; in the event that I begin showing signs of oncoming self-harm or am actively doing so, the dog will be trained to distract, divert, and cease my behaviors even if I am unaware of them. 
- Alert, anxiety; in the case of building anxiety to potentially dangerous levels, the dog will be able to recognize cues that I may not notice I am doing in the moment and distract or divert my behaviors.
- Lead to Safety, in the event of an attack happening in a crowded or public place, or an isolated area, the dog will be trained to find and lead me to a quiet area to recover or to a person who may be able to help me.
- Get Help, in case of a total breakdown or emergency in which I am unable to function or respond, my service dog will be trained to either a) find and lead someone to me or if unable to do so b) bring me my phone or medication. 

A service dog is necessary because while I have a wonderful support network, no one can be around me 24/7. A service animal can and will be able to know if and when I need help and how to help without needing to be told what is happening or how to help me if I am unable to communicate.

Thank you so much for considering donating. If you can, please help spread the word.