Autism Service Dog Fund

EDIT: You guys blew us away and we met our original goal in exactly 24 hours!!! Thanks to this, we're actually able to set up a stretch goal! Anything we can get from here on out will be used for additional training past the basics and any one on one training, veterinary care, and for gear and equipment we'll need to invest in, such as harnesses, tethers, and training aides. Thank you so much for all your amazing help so far, everyone. 

Boo, as we have affectionately nicknamed our son, as most of you know, was diagnosed as Autistic on his 2nd birthday and as having SPD (Sensory Processing Disorder). We had suspected he was Autistic before so we were unsurprised at finding this out. This means a lot of different things for lots of different people and it creates a unique path for each and every Autistic child growing up. 

For Boo in particular, it means he can have trouble communicating, since he is nonverbal. He communicates via ASL (American Sign Language), but is not always able to do so and has limited signs still. He also can be overwhelmed easily (ex. by loud noises, lots of people, bright lights, new places, etc.) When this happens he can have a hard time coping, understandably, and often times in public places this means he will try to run off by himself to escape what's distressing him, or to things that take his interest. 

An ASD (Autism Service Dog) is something we have discussed on more than one occasion since Boo's diagnosis and it's agreed that he would benefit greatly and that it could be a potentially life changing aide for him. An ASD would be an emotional support for him and be able to help him stay calm in overwhelming situations and would be able to alert us in a medical emergency. They would also provide safety measures because they can help prevent him from running off by himself, and if he does run off, having his ASD with him would help make him easier to identify and find, as well as help let strangers understand that he is not silent because he is a shy child, but that he cannot necessarily communicate. An ASD could also be used to track and find Boo in such an event. There are limitless other ways that an ASD can be trained specifically to Boo's needs and improve his quality of life (and potentially save his life in an emergency situation).

We've been in contact with a breeder and have found a pup that would be an excellent addition to our family and would be perfect to train as they grow up to be such a service animal for Boo. We'll be able to bring home Boo's new best friend and helper on May 20th. But we cannot afford the initial out of pocket expenses for Boo's ASD in such a short time on our own, hence why we are asking for your help. 

This amount would cover all of the adoption costs for Boo's ASD, as well as the initial cost to start training.

Adopting an ASD is not covered by our insurance and the adoption costs through companies that provide older, already trained dogs can cost upwards of thousands of dollars, and it's not guaranteed that they would be trained in all of the ways that we need for Boo's specific needs. Initiating the training ourselves will not only be affordable for us, but would cater better to Boo's needs to a T. 

We would truly appreciate any help you could offer to help us reach our goal and make this world of difference for our family, and for our kidlet especially.