Support Owen's Journey with His Service Dog Penny

For those of you who don’t know us personally, we’re the Monk Family. Our 4.5 year old son, Owen, is truly a one of a kind boy and this is his story:

When Owen was about 13-14 months old, I started noticing some quirks about him that weren’t quite what I’d seen before. He began lining his toys up strategically along the surfaces of tables, on the floor, and our couch. When he thought he’d placed them in a good enough order, he’d take a step back from the toys, almost as if to analyze them, and would either leave them as they were or would readjust them. At this age, his vocabulary (which had been progressing "normally") completely vanished and was replaced with throaty grunts in various pitches. We lost eye contact when trying to talk with him (where he previously paid attention to us or someone on FaceTime, or to himself in a mirror). I also noticed his diet completely changing- he stopped eating foods that he regularly liked and he began gagging at the taste or texture of most foods. His emotions became explosive and he developed negative behaviors I’d never seen in him before.

He was first evaluated by the Early Intervention program in Florida at 16 months and that was the first time I’d heard a specialist say, “it’s too early to fully determine, but he’s showing many traits commonly seen with Autism”. At that time, I was very pregnant with our daughter, Daphne, and we’d hired a nanny to help me with him. She and I dove head first into his therapies until we relocated to Alabama for work.

While in Alabama, he was re-evaluated and began receiving limited services, but the state did not participate in in-home or in-clinic therapies. It was all virtual, something that ultimately did not work. His behaviors only became more aggressive and his loud, emotional outbursts more frequent. He began to "elope" (dart away suddenly) if he wasn't in a shopping cart or stroller, usually into a busy parking lot or an area with a lot of people.

Not long after moving, we decided that as a family, we would travel together for my husband’s job (where previously, I'd stayed home with the kids while he was gone). This was 2.5 years ago.

Throughout our time “on the road”, we’ve stayed primarily in Southern Pennsylvania and have received services there as well, but on a very limited and inconsistent basis.

When Owen turned 3 in February 2023, we received the official medical diagnosis we’d been nervously awaiting: Autism Spectrum Disorder ("ASD"), Level 2- requiring a moderate to high level of support. Behaviorally and developmentally, he scored in the ASD 3 category and is clinically nonverbal, with the exception of singing to himself and reciting the ABCs, colors of the rainbow, counting, and recently, the planets in our solar system- this is the only reason he was labeled as Level 2. Though the diagnosis wasn't necessarily a “shock”, it was still a very hard reality to face- one I’m still struggling to face more than a year later.

Since this diagnosis, his development has continued to ebb and flow, but every day that passes is another day fallen behind the typical child his age. In addition to the above mentioned behaviors only exacerbating, he’s also developed a plethora of self-harming behaviors. Both Trent and I are literally in shambles over this one.

Not long ago, I ran across a TikTok video about a little Autistic girl, about Owen’s age, who’d just been given her own professionally trained Service Dog. That prompted me to spend hours upon hours researching everything about an ASD Service Dog and next thing I knew, I was reaching out to different national organizations for information to apply- all of which were ultimately turned down due to his age and our somewhat transient lifestyle. Being the determined person that I am, I took matters into my own hands and we decided to find our own way to provide our sweet boy with an ASD Service Dog.

Along came Owen’s Lucky Penny (a female yellow Labrador Retriever puppy). The moment we met her, we knew she would be his (and our) saving Grace. She immediately took to his needs in a way we didn’t know was possible.

Being that Penny is still a puppy, she has a long road of intense professional training ahead of her. We’ve reached out to certified professional trainers in the area and have found an option that we think suits us and our needs perfectly. Her main tasks will be "Anchoring", where Owen will be tethered to her and she’ll work as an “anchor” in the event that he tries to elope, and Intervening, where she’ll be trained to recognize and use her body as a barrier when he’s self-harming. She may also learn to apply counter pressure as a form of sensory input.

We are, very humbly, asking for help.

The total cost of training for Penny is estimated to be $12,000. Having a Special Needs child is never easy, nor is it particularly affordable. As parents, we stretch ourselves every which way emotionally, physically, and financially to give Owen the very best care and resources we can find and provide for him. It’s with our and his medical team’s opinion that Penny truly will be his best tool for keeping him as safe as possible, so we’re officially calling out to anyone who can hear us.

Any donation we receive to help us get Penny trained is appreciated in more ways than anyone could ever fathom. Her job is the most important job we could give her and although Owen may not know the weight of this incredible opportunity, we do. Any of the funds that exceed our goal will be put into an account to cover the expenses we'll have in the future for his therapies, medical supplies, and any other needs he'll have!

Thank you to all who’ve taken the time to read about our sweet boy.

Trent & Emily Monk.