Service Dog for Aidan

Life gives us unexpected twists and turns on a regular basis.  Our Aidan is no exception to that rule and has had to overcome so many obstacles and bumps we never thought he would have to face.  He is currently struggling with epilepsy.  Since his diagnosis about 3 years ago, he has been hospitalized a few times, had countless tests done, and has been on multiple medications.  Aidan has complex partial seizures:  he experienced his first grand mal this week.  We were told about a year ago that his seizures would most likely change as he grows and gets older.  He has refractory epilepsy right now which means his seizures are not controlled by attempting several medications.  If the medications continue to be ineffective then the next step would be either to remove the deep lesion that is in his brain or VNS (Vagus Nerve Stimulator) surgery.  We are hoping it does not come to that.  We have recently adopted a 9-month old lab/Australian cattle dog mix from the local humane society with the hopes that she can be trained as a seizure assist dog for Aidan.  We have met with a trainer and thankfully Abby can be trained!!  We are beyond blessed to have this opportunity to help Aidan.  The cost of this training is around $5000.  The trainer will hopefully be able to start with Abby as early as the beginning of March.  We are hoping to raise some of the money through GoFundMe.  The expense of another pet was not in our immediate future, but with the hope of one to help Aidan outweighs the plans we had for waiting on another dog.  With this training Abby will be able to support and alert us once Aidan has had or is in the middle of a seizure.  She will also be taught to be there when certain triggers that we are aware of present themselves.  We are very excited and looking forward to a successful experience with this process.  We are hoping to have Abby trained by next school year.  Thank you to all who have sent their love, prayers and help along the way!