Support Brandon's Lifesaving Service Dog Journey

We recently learned about 26 year old Brandon from Harrisburg. Four years ago, Brandon’s life was completely turned upside down when he experienced his first seizure while driving - and got in a bad car accident. He had everything going for him. A career, a girlfriend, his own house and car. Brandon was living the American dream. As the siezures continued and worsened, in a short time, he lost everything. Literally.

Desperate for treatment or a cure, Brandon’s mom uprooted her life and moved them from Las Vegas to Harrisburg to be closer to Mayo Clinic. Working with Mayo, they learned there is no cure. And even worse news, the kind of epilepsy he has “primary generalized epilepsy” is extremely rare. It encompasses the entire brain and makes up only 2-3% of all epilepsy cases. Brandon’s brain is in a constant state of seizing in the background. Because of this activity, every night he goes to sleep there’s a 50/50 chance he could die of SUDEP (sudden unexpected death in epilepsy).

Brandon's bones have become brittle leading to a diagnosis of osteoporosis at age 26. During one of his seizures, Brandon fractured 3 bones in his back. To complicate things even further, sometimes during his seizures, his heart stops, and CPR is required to get back a heartbeat.

Brandon wears a monitor that alerts his mom of his condition and location when a seizure occurs. Except when it doesn’t. A service dog was highly recommended to help keep Brandon safe during episodes, shake the monitor to get help, and offer him a little freedom. Like the ability to go for a walk on his own. Because of his unique and extreme situation, he got expedited up from the typical 2-4 year wait to 2 MONTHS to get a service dog through Domesti-PUPS in Lincoln Nebraska. On June 13, Brandon gets to meet and do on-site training with his new service dog for 2 weeks.

At SDK (dog boarding, training, daycare, grooming, dock diving, indoor dog park) we understand and know the profound difference service dogs have on individuals to help them to live more independently and confidently. Having a specifically trained service dog will definitely be a game-changer for Brandon. Service dogs require extensive training, which is very costly. The total expense, including the purchase, training, and initial care of the dog, is approximately $28,000. This is beyond what him and his mom can afford alone. We want to help.

// How You Can Help //

Your generous donations through go-fund me will go directly towards:

Participate in the “Jumping for Brandon” dock diving fundraiser

Purchase a cool fundraiser T-shirt for $25

// Every Dollar Counts //

Whether you can contribute $5 or $5000, every bit helps get him closer to regaining some independence and ensuring safety. If you're unable to donate, sharing this campaign with your friends and family would be so helpful.

With gratitude,

Teri Jo Olean, Owner

SDK West

SDK South

Splash Bark