Growing up, I had more dogs than siblings. My dad was a ‘doggy man’ so at every stage of my childhood, the back garden had a collection of four legged friends – from Fritz the German Pointer to our long term terrier, Sparky. I have so many happy memories involving my Dad and walking the dogs but one thing that always makes me think of him is the Irish Guide Dog charity box. You know the one – its a big labrador sitting behind the small labrador. And my Dad would always give me a few pence and say ‘put the penny in the doggy’s head’. I always wondered where those pennies went….and now, I know first hand.

Most will associate the work of the Irish Guide Dogs with helping the blind and those who are visually impaired – and corectly so, given the thousands of lives that they have changed over the years. But this amazing charity also help to change the lives of families living with Autism. Since my son, Conor outgrew his buggy our daily life has become a little more stressful. There are so many places that we cannot go anymore that most would take for granted. For example, the Regional Park in Ballincollig – such a fabulous facility. It’s a no go for us because of the river – Conor will bolt for the water. A trip to the City Centre (which he loves) is out – he could run off in any direction. Anywhere near a road – forget it. If Conor sees something of interest across the road, he will take off into oncoming traffic. Trying to keep him safe and push a buggy (while pregnant) is a hard task. Imagine when I have three?! It’s not a nice feeling for Conor either; constantly being grabbed and gripped everywhere we go – it adds to his frustrations.

So how can a dog help a little boy with Autism?

The Assistance Dog programme is absolutley amazing. So much so, that the demand sadly outweighs the availability – due to lack of funding, the list can only facilitate a certain number of families. Being one of the lucky ones, I really wish this service could be available to anyone who needs it. I plan on fundraising and doing everything I can to help make this happen.

Each Assistance Dog undergoes intensive training to prepare them to be matched to a child with Autism. Their main purpose is to protect the child and keep them safe. When out and about, the child is ‘anchored’ to the dog by wearing a belt attached to the dogs coat. The dog is trained to stop at crossings and respond to the command of the parent. Basically the child feels like they are taking their dog for a walk and the parent knows the child is safe.

I cannot imagine being able to go out with the kids, and not have to go to the 3 or 4 playgrounds that we always go to. I cannot imagine being able to visit a beach or bringing Conor to see the Glow Festival at Christmas time in the City. All of this may now be possible thanks to the Irish Guide Dogs – the dog trainers, the volunteers, the foster families, the HQ staff and most off all to anyone who has ever donated to them. For the first time since Conor was diagnosed, I have never felt so supported. The staff there just really want to help us, and care about our future. Its very overwhelming.

There is so much involved in the process, and I have been lucky enough to have been given a glimpse into it on my recent visit to the Irish Guide Dogs headquarters. I was stunned at the amount of work that goes on behind the scenes. In the second part of this blog post, I will go into more detail on what is involed in the matching process, the training and all of the amazing work that goes into making a puppy a assistance dog.

For now, I would like to ask everyone who reads this for a favour.

Support the Irish Guide Dogs – please.

Put spare change in the box at the till in the shop.

Check out their Facebook page and like their posts.

Volunteer your time – there are so many ways you can help!

Like and share this post to raise awareness about the wonderful work that they do.

Conor taking a practice walk with an Assistance Dog

Just look at the face on my little boy – look at how happy and independent he looks!!! That is worth all the money in the world ❤❤

Trish xx