SPECIAL DELIVERY SERVICE DOG for "Tisdale, Saskatchewan" Resident
Saskatchewan, Canada, September 9, 2016 (Newswire.com) - On Saturday, September 10, Kevin Styan of Tilsdale, Saskatchewan, will be welcoming into his home and heart a Golden Retriever named “Hercules.” The dog is being provided by Service Dogs by Warren Retrievers, a non-profit organization based in Virginia, with a mission to provide specially-bred and trained dogs for adults and children with invisible disabilities like Diabetes, PTSD, Seizure Disorders, or in the case of Kevin, Sensory Processing Disorder—an Autism Spectrum Disorder. Service Dogs by Warren Retrievers, “SDWR” has over 500 service dogs working across the US and around the globe. Several of its service dogs are currently working in Canada at this time. “SDWR has no borders in its service to the invisible disabilities community,” states Founder and President Dan Warren, “if you need a service dog, we are going to work with you to make that happen.”
Kevin’s dog Hercules has already received thousands of hours of training as an Autism service dog. It will continue to learn under the careful guidance of a certified trainer from SDWR and through the rapport it develops with Kevin and his parents, Melanie and Cory Styan at their home in Tisdale.
At the age of 5, Kevin was diagnosed and in the last year since the diagnosis, Kevin and has had to face the daily challenges associated with an Autism Spectrum Disorder. “Kevin is oversensitive to sound, sensitive to touch, textures, lighting, and he doesn’t feel temperature changes,” states his mom, Melanie. “We also find that when Kevin is on ‘sensory overload’ he will ‘take off’,” she adds.
Autism Spectrum Disorder also hinders a person’s ability to communicate and interact socially. New scientific research studies into Autism therapy provide positive evidence of the difference a service dog can make. Dan Warren states, “The studies showed children were more talkative and socially engaged when their service dog was present. Children were less aggressive and smiled more frequently when around their service dog.” And, one of the main goals when training an Autism service dog is the need to keep a child safe. When the family goes out, the child will be literally tethered to the dog to keep him or her from running off or getting hurt. According to Mr. Warren, “the studies further found that safety aspect was a huge relief for families as parents’ anxiety over their child can lead to social isolation.”
Now with the arrival of the service dog, Hercules, Kevin and his parents along with siblings Ryan and Hailey will have yet another tool, a four-legged one that has received foundational training to assist Kevin to live a more independent life.
Hercules will also work with the SDWR trainers towards public access training and certification. Dan Warren is quick to point out that, “all the incredible services these dogs can provide are through progression, hard work and dedication of the organization and the family who must work together to build on training foundations and fundamentals. This is about an 18-month training program.”
What sets SDWR apart from other nonprofit service dog organizations are the customized training methods and SDWR matches dogs to their “person.” According to Dan Warren, “that important bonding time between dog and person can begin to happen right away. For the seven years we’ve been utilizing this method of dog placement, we’ve achieved amazing results.”
Service Dogs by Warren Retrievers is a non-profit organization based in Madison, Virginia, and relies on donations to help the Organization in its mission, “Until there’s a cure…there’s a dog.” To make or donation or learn more about SDWR, please visit the website, sdwr.org.
Source: Service Dogs by Warren Retrievers
