Meet Luca. A really Sweet, fun and super energetic 3 year old boy who loves to explore. Luca was diagnosed with Autism, Sensory processing Disorder and Developmental Disorder of speech and language. For a while I wondered if I would ever hear his sweet voice talking, or even just say mama. After lots of speech therapy, starting both school and Daycare Luca has finally started talking some and I finally got to hear him call for me. Although he can’t have a conversation with me, he is able to tell me what he wants/needs using single words or his AAC device.
While Luca continues to thrive, he still struggles with sensory regulation, falling to sleep and elopement. Although we continue to work on these things in a daily basis, he still struggles a lot and it affects his day-to-day life. Luca needs lots of sensory regulation and often comes to us for a tight squeeze which helps him calm down when he’s upset. He struggles a little when it comes to understanding why he can’t have or do certain things and when this happens Luca looks for a place to hit his head or will hit his head using his hands. This is one of the hardest things for me to watch, I can’t imagine how hard it must be for him not understanding and not being able to fully communicate that with us. Although sleeping through the night has gotten better we still struggle to get him to sleep at night. Some nights we need to lay with him until he falls asleep and it can take a while.
After looking into what we could do for Luca that would help him thrive, the possibility of a service dog came up. Luca absolutely loves dogs and having one would be so beneficial for him. The dog would be able to help him with sensory regulation, provide emotional support, and help keep him safe while helping Luca navigate daily routines. A service dog will help Luca participate more actively and confidently in everyday activities. The service dog will be able to give him the sensory output he needs to help him stay calm and think better as well as helping him get to bed at night. I believe having a dog best friend next to him all the time will help him in so many ways and we are excited to be helping Luca gain a little more independence and happiness by doing this for him.
OR You can also mail a check or money order to:
W.A.G.S. 4 Kids, 112 East Center Street, Berea, OH 44017
Please indicate your donation is "for Luca" on the memo line of any check or money order.