Meet Shabbo

Shabbo is a kind and loving sister and daughter. She exudes generosity, humor, and courage. Anyone that gets to spend time with Shabbo can see that her joy is contagious and her laughter brightens up any room! She loves to go on walks and she can spend hours making beautiful jewelry with beads and string.

Shabbo came home with her two sisters from India two years ago and at first she was just very reserved and quiet. As time went on and her sisters acclimated to life here, Shabbo did not keep up. Her speech was not developing in her native language or in English and she would have daily panic attacks that we discovered she had been having ever since her sisters could remember. She cannot sleep at night and struggles to find solace in any daily activities. She loves to give the best hugs but her body regularly trembles due to her anxiety. With the help of some of the best doctors and between the teams at Ohio State University and Children’s Hospital we discovered Shabbo has numerous psychological and neurological diagnosis, mostly due to extensive trauma Shabbo endured in her early years but compounded by intellectual disabilities and she requires almost around the clock support.

Shabbo has overcome more than many of us will in our entire lives in her short 14 years. She is one of the bravest and kind people you will ever meet! Her medical teams, therapists, teachers, and aids all fall in love with her and they become part of her extended family as she welcomes every in once she can trust them. She still attends a traditional school with the help of her teams and family and she loves it! Despite her perseverance and courage, Shabbo spends very little time with her peers as she has difficulty navigating friendships and relationships.

Shabbo loves animals and is so gentle and kind. We had two boxers when she first came home that she fell in love with them. She would walk next to our larger boxer and rub his back as we walked around the neighborhood and this seemed to give her peace. Unfortunately we lost both of them early this year to cancer and it has been very difficult for her. We believe a service dog can help Shabbo navigate her daily life by helping calm her unrelenting anxiety and by providing companionship in situations where she feels alone. A dog that could sleep in her bed with her as she tries to get through the night without panic and give her some stabilization as she navigates her daily activities, of which the simplest can stir up a great amount of trauma and fear, would be incredible. Shabbo currently uses a weighted blanket to help her when she is feeling lonely or having trouble sleeping but she always pleads with our cats to come sleep with her, which does not last very long!

Shabbo deals with so much each day and it can be exhausting for her to even make it to bed without having a breakdown. We love her so much and want to give our daughter every opportunity to find success and live her best life. We have no doubt that a service dog will help Shabbo find an element of independence and stability that she desperately needs.

Thank you for supporting our daughter and our family as we fight the stigmas and challenges of mental illness and trauma with our new friends at W.A.G.S. 4 Kids!

You can also mail a check or money order to:

W.A.G.S. 4 Kids

112 East Center Street

Berea, OH 44017

Please make a memo that your donation is for Shabbo