A "Dog Friend" for Ryan

PRESS RELEASE



No offense to all the cats out there (we love you!), but this family has a need only a furry canine can fulfill, and they need your help. Tom and Angela of Delaware, Ohio are raising funds on behalf of 4 Paws For Ability, a non-profit organization specializing in training and placement of service dogs for disabled children.

Five-year-old Ryan Bowser has Autism. Ryan is a wonderful little boy who loves everything. He believes strongly in recycling and reusing everything possible, and yet he struggles to make sense of the world around him. Children with Autism tend to wander away and are unaware of many common dangers such as traffic or the ill intentions of a stranger. Ryan needs a special companion at his side trained to provide the assistance he needs. In addition to providing constant companionship and unwavering friendship, these four-pawed wonders are also specially trained in search and rescue skills. Nothing could bring more ease to Ryan’s parents than knowing that the next time he slips away they would have someone to find him.

4 Paws For Ability, based in Xenia, Ohio, strives to provide service dogs to families and children that struggle with life’s daily challenges and who are often turned away by many other agencies. 4 Paws trains a variety of assistance dogs, including but not limited to seizure assistance, mobility assistance, hearing ear dogs and autism assistance dogs. A portion of the dogs trained for service are rescued from shelters. Some of the dogs even serve time in the Rover Prison Rehab Program as a stepping stone to becoming certified service dogs.

There has always been a magic about dogs and children, but for children with Autism the magic of a dog can be life-saving.

You can help bring that magic into Ryan’s life by making a tax deductible donation to 4 Paws For Ability in Ryan Bowser’s name. http://www.4pawsforability.org/donation.html and be sure to include "In honor of Ryan Bowser" in the special instructions or memo portion of a check for any donations to be attributed to him.

For additional information contact the family at 4paws4Ryan@gmail.com. To contact 4 Paws directly call (937) 374-0385 or check out their website at http://www.4pawsforability.org/.

In Hopes of a Dog Friend of Ryan's Very Own

4 PAWS FOR RYAN

Ryan is one of thousands of children you can help with a life-changing, even possibly life-saving, opportunity.

About Ryan
Five-year-old Ryan Bowser of Delaware, Ohio, likes many of the same things as other children his age. He loves playing with Lego’s and trucks, playing video games, reading, stomping in the pool in the summer, and snuggling with Mommy or Daddy under a blanket in the winter. He is also very proactive about recycling and reusing. However, unlike most five-year-olds, Ryan struggles greatly in understanding simple personal interactions and most safety concerns.

Ryan has a variety of issues including Autism, Sensory Processing Disorder, minor oral motor planning issues, and some physical issues. One of his legs is longer than the other and the orthopedic specialist says that this causes him to have “functional” scoliosis. He often complains of leg and back pain. Ryan is also extremely flexible, but lacks the muscle strength to hold his joints in a “normal” alignment, so he walks oddly and he is quite clumsy.

There is no way to know what caused his condition or to predict his outcome. Although he is five years old, in terms of social and emotional development he is a child of less than two years. It’s like having two toddlers, one is a fairly typical two year old, and the other is as tall and strong as a 5-year-old, can unlock and open doors, and gets past every safety measure we have put in place.

Most confusing for his parents, Ryan has no fear in situations he should, and is almost overwhelmed by fear of things he shouldn’t be afraid of, like sounds and touch. He has no concept of the dangers of traffic or the ill intentions of a stranger.

A Solution for Ryan

4 Paws for Ability, a nonprofit organization located in Xenia, Ohio, has the answer. They have agreed to train a service dog, known as an Autism Assistance Dog, specifically for Ryan. Besides being a loving and loyal companion for him, training will include:

Behavior Disruption
When Ryan engages in repetitive behaviors, such as banging his head into people, the dog will be trained to interrupt this by laying its nose or foot on him and gently nudging him to stop the repetitive behavior. For the dog, it becomes a game, and it is possible that Ryan may decide petting, cuddling, or playing with the dog is more appealing than some of his repetitive behaviors.

Tether
While in public places, Ryan’s mother and father must hold his hand tightly, or be hyper-vigilant about Ryan keeping his hand on the shopping cart, a shirt sleeve, or a purse strap; otherwise Ryan would wander off or even run if startled. With a service dog, Ryan will wear a special harness that is attached to the dog and the dog will be controlled by Mom or Dad holding its leash. In this way, much of the anxiety and stress of going to public places is removed, and Ryan is given freedom of move¬ment and feelings of independence.

Tracking
There is a constant worry that Ryan will be able to escape. The dog will be able to track Ryan and quickly lead his parents to him.

Many other children have been and, like Ryan, can be helped by service dogs trained and placed by 4 Paws for Ability.


About 4 Paws for Ability

Mission & Goals. The stated mission of 4 Paws is to enrich the lives of people with disabilities by the training and placement of service dogs to provide individuals with companionship and promote independent living, regardless of age and severity of disability. In doing so, they also reduce the number of unwanted animals who would otherwise be destroyed by obtaining the majority of their animals from shelters and rescue groups.

The Placement Process. Most service dog placement organizations have a waiting list of at least 2 to 5 years. These service dogs, with their specialized training, are costly to train, some costing up to $26,000, and most organizations rely on a single person, or small group of people, doing the fundraising. Because the amount of funds they are able to raise is limited, they can only offer a certain number of dogs each year. At 4 Paws, the money doesn’t come out of the recipient’s pocket either. What they have done is to create a fundraising requirement. They form a working relationship with recipients and their families to have them raise money for 4 Paws, so the waiting list is only as long as it takes the person to complete their fundraising requirement.

Assistance Dogs. 4 Paws was the first agency to begin placing skilled autism service dogs and continues to be the largest organization in the United States placing autism assistance dogs with tracking. This continues to be the most often placed type of service dog, with well over 100 placed thus far. 4 Paws trains several other types of service dogs, as well, including hearing service dogs, mobility assistance dogs, seizure service dogs, in home companion dogs, and, for children with needs in more than one category, multipurpose dogs.

Please consider making a tax-deductible donation to support 4 Paws for Ability and help Ryan’s family meet their fundraising requirement!

Please make checks payable to 4 Paws for Ability.

253 Dayton Ave.
Xenia, Ohio 45385
Phone: (937) 374-0385
On the Web: www.4pawsforability.org