Meet Angus, a seven-year-old Golden Retriever with a really particular ability set who’s changing into a well-known sight on the streets of Alnwick.
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Angus is a registered help canine for his 14-year-old handler, Thomas, who was identified with autism spectrum dysfunction at age seven.
Thomas finds overstimulating environments overwhelming and will get confused if he’s given too many directions directly. He finds it exhausting to talk to strangers and in asking for assist if wanted.
Angus’ job is to assist by performing ‘deep tissue pressure’ on Thomas, utilizing his paws to press on the massive muscle teams in Thomas’s legs and stomach to launch endorphins to counteract the concern and stress.
When Thomas was younger, he would get so overwhelmed that he would run away from his mother and father and conceal to attempt to discover someplace quiet.
This was a terrifying ordeal, so Angus is educated to find Tom, information his mother and father to him then lie with him calmly (performing deep tissue strain) till Tom feels able to re-join the world.
Thomas mentioned: “He’s like my furry brother. I love him so much and I can trust him to keep me safe. I’d be lost without him – probably quite literally!”
Thomas’ mum, Kay Whiteley, educated Angus beneath her charity, Western Australian Assistance and Therapy Dogs Inc, and has been coaching information, help and remedy dogs for over 30 years. She knew Angus was destined to be her son’s autism help canine since he was a pup.
Kay mentioned: “I was actually training Angus to work with autistic children in an education support unit originally but Angus started reacting to Thomas’s stress levels at home and they just clicked, so I guess it was just meant to be.”
Mother and son lately moved again to the UK, with Angus becoming a member of them for the 18 hour journey to assist Thomas on the aircraft.
Kay mentioned: “Everybody always asks about toileting and are concerned that he was uncomfortable but Angus is trained to wee into a nappy and poo into a bag on command so he was given several toilet breaks throughout the journey and a big free run as soon as we arrived.”
Even when calm and relaxed, Angus is working an vital job and might’t afford distractions. A couple of minutes of cuddles may very well be the distinction between Thomas with the ability to use Angus to calm himself or a full meltdown.
Kay mentioned: “Once that occurs, it’s so upsetting and annoying for Tom that we regularly simply need to go home and cancel our plans for the remainder of the day and all as a result of somebody wished to say howdy to a cute canine.”
Since being again, Kay put her experience into a brand new business, Alnwick Fear-Free Dog Training, and has acquired five-star opinions for her novel and personalised method.
She mentioned: “I have worked with people from all walks of life. If I can teach a dog to alert for low blood sugar, get help if someone has a seizure or empty a washing machine, teaching them not to jump up when a visitor comes to your house is a doddle!”
For pet, help or remedy canine coaching queries, Kay will be contacted on (e-mail protected) or yow will discover her on Facebook at Alnwick Fear Free Dog Training.
