Full story
Hello! My name is Caelli and I am almost 3 years old!
I am a very shy but loving little girl. I Try to be a good girl but I have lots of struggles that have only gotten worse since I've gotten older. I am non-verbal, I have severe separation anxiety that even extends towards strangers. I struggle to eat food and it's always a guessing game of what I will eat. I love watching other people and children playing but the idea of joining in or having somebody touch or even be near me is scary! I can't handle going out in public places!! That terrifies me!! Goodness no... It sometimes helps to have my momma's phone or my tablet for me to "disappear into" so I don't notice how busy or crowded places are! I am big on routines... I don't like deviating from them. I'm easily over-stimulated and have severe meltdowns that almost always involve injury towards myself or my momma (sometimes my nana or uncle Z).
My family, friends, and supporters think it's best for me to get an Autism service dog because I LOVE animals- they calm me down a lot easier than anything else, including my momma. I've had a few meltdowns in public places where other people's service dogs have come to my aid and helped me feel better and safe. Most belonged to veterans who suffered from PTSD. This is what made my momma make the final decision that I need one! I love to play with dogs and feel so much safer and braver around them! My momma hopes that having a service dog will slowly bring me out of my shell and want to do more! Such as; socializing with other children, not feel the need to cause injury to myself or to my momma, and maybe even get me talking! I hope it will help me sleep better at night as I am a night owl who would run on 3-4 hours of sleep!!
We decided that a service dog through SDWR is the best option and although it means we have some hard work ahead of us, my momma is up for the challenge! We will be working hard to fund-raise our pledge of $25,000, which will offset about half of what it costs the Organization to train, raise, and provide the perfect dog for me! They even said they'd travel to my home to customize and continue the dog's training with me, and the dog comes with a life-time guarantee on the dog's training!! YAY!!
