By Public Relations Coordinator, on November 16th, 2009
In 2005, my daughter Caitlin suffered an injury that caused paralysis of her left leg. It was an extremely hard time for her and our entire family. I watched as she struggled to learn to walk again. I also saw how she struggled to get around places that were definitely not wheelchair friendly. I observed as Caitlin’s peers began to shun her at school. I also saw how difficult it was for her to manage her cane while carrying school books and trying to open a door.
So it would definitely be an understatement to say that I was less than supportive when she decided that she needed the assistance of a service dog. I just could not imagine how she would handle a 95 pound dog in addition to everything else she was dealing with. I wondered how she would be treated by her peers and the other people in our community.
Caitlin insisted that this was the right path to take. She insisted that this would be helpful to her daily life. Eventually I consented assuming that when confronted with the additional work Caitlin would eventually move on with her life without the assistance of a service dog.
Well it’s been almost three years since this journey began and today as I write this I am ashamed to say that I was less than supportive of my daughter’s dream. It was a lot of hard work, but Caitlin was very determined and that determination has definitely paid off. Caitlin has taught her service dog Badger how to help her walk, how to help her stand up, how to pull her wheelchair and how to support her back when she is siting on the floor. Badger has given Caitlin independence, self-esteem and helped her to forge new friendships. Most importantly, Badger has made Caitlin extremely happy.
Maybe you have a child with a disability. Maybe you wonder if a service dog is the right answer for your child. Maybe you are as skeptical as I once was. While I will admit that service dogs are not for everyone, if I could go back to the day my daughter asked me if she could have a service dog I would answer that question by saying “Absolutely, that is a fantastic idea!”.
There is one more thing I think you should know. I have asked god many, many times to send us a miracle and heal my daughter’s leg. I realized a few years ago that while he did not give me the answer I had hoped for he did send Caitlin an answer to my prayers. He sent her this wonderful dog and all the fantastic adventures that come with traveling the world with such a beautiful friend. For that I am truly grateful.
By Public Relations Coordinator, on November 15th, 2009
Creating Your Own Story
How To Create A New Story:
First, You Need to Join the “GAP Service Dog” Site by Creating a User Account:
"Register" to join Domino Service Dogs.
Once You Join you will receive a password in your Email and you may “Log in” to begin writing your story.
The Next Step is to Create your “story title”. You create the Story Title by using “Categories”. The easiest method to create a new category is to expand the “Posts” menu item once you have logged-in:
Select The "Categories" Item in the "Posts" Menu
There are three main fields that you should populate:
Category Name: This will be the Name of your New Story
Category Slug: This is the name of the story in all lower case letters with all spaces removed – You may use the “hyphen” instead of a ” ” (space)
Parent: For new Stories the Parent should always be set to “Service Dog Stories” (We will talk about how to create “chapters” in a separate instruction where your “Story Name” will become the “Parent”
Here is a view of the Category Creation Page:
Category Defintion Form
As an example here is how I added a new category for “this story” describing how to create a new story:
How I created a New "Story Title" For this Instruction "story"
The last step to create the “Title” is to press the “Add Category” button at the bottom of the New Category Creation form.
Where is My Story Title:
You have created your new story title but it does NOT appear in the “Stories” menu item: Why? You have not added any content to your story! Once you add a post to your story your Story Title will appear in the “Stories” menu.
How To Add Content To Your Story:
All Story content is created by writing “Posts”. The first step to create a new post is to expand the Post Menu and select “Add New”:
Add Story Content
Once You select the “Add New” command you will see the “Edit Post” Page. Add a Title for your post, add the content for your post (content for your story) and then make sure you select the Category you created from your story in the “categories” list.:
Set Your Story Title "Category" for Your New Post
Publish
You do not need to publish your post immediately, you may save a draft and come back and work on your story content at your conveniences. Once you DO publish your post (and you have set the category to your new Story Title) you will see the Title of your story added to the “Stories” drop down menu.
Tips and Tricks
You have the option to restrict your story “content” to your story page only. By default, all new posts are also listed on the GAP Service Dogs “Home” page. To restrict “content” to your Story pages select the “Hide” Category IN ADDITION TO your “Story Title”.
In 2005, my daughter Caitlin suffered an injury that caused paralysis of her left leg. It was an extremely hard time for her and our entire family. I watched as she struggled to learn to walk again. I also saw how she struggled to get around places that were definitely not wheelchair friendly. I observed as Caitlin’s peers began to shun her at school. I also saw how difficult it was for her to manage her cane while carrying school books and trying to open a door. 
Maybe you have a child with a disability. Maybe you wonder if a service dog is the right answer for your child. Maybe you are as skeptical as I once was. While I will admit that service dogs are not for everyone, if I could go back to the day my daughter asked me if she could have a service dog I would answer that question by saying “Absolutely, that is a fantastic idea!”.
