Alex Cracraft and Autism Assist Dog Comet By Joy Miller For eight years, Alex Cracraft of Fridley, Minnesota, and his Autism Assist Dog, Windy were an awe-inspiring team everywhere they went. With Windy’s love and support, Alex has become more confident and independent—an outcome which has thrilled his parents, Rich and Laura. Alex and Windy teamed up after the Cracraft family learned about Can Do Canines at an Autism Society Skills session. Alex was eight years old and in second grade. Now a junior in high school, Windy gratefully retired from active partnering with Alex in December of 2016. At …
Labrador
Robyn and Ziggy Conquer the World
Robyn Block and Seizure Assist Dog Ziggy By Erin Reyes After experiencing a skiing accident in 2013, Robyn Block of Good Thunder, Minnesota, developed a seizure disorder and migraines due to a traumatic brain injury. Since then, it’s been a long road to recovery. Teaming up with Ziggy, her Seizure Assist Dog, has been a life-altering step in her journey. Partnering with Ziggy has “changed my life in a lot of ways for the better,” says Robyn. Although things are going well for the duo now, Robyn initially wasn’t sure about the prospect of having an assistance dog. Despite the …
The Help She Needed
Laurie Tschida and Mobility Assist Dog Tikki Laurie Tschida lives in a quiet neighborhood in St. Paul, Minnesota with her husband, Jim. After losing their Terrier, Lucy, things seemed even quieter. But now the house is much livelier with the addition of Tikki, Laurie’s Mobility Assist Dog. “When we were first learning brace, I really needed help getting off the kitchen floor, and when [Tikki] did it for me I just started bawling,” Laurie says. “That just was everything to me … Then I knew that this was going to be right—that she was going to be the help I …
MS Cannot Stop Meta
Meta Mickelson and Mobility Assist Dog Willa By Bill Johnson Physical activity and a busy schedule have always come naturally to Meta Mickelson of Stanchfield, Minnesota. A horse lover and owner, she frequently attends races at Canterbury Downs and Running Aces, as well as horse shows. Other pastimes include road trips (the Great Smoky Mountains last spring) and outings to the drive-in theater in Lake Elmo. Recently, she bought a boat and looks forward to many fishing excursions. Learning about Meta’s on-the-go lifestyle, a person might have a hard time believing she has primary progressive multiple sclerosis (MS), a disease …
A Bridge to a World Full of Sound
Bob Reynolds & Hearing Assist Dog Sophia By Patti Miller Life is full of sounds. Sounds alert us to fires, phone calls, visitors, text messages, emergency vehicles, severe weather, and so much more. Sounds of laughter, birds chirping, babies crying, dogs barking or tires screeching can be more than just sounds. If your world had limited sound, how would you cope? An accident left Bob Reynolds of Hudson, Wisconsin with a baseline skull fracture at age 25. He immediately lost all hearing in his left ear while hearing in his right ear was compromised. The doctors’ concerns that Bob would …
A Chance Meeting Changes a Life
Sheila Robeck and Mobility Assist Dog Coal By Tammy Waibel Sheila Robeck of St. Michael, Minnesota smiles with delight as she speaks about her Mobility Assist Dog, Coal. While he has only been with her since July, he has made a dramatic impact on her life and her family’s. Sheila, a C5-6 quadriplegic due to an auto accident in 2001, manages life with reduced range of motion in her shoulders and elbows, but very limited hand function. She uses a power wheelchair for mobility as well as adapted silverware, pens and a pointer for computer work but needed something more …
Improving Mobility with a Little Help from Zane
Cherish Grabau and Mobility Assist Dog Zane By Bobb Elsenpeter Like many people with multiple sclerosis, Cherish Grabau of Stewartville, Minnesota, has trouble getting her muscles to do what she tries telling them. It can be hard for her to walk, pick things up, and even get out of a chair. She has since discovered that with the help of a Mobility Assist Dog, life has gotten so much easier. She learned about the benefits of an assistance dog online, then followed up with her own personal research. “I was in one of my online MS groups and one of …
He Is Her Rock
Angela Otterholt and Mobility Assist Dog Yorick By Joy Miller Angela Otterholt has faced many physical challenges in her life—cerebral palsy, myoclonus, and epilepsy—but in the last 14 months, she has dealt with difficult emotional challenges as well. Her husband Curt died in August of 2016 after suffering an aneurysm and stroke. Then she and her youngest son, Jake, downsized their home and moved to Prior Lake, Minnesota. With Jake soon graduating from high school, her three sons and doctors started discussing what other changes needed to be made to help her navigate life—not only physically, but also emotionally. Enter …
Two Can Do
Lacey Hagen and Hearing Assist Dog Ynda By Susan Byers Lacey Hagen’s story is a tale of two dogs. Her first Can Do Canines journey began in 2003 with a lively Black Labrador Retriever named Pearl, a Hearing Assist Dog. For most of her life, Lacey has been significantly hearing impaired, resulting from meningitis when she was only one year old. Over the years, she relied on hearing aids to restore partial hearing, as well as support from her mother and later from college roommates. But when it came time to move out on her own, a friend convinced Lacey …
A Gift for Alex
Alex Loehlein and Mobility Assist Dog Yahtzee By Leslie Flowers At first glance, Alex Loehlein of Andover, Minnesota looks like any other 10-year-old boy. Then you notice his gait is slightly different and he can’t walk as far as others his age. These are just a couple symptoms of Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD), a genetic condition in which the body lacks dystrophin, a protein that keeps muscle cells intact. All muscles, including the heart, are affected and get weaker over time. Alex’s parents, Jackie and Adam, worry about Alex. When he is fatigued, simply reaching down to retrieve a dropped …