Remington’s Training

Family and friends, I implore you to please take a moment to read about this campaign. I have a friend whose daughter, Eva, has been sick since October of 2016. They are currently in need of funds to pay for training for a service dog who was so graciously given to them. He is the little cutie shown in the picture along with Eva, who is 15 years old. Below is a little history of what has happened since Eva first got sick. Her mom explains:

“On October 16, 2016, Eva woke up with a raging headache and was unable to move her head or get out of bed because her back hurt so bad. She was taken to the ER where she was diagnosed with viral meningitis and sent home with pain meds. After two weeks of no improvement and losing the ability to walk, she was admitted to Parkview Regional Hospital in Ft. Wayne on October 31, 2016. After a lumbar puncture and taking fluid off of her spine, she was able to walk again. The last 2+ years have been filled with a ton of blood work, Echo cardiograms, MRIs, CT scans, Thyroid ultrasounds, Physical Therapy and many other tests. A diagnosis of Ehlers Danlos and Autonomic Dysfunction were  finally reached. Eva has been to a rheumatologist at Cincinnati Hospital, a Geneticist, an Endocrinologist and Pulmonologist at Lutheran Childrens Hospital, and a Cardiologist as well as Sports medicine doctor for her EDS. Eva travels to Riley every eight weeks to a neurologist to receives six shots in her head to help with the migraine headaches her condition causes. She sees a specialist at Parkview Hospital that has been in charge of her case. She also uses a wheelchair on days when  her blood pressure is so low that it makes walking difficult.
Eva cannot attend regular school due to her illness and her compromised immune system. She home schools through West Noble and is taught by a private hired tutor.
Her doctors are all in agreement that she would benefit greatly from a service dog. He will be trained to pick things up off the floor for her since she gets dizzy and lightheaded when she has to bend over. He will bring her water bottles from the kitchen (she has to drink a lot of fluids). He will be able to fetch her medicine and sense when her heart-rate drops and warn her before she passes out. He will let her know she needs to lay down. He will be trained to come find me if this happens when I’m not in the room, if it happens at night or if they are out in public he will find a human to help. He will also be trained to assist her on the days she needs her wheelchair.
Remington was paid for by an anonymous donor. His training will cost between 7,000 and 8,000 dollars. He will be trained by K9 special ops academy in North Webster, Indiana (574-834-2250). Remington will start his puppy training right after Christmas. This summer he will have to spend 4-6 weeks with them for task training where they will work with him every day. He will need a mobility harness, a service dog vest and will also need to be neutered.”

I know that $8,000 is a lot of money and if I could pay for it for Kellie, I would, but I cannot. I have watched Kellie go through so much with Eva and her other daughter as well, who is Bi-Polar. She is not able to work a standard 9-5 job since Eva has so many appointments each month. This family also lost their beloved husband/father only 3 months prior to Eva’s initial illness. I really want to see this little dog get the training that is necessary to help Eva live a better life. I want to see relief on Kellie’s face, knowing that Remington is a completely trained safeguard for her daughter! I don’t want Kellie to worry about how they are going to pay for this training. Please consider donating to this awesome cause! Please help me  bring joy to this family! Thank you all, Erin Kilgore