By ALESHA CAPONE
AN ALTONA family has opened their home and hearts to dogs that help out children with disabilities, autism spectrum disorders and learning difficulties.
Mum Abi Hoy, 12-year-old daughter Ash and nine-year-old son Jari volunteer as foster carers for the not-for-profit group Dogs for Kids with Disabilities (DKD).
Founded by qualified guide dog trainer Katie Hunter, DKD trains therapy dogs and autism dogs for children and co-ordinates guide dog puppy programs.
The Hoy family has so far welcomed eight DKD dogs into their home – although Milly the cat has not been so impressed with the canine guests.
Ms Hoy said the dogs needed foster families before they were placed with children on the DKD waiting list.
The dogs even help out with Jari who suffers from high levels of anxiety and finds it hard to sleep.
“When a dog sleeps with Jari he sleeps throughout the night,” Ms Hoy said.
Jari said he enjoyed meeting all the foster dogs, but it could be sad to see them go to new families.
“I miss one, a whippet called Wally,” Jari said.
As a puppy, Wally once ran inside from the cold and dived straight into Ash’s baggy nightie to warm up.
Ms Hoy said there were many advantages to having a foster dog in the house.
“For me, it’s the companionship and the help you get with Jari,” she said.
“The problem is Katie doesn’t have enough foster families, so she can’t take more dogs on.
“I think it’s definitely needed and I also think for a regular family thinking of getting a dog, it’s a good idea to become a foster family first so you can discover what type of dog suits you.
See www.dogsforkidswithdisabilities.com for more information about DKD.
