Wyatt the Rhodesian Ridgeback
Tuesday, June 21, 2011 by Admin
Wyatt didn’t win Best of Breed at the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show in February, but he won an even more prestigious award, an American Canine Excellence (ACE) for being a top service dog.
At 2-years-old he is the youngest dog to win the award.
Wyatt and his owner Janice Wolfe work with hundreds of autistic and disabled children. Wolfe is the founder of Merlin’s Kids, a non-profit foundation that provides free therapy and service dogs to special needs kids.
Wolfe calls Wyatt “The Evaluator.” They go to the family home and observe how the child interacts with the dog. By studying the interaction Wolfe determines whether the child would benefit from having a therapy dog.
She says: "[Wyatt] is part dog, part Zen master and part healer…He understands children. It's the coolest thing. He's a natural."
Many children are frightened of him at first, but Wyatt waits calmly as they realize he is not a threat. Then Wolfe goes to shelters to find a dog to train specifically for the needs of the individual child.
In the past two years she has placed more than 60 rescued dogs as service, therapy and companion dogs, all free to families in need.
Wolfe lives with her husband, a retired police officer, in New Jersey. She donates her earnings as a dog trainer, human tutor and consultant to the cause.
“I call it saving two lives," she says. "A dog's life and a child's. I will basically go broke doing this because I love it. The effect these dogs have on these kids can’t possibly be measured in dollars.”
She is currently raising funds to build a camp where special needs kids and their families can stay to get help. She is also collaborating on a book with the remarkable autism advocate/author Temple Grandin about how dogs can help autistic children.
At 2-years-old he is the youngest dog to win the award.
Wyatt and his owner Janice Wolfe work with hundreds of autistic and disabled children. Wolfe is the founder of Merlin’s Kids, a non-profit foundation that provides free therapy and service dogs to special needs kids.
Wolfe calls Wyatt “The Evaluator.” They go to the family home and observe how the child interacts with the dog. By studying the interaction Wolfe determines whether the child would benefit from having a therapy dog.
She says: "[Wyatt] is part dog, part Zen master and part healer…He understands children. It's the coolest thing. He's a natural."
Many children are frightened of him at first, but Wyatt waits calmly as they realize he is not a threat. Then Wolfe goes to shelters to find a dog to train specifically for the needs of the individual child.
In the past two years she has placed more than 60 rescued dogs as service, therapy and companion dogs, all free to families in need.
Wolfe lives with her husband, a retired police officer, in New Jersey. She donates her earnings as a dog trainer, human tutor and consultant to the cause.
“I call it saving two lives," she says. "A dog's life and a child's. I will basically go broke doing this because I love it. The effect these dogs have on these kids can’t possibly be measured in dollars.”
She is currently raising funds to build a camp where special needs kids and their families can stay to get help. She is also collaborating on a book with the remarkable autism advocate/author Temple Grandin about how dogs can help autistic children.
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