By Melissa Lake
Our Family Lassy – His Real Name is Donald Duck Lake
Our family experienced a recent health scare– a hornet sting on the eye of our weiner dog, Donald. Our family pet was enjoying a catnap when the incident occurred. We had to rush him to the doggie doctor in Cleveland, who was the same one who nursed him back to health after being hit by a car last year. I’m happy to report that now his eyes are just like new again. Donald saves the day often and that’s why this chapter is dedicated to him.
Oh, what a good dog he is. He has guarded our son Logan, who has a habit of wandering, or bolting. I will never forget one morning, at 4 a.m., he barked from corner to corner of the house, and eventually came into the house and barked at the door of my room. I found that odd, so I got up and noticed the back door of the kitchen was open a little bit. I followed Donald as soon as I realized that he has something to show me. He ran all the way to my mother-in-law’s home and stopped in his tracks, as he had lost the scent. Praying my 10 year old was alright, I was about to head to my daughter’s house to see if he showed up there when the police came around. As they drove slowly down the road I let out a blood-curdling yell of “HELP, STOP, PLEASE HELP!” I became very worried and started to hyperventilate because the policeman’s face looked like he had bad news to tell me. Fortunately, I was wrong because somebody had found him and called the authorities. Once it got sorted out that he belonged to me, the officer had him driven back to the house since I was in no shape to drive at that point. But thank goodness that Donald was there to warn me something was wrong, or I wouldn’t have been out there.
Our Safety Rules
Safety is the top priority with Autism. I do not tolerate loud neurotic fits, and hitting himself, but Logan still does it. I just remind him that it hurts me to see him hurting himself, and in my head run through 20 questions of what he really needs. The first thing, as he screams in a fit, is to listen carefully. Watch and learn. He must wait at the door if we’re going somewhere, although many times he goes after waiting too long. It is good to see that he has his own free will, but he respects my wishes for the most part. Now along with the chime announcing “Front Door” the free red box from Austim Society of America (ASA) has provided me with one stop sign, so guess what…the back door needs one, because this seems to stop his running rhythm, “Back Door” is announced more often.