Our Lady of Lourdes UCM in Perth was honoured to have Mr Andrew Turnball and his beautiful labradoodle dog called Hope. Hope is a very special dog in that she is a highly trained assistance dog that Mr Turnball had for his son to help assist him live his life with an illness. Hope demonstrated some of her skills to our group these ranged from fetching various items for the person, to alerting others if their handler becomes unwell. She also enjoyed many hugs from her new-found fan club.
The Mothers were shocked to find out how much it costs to train assistance dogs. It takes a special type of person to take these dogs into their lives and home,to nurture and train then let the dog go to a person whose quality of life can be enriched by the presence of an assistance dog.
It was very easy to see what simple joy a dog like Hope can bring to a person. Their never ending companionship,love and loyalty is second to none and the support that dogs like Hope can bring is priceless.