Documentary that was shot while we were at 4 Paws

Get your kleenex boxes out... This is a tear jerker. The documentary captures the true heart and soul of 4 Paws. You can see Nate getting to meet Chevy for the first time.

Click Here to watch video... takes a while to upload so be patient

4 Paws featured on the Today Show

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Today show was at 4 Paws the month before we were to highlight a little boys effort to raise money for his service dog. He wrote a book that was published and not only raised enough money for his book, but also 7 other children with seizure disorders.

October 2012 "Pawsitively Blessed"

The Last day and Graduation

Sorry I didn't post on graduation day but unfortunately it was a bit tainted. On Thursday night around 1 am Chevy woke us up. He had vomited in his crate. I took him outside right away and he ran down the hall trying to get outside. The diarrhea started. Every couple of hours he had to go out and Nate was up at 4:15am that morning too.... he was fine! Chevy was not. He was lethargic and I was worried. He continued with the V and D. I called Jennifer, one of the trainers at 1am and she said if he didn't stop to bring him in to 4 Paws in the morning and the vet would take a look at him. Dr. C said he looked better than he thought he would but gave him an injection for nausea and immodium. We were sent home to get ready for our public access test. You could tell that Chevy felt awful. Broke my heart to correct him udring the test, but he passed all the same. We headed back to 4 Paws and during graduation he slept and had two more episodes of vomiting. The vet was concerned about a possible intestinal blockage so after graduation we took him to a 24 hour vet near Dayton. My heart broke when the vet said they wanted to keep him overnight and start an IV. They had seen something questionable on his X-ray. No news was good news overnight and they repeated the X-ray. They did seem something about the size of a pea but that was moving through with no problem and to this day I still haven't found anything... yes I am digging through his poop everytime he goes. He has recovered very well and is eating and pooping no problem. Nothing has passed that would have cause any obstruction. I'm thinking he had some kind of virus. Scared the crap out of me... It figures though... If it's not Nate, it's Chevy. Rewind.... Graduation was so emotional, a celebration, but a sad goodbye to all the families that we had connected with. Every single person that was there for the class was a part of our big family that formed over two weeks. As each family went around the room and told how their two weeks had gone, many a tear was shed. I was doing ok until Tali's mom cried, then Samuel's dad was choking back tears. I said two sentences, broke down and ugly cried. I could attempt to explain the bond that forms but unless you are there and experience it... it's just so hard. This was an exclusive membership to a club that we all belong too. Every parent in their knew exactly what the other one was feeling. Even though our kids are different in some ways, they all have special needs. Not one person was phased if one of the kids went running across the room, flapping, stimming or having a meltdown. The atmosphere in the training room was so comfortable. We were all there for the same thing... our kids. We had all taken the time, filled out the application, raised the money and now made the commitment to spend two weeks training a dog that we hope will bond with our child and become their best friend. One mom said the thought of being able to go to the bathroom and take a shower was now a possibility with her dog. Another father said his son who is non verbal, but communicates by typing asked for a dog several years ago. When his Dad asked him what he thought about his new friend, he replied "I love him." Whenever one little girl would have a meltdown, it was all her dog could do to get to her. Seeing the bond's form during the two weeks was magical... the bond not only with the kids, but also with the parents, (the handlers). I really miss everyone and know we will all stay in touch one way or another. I didn't want to leave the comfort of being with other parents who understand what we go through on a daily basis. The drive home went well. It worked out well to have two vehicles to go home. Chevy had the entire back of my CRV. He slept alot, tried to get up front a few times, then just gave up and laid his head across my shoulder. We went to Cracker Barrel for lunch and he was a perfect angel in the restaurant. This journey was worth every step it took to get there. Chevy is perfect and Nate really likes him. Nate had his IVIG infusion today and Chevy laid next to him on the couch and laid his head in Nate's lap while Nate rubbed his ear. We are ready for things to settle down a bit and resume life... with a new member of the family. I will continue to update you guys on Chevy's new life in the Kothera household. We will start his integration into school soon. He has a grooming appt tomorrow and a vet appt on Tues. Nate has a clinic appt tomorrow for counts and Chevy will be introduced to the oncology clinic. I want to thank everyone that made this journey possible. I want to thank all the Ohio mom's that connected with me and helped make me more comfortable if Nate needed care. Thanks to Jennifer and Lydia for meeting us a clinic and showing us where to go. She even offered us her house if "Sandy" knocked out power to our hotel. People are so giving and so wonderful. We are so blessed to have all these people that have touched our lives. Much love to you all.

Halloween, Day 9 and 10

Sorry I didn't post yesterday but we got back to the hotel and had to get ready for the Halloween Party at 4 Paws. Yesterday Ken and I practiced more obedience and Ken did two tracks with Chevy. He did well. The weather was miserable. Seriously, if you are coming to a tracking class you better be prepared for everything... We started out at 80 degrees and went to 30 degrees, windy, rainy, muddy... disgusting. Everyday, Chevy connects with all of us more and more. He is listening to Ken as much as me and even Nate at times. He loves his Kong squeaky ball and his Cuz too. Nate loves his dog and I really think that Chevy loves him too. The Halloween party was great. Many friends of 4 Paws from past classes and the foster college students came in addition to people in our class, volunteers, staff, etc. The food was great. Loved all the costumes. We set up all our treats in the back and stood by a crate as the kids came around. They had a blast. Tracking today didn't go textbook, but Chevy found Nate both times. Ken tracked the first time and by the time I got Chevy he was worn out. We had classroom lecture this afternoon and Chevy didn't come off his mat. He was exhausted. We practiced walking tight rows on an airplane and heeling, under, stairs. Everything went well. Tomorrow is our big day. We have our public access test. I know Chevy will do fine. His heeling needs a bit of polish, but he is still young and we are working on it. I will take him out for a long walk tomorrow in the morning to burn off some energy. Our test is at 11:30 and we do our paperwork at 1:00. Graduation starts at 2:30. I have a special place in my heart for each and every member of our class. People and dogs included. I have spent so much time with everyone that they feel like family at this point and that bond will always be there. I'm so glad we have FB as we leave over the next few days for our homes. On another note, the guy, named Mark, that Nate found in the middle of the night had the front desk leave Nate a special Halloween treat bag full of toys in our room. Nate was thrilled to open the gifts. Every time we go by room 315, Nate yells, "Hi Mark." The card tore at my heart strings... I have to share as it was so beautiful.. "To My New Buddy Nate! You will always be in my heart. I am thankful God guided you to me in his special way. May your life bring you all the wonderful things you deserve, Love Mark" He also wrote Ken and I a note, "To Mom and Dad, God only chooses those with the strength, caring and endless love that you both have to take care of his most precious children, Hope all is going well with the dog for Nate, Always, take care, Mark (from Maine)." This trip has been filled with joyous gifts. I won't tell you it's been a piece of cake, but the end of the road is well worth the work you put in. We have a beautiful, smart, talented, loving dog and have met many wonderful people that are in the same boat as we are. Even though Nate gave me the sickening scare of my life, we met a wonderful man named Mark who has made an imprint on our lives. Thanks to Karen Shirk who loved our kids enough to create 4 Paws. If it wasn't for her, we wouldn't be in Ohio right now!

Day 8... Ken arrives

Well, "Sandy" certainly did put a crimp in our plans. Ken ended up driving my car here. The flights last night were cancelled and all those people rolled over to today. He got to the training center after lunch and was happily greeted by Chevy. Nate was napping in the car. When he walked in, Nate got a big smile on his face and came over to hug his Dad. He was so happy. We tracked this morning... Holy Cow, was it cold, wet and rainy with snow mixed in. The boots again, came in handy. The first track was a bit hard for Chevy. This is the first time he has tracked in 50 mph winds and this cold of weather. He is only a year old remember. He started tracking in the spring. He found Nate the first time and we sent a trainer out the 2nd time. The 2nd track was easier as the trainer was in the woods and that cut down on the wind. We practiced walking with shopping carts today. Had lectures on chew toys... We track again tomorrow. Ken will go out on his first track. I will definitely have pictures.

Day 7... Quite a scary start to the day

I am going to share this because I want everyone to know what happened. I'm not looking to be judged as I have already beat myself up pretty bad. I woke up to the night manager banging on our hotel room door. I was so totally exhausted and didn't know what the heck was going on. At 4:17 am this morning I opened the door to find the night manager standing with my son... Nate.... the one that was supposed to be sleeping. I looked back at the bed he was supposed to be in and then looked back at Nate and my mouth dropped to the floor. I apologized to the Manager and he said that it was ok... We were so lucky. Nate unhooked the night latch and walked out of the hotel room. I forgot to brace the chair against the door as we had done the nights before. Nate always got up between 2 am and 3 am and woke me up, went to the bathroom and got into bed with me. Chevy was in his crate in my room so he didn't even know Nate had left. I was sick... I was horrified.... Never has he done this... I felt like the most negligent mother in the world. I would have never forgiven myself had something happened to him. Luckily... Nate picked room 315 as the door to knock on. A very nice man named Mark was on the other side of that door. Mark works for an agency Called The Getchell Agency. They manage group homes for people with cognitive disabilities. He immediately recognized that Nate had DS, called the front desk to inform them. The manager searched through the reservation notes and found our reservation that noted we had a child with DS and were in OH getting a service dog. He then brought Nate to our room. After a decent hour, Nate and I walked down to Mark's room, knocked on the door.. When he answered the door, Nate yelled, "Hi Mark". I introduced myself, hugged him and thanked him profusely. We exchanged contact information and he was happy to help. I think that Nate had Angels watching over him this morning. Mark was here visiting his son. His flight that was supposed to leave this morning had been cancelled due to "Sandy" so he would have been gone when Nate knocked on his door. I shared my story with all my classmates who nodded and stated they had been there too. I learned about door alarms today and while training Chevy at the mall bought two on clearance at Radio Shack. Chevy will now be trained to bark when he sees Nate walking out a door. Chevy and Nate have bonded, but he doesn't know our routine yet... I know he will pick it up. We got to training a little late with a migraine to boot. One of my classmates is a pharmacist and also had a migraine today. He gave me an Imitrex and it knocked it out in two hours. When I got to training I was emotionally drained, but the support that came from the other parents was awesome. They knew exactly what I was feeling and what I had gone through. Tonight, Chevy and his crate are in front of the front door. I now know that Nate, however predictable he is, can be totally unpredictable. Ken is now driving to meet us tomorrow. "Sandy" has caused some problems with the flights so he will be driving to meet us and participate in training and meet Chevy. I'm excited for him to meet everyone and share in this wonderful journey. I didn't take many pictures today... as a matter of fact, my head hurt so bad I didn't take any. We had another successful track outside today and then since Nate had been up since 3:45am he took a nap. We tracked at the mall with the trainer hiding and Chevy found her instantly. One of our classmates was so distraught today... The match that was meant for her son was not working out. She conveyed her concerns, met with Karen and Jeremy. The recognized the problem and now they are working with a different dog. I'm so relieved for them. I can't imagine coming all this way and spending all this time to not bond with the dog. I know it happens as nothing is perfect, but to see this rectified so quickly was awesome. I don't have one negative thing to say about 4 Paws for Ability. What a class act organization... even if the training center does smell like a dog... tee hee hee. What do you expect! There are many dogs there. Heading to bed now. Need to sleep and will sleep a little easier knowing the Chevy is on the job tonight... blocking the front door!