Baby Parker's Big New Job
Baby Parker has a lot of new responsibilities: he’s a walking buddy, an eager student, a master of “place” and other tricks, lover of treats, and, most importantly, he’s a member of the Gonzales family.
After arriving at BARCS in mid-December, our friends at the Ronnie Stanley Foundation saw something special in this pup. He was chosen to go through rigorous training to be a therapeutic companion for a child and family in need in Baltimore.
The Ronnie Stanley Foundation connected with Casey Cares, a nonprofit organization that works with critically ill children and their families. Casey Cares had the perfect family in mind: the Gonzales family and sweet Amanda.
Amanda was born with Trisomy 18 (Edwards Syndrome). She has repeatedly defied the odds, as less than 10% of babies born with this condition survive past their first birthday. She requires constant care from her parents, much like a newborn, and while she needs to use a wheelchair and is nonverbal, she has quite a personality and her family knows and understands her. They can tell when she’s happy, when she’s grumpy, when she needs something or when she just wants to be held.
Big sister Sarah loves to read, play piano, hang out with their cat Mandy, help with the chickens and now do anything and everything with and for Parker. Sarah has taken on the responsibility of walking, playing with and feeding Parker with such enthusiasm and excitement. Sarah even insisted on sleeping in the family room where Parker’s crate was the first night to be sure he knew he wasn’t alone!
The Gonzales family has been working on all of their training homework, reinforcing good behavior and making sure Parker has the physical and mental stimulation an energetic pup needs. They welcome every new day with Parker as if it’s an adventure and love him more each day. They have rallied as a team to welcome Parker into their amazing family.
The Ronnie Stanley Foundation was created to improve the quality of life for rescue dogs and individuals in need. The Foundation trains and cultivates the therapeutic properties of rescue dogs to be matched with individuals who have faced various life challenges such as illness, emotional trauma and other hardships. These matches are even more meaningful because rescue dogs are placed in their forever homes.
We are so grateful to Ronnie for creating this wonderful program that supports the human-animal bond and makes it accessible to special families in our community. In addition, this program is proving that shelter animals, even those with heartbreaking histories, can hold these esteemed service roles.
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