Apologies in advance for the *RANT*! Quote:
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Originally Posted by kitty My sister has a handicapped child. (She suffered a stroke while she was being born.) Rescue has denied her because of her child. The physical theripist said that a pet would be good for my neice. |
Welllllll......this just makes me mad
. Unless your niece is combative, or your family would not watch her and allow her to hurt the dog, this is the kind of discrimination that keeps society in the dark ages! I COMPLETELY understand about the responsibility of the rescues to place pups with safe homes; but there are MANY families with "handicapped children" who have pets! Aaaaaand, we manage to care for our children, and keep the pet safe. I suppose I would not be allowed (in some states) to rescue a dog, because my daughter was injured by the dpt vaccine, and has been left with severe disabilities (non-verbal, non-ambulatory, "profound" retardation, and severe, intractable seizures). My Mozart (25lbs) has managed to live a happy, injury-free life, for lo these 12 years. In fact, he suffers separation anxiety when we put Hannah in her wheelchair, because he knows she's going out of the house. Abigail (6lbs) has manged to grow into a healthy, happy, injury-free 1 y/o, who is NOT afraid of my daughter. In fact - she goes to Hannah during a seizure to comfort her! We do have to watch this, as she could be injured - but we all DO WATCH - and, Abbie has learned when to move. <g> Aaaand, I'd like to ask the Rescue Shelter people: how many pups have been injured on purpose from 'normal' children tossing them in the air, or stepping on them by accident? Aaaaand, speaking of seizures - what about dogs who specialize in detecting seizures in epileptics? Or, service dogs to many and varied 'handicapped' children/people?
OK, now that THAT's off my chest: have you thought of the local SPCA? Why does she necessarily need a Min Pin? If the therapist is recommending a pet for her development, then there are any number of dogs looking for a loving home sitting on death row.