A Family Is Frantically Searching For Their Autistic Son's Service Dog

Oct 25, 2019 by apost team

Heidi is a five-year-old Bernese Mountain Dog who was originally owned by a Nebraskan family as a therapy dog for their son with Autism. Unfortunately, their child started to exhibit violent behavior, so they released Heidi into the custody of an Iowa breeder for her own protection.

Shortly after her temporary placement with the breeder, a Kansas City family saw her picture on Facebook and immediately fell in love. Heidi swiftly found her place as a happy member of the Carneys.

Cailey Krosen-Carney and Paul Carney have a son named Reed who is also on the spectrum. Cailey claims that when they brought Heidi home, it was almost as if she automatically knew to tap into her previous service training when dealing with Reed. The Bernese pup must have innately picked up on symptoms in Reed that she had experienced with the boy in Nebraska. The two quickly developed a bond that was both intuitive and remarkable.

apost.com

On September 29th, the Carneys let Heidi out for her usual bathroom break. Cailey started to become suspicious because the dog didn't promptly return like she usually does. Weeks later, their beloved pet is still missing despite all of the efforts made by the Carneys and the local police force to bring her home. There have been several tips and leads in Heidi's disappearance, but none of them have ended up successful in locating her.

Although Heidi's disappearance is heavily weighing on the Carney family as a whole, Reed is tremendously impacted by the sudden shift in routine. Structure is important for many individuals on the spectrum, because a consistent routine helps relieve higher levels of stress that many of them face. Heidi was a significant part of Reed's routine, and not having her present on a day-to-day basis is causing him to become inconsolable at times.

The Carney family has not given up on bringing Heidi home, and they remain diligent on the search for their son's cherished four-legged friend. They've set up a Facebook page called, "Help Bring Heidi Home" in hopes to draw more attention to the search. They continuously post fliers describing distinguishable features on Heidi such as a growth that is located near her left paw. They hope that these updates will help expand their search, resulting in a successful rescue. Will you help spread the word about Reed's missing service dog in an attempt to help bring him back home?