henric
03-24-2012, 12:40 PM
by Katharine Watts
It may not seem like a child who suffers from a rare lung disease would have much of an opportunity for a normal childhood. But thanks to a dog named Mr. Gibbs, 3-year-old Alida Knobloch has just that.
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Diagnosed with a rare lung disease as a baby (neuroendocrine cell hyperplasia of infancy, for those of you whose vocabulary extends to medical terminology) the only way Alida's parents, Aaron and Debbie Knobloch, can ensure she gets enough oxygen is with a portable oxygen tank.
It may seem like a simple answer, but a heavy tank isn't easy for a child to carry, and Alida's parents also wanted to make her childhood as normal as possible.
Enter Mr. Gibbs, a Goldendoodle (golden retriever/poodle mix) trained to be a service dog.
When Alida's parent's brought her to meet him as a puppy, she fell in love. Maybe she could tell that in the future, he'd be her constant companion.
It's Mr.Gibbs responsibility to stay by her side at all times, no matter what she's doing. But even for a service dog, taking care of a 3-year-old is hard work.
"He had to learn to get under the table at restaurants," Mr.Gibbs' trainer Ashleigh Kinsleigh told Today.com "He had to learn that if there were other animals he couldn't just go and play with them. He had to stay right next to his girl and ignore all the fun things around him. He also had to build up to be able to carry around the full weight of the 6 pound tank."
Hopefully one day Alida will no longer need the tank, but for now Mr.Gibbs is happy to carry it as he follows her around. He does more than just that though: He also gives her hope for a normal life, keeps her alive and loves her unconditionally.
What do you think of Alida and Mr.Gibbs incredible story?
It may not seem like a child who suffers from a rare lung disease would have much of an opportunity for a normal childhood. But thanks to a dog named Mr. Gibbs, 3-year-old Alida Knobloch has just that.
13814
Diagnosed with a rare lung disease as a baby (neuroendocrine cell hyperplasia of infancy, for those of you whose vocabulary extends to medical terminology) the only way Alida's parents, Aaron and Debbie Knobloch, can ensure she gets enough oxygen is with a portable oxygen tank.
It may seem like a simple answer, but a heavy tank isn't easy for a child to carry, and Alida's parents also wanted to make her childhood as normal as possible.
Enter Mr. Gibbs, a Goldendoodle (golden retriever/poodle mix) trained to be a service dog.
When Alida's parent's brought her to meet him as a puppy, she fell in love. Maybe she could tell that in the future, he'd be her constant companion.
It's Mr.Gibbs responsibility to stay by her side at all times, no matter what she's doing. But even for a service dog, taking care of a 3-year-old is hard work.
"He had to learn to get under the table at restaurants," Mr.Gibbs' trainer Ashleigh Kinsleigh told Today.com "He had to learn that if there were other animals he couldn't just go and play with them. He had to stay right next to his girl and ignore all the fun things around him. He also had to build up to be able to carry around the full weight of the 6 pound tank."
Hopefully one day Alida will no longer need the tank, but for now Mr.Gibbs is happy to carry it as he follows her around. He does more than just that though: He also gives her hope for a normal life, keeps her alive and loves her unconditionally.
What do you think of Alida and Mr.Gibbs incredible story?