The story of Luke and Kain

A story of love, connection, and transformation

This is a story of just one Assistance Dog and the life-changing impact he has had on a child with autism and his whole family, as told by Luke's mum, Debbie.

This is the kind of difference you can make by sending a gift today. Through your kindness, you'll be helping more children and families to turn the page on difficult chapters in their lives and to look to the future with greater hope and confidence.

Dogs are incredible. Humans like you, even more so. What a fantastic team.

CHAPTER 1

Before Kain, Luke could be nervous and anxious. I was constantly worried, as sometimes he'd just take off.

Luke was diagnosed with Autistic Spectrum Disorder when he was two and-a-half. He’s non-verbal and finds busy and noisy places stressful. Take the supermarket, for example. If I let go of his hand for just one second to pay for the groceries, he could take off. Or he might express himself by getting high-pitched, causing people to misjudge him. I would overhear people saying, ‘He’s spoilt’ or ‘He’s just looking for attention’. His older brother, Liam, would get so angry, saying, ‘Leave my brother alone.’ I also worried that Liam was missing out; there were always things we had to say ‘no’ to because of Luke. Then along came Kain and life changed for all of us.

CHAPTER 2

Things are so much easier since we welcomed Kain. I'm a lot calmer and Luke is safe and a more confident.

When he was eight, Luke was matched with Assistance Dog, Kain, and they bonded almost instantly. Now Luke always has his hands out for Kain. He likes to feel his fur and it gives him such reassurance; like ‘Kain is here now, fine, I can do this.’ When Luke and Kain are tethered together, they are a secure little unit. Luke never runs off, so we can relax and say ‘yes’ to more things as a family. Kain really has brought us all together.

CHAPTER 3

Luke loves that people stop and ask him about his dog.

And a lot of people do stop you when you have a dog from Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind; it’s almost like having a celebrity.

There are other benefits for Luke in having Kain alongside him. People notice Kain’s special vest, see he has a job to do, and instead of judging or ignoring Luke, they treat him with greater understanding. Kain has made Luke’s world so much kinder. Isn’t it amazing what a dog can do?

You've helped create a whole new chapter. You've turned the page for us.

I was worried for Luke's safety, for how people would judge him, for how upset this made my son, Liam...and all the things we had to stop doing as a family.

Having an Assistance Dog has changed so much for us. It’s like two different chapters: life before Kain and life after Kain.

That's not all you've achieved...

By helping to make Assistance Dogs part of everyday life you are making an impact, right across our community.

• On awareness...when people see an Assistance Dog it helps them to understand why a child might be behaving differently.

• On understanding...greater understanding makes people less likely to judge, and more willing to engage with patience and kindness.

• On experience...when the world is kinder to them, children with autism feel more welcome and more comfortable.