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Northeast
Center for Special Care is pleased to feature:
Canine and Abled
http://www.canineandabled.com/
Ten years ago Kimberly Carnevale was an accomplished
professional equestrian and an Olympic hopeful.
She was competing on the prestigious Grand Prix Show
jumping circuit and was vying for a position on the
United State Equestrian Team. Things were bright
in Kimberly's life until a motor vehicle accident
brought her dreams to a halt. The accident
resulted in a traumatic brain injury, multiple
injuries and seizures.
A brain injury is a dramatic, life-changing event for
anyone, as it was for Kimberly. Her goal of
competing as an equestrian and making the Olympic team
were over. There was, however, another
life-changing event that happened about the same time.
Four years before her accident Kimberly rescued an
eighteen-month old German Shepherd/St. Bernard mix pup
that was about to be put asleep.
"Dewey," came home and became a part of
Kimberly's family. She had no idea at the time
the role Dewey would play in her life.
After her accident Kimberly discovered that when she
was about to have a seizure, Dewey was able to detect
the impending seizure and alert her. During and
after her seizures, Dewey remained close to her side
as a comfort. Dewey had the ability to be a
seizure-alert dog. Dogs with this ability can
alert and/or assist individuals during a seizure.
After viewing a program about service dogs on the
cable network Animal Planet, Kimberly enrolled Dewey in service dog training
and he became a certified service dog. After his
training Dewey was able to do more than only alerting Kimberly to impending seizures and maintain a
comforting presence, he also pulled her wheelchair, retrieved
items and assisted in helping her relearn to walk
again.
There
were other events that would also change Kimberly's
life. After becoming a certified service dog,
and despite the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) regulations,
Kimberly was denied access to some public areas with
Dewey. Access
denial for individuals and their service dogs sadly
remains too common. Over the past few years on
the northeastcenter.com news feed we have posted links
to dozens of news stories about individuals with
disabilities being denied access to retail stores,
restaurants, and even schools because of having their
service dog with them. These experiences of discrimination
motivated Kimberly to establish an organization and
website dedicated to the education and awareness of service dogs.
Canine and Abled
is the website for the organization that Kimberly
founded. The website promotes the acceptance of
service dog teams through awareness and inspiration.
The
site increases
awareness by providing information on such common
questions about
how to acquire a service dog, what they do and what
links are available on service dog resources on the
web.
There are also original articles written by Kimberly
about service dogs and a section on general dog
training.
We asked Kimberly about her motivation to start the organization and
website. She told us:
I
founded
Canine and Abled,
Inc. to help combat the rude behavior and
illegal access denial that myself and service
dog teams all around the country faced on a
daily basis. I realized that the common denominator
in all access was lack of education and so I
set out to change mindsets in regard to
service dogs through inspirational
education.
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When
you visit Canine
and Abled you can also learn
about such services available as awareness and sensitivity training about services dogs
aimed at different groups including business,
communities, children and young people. Canine
and Abled also provides
corporate consulting services which includes detailed
training about creating an accessible workplace, ADA
regulations, implementing access-free barriers, and
training about identifying, assessing and approaching a working dog team. You can read
about all the services
Canine and Abled
provide when you visit the site.
The
inspiration is provided by Kimberly. On
Canine and Abled
you have the opportunity to read about her personal
story as well as her other inspirational writings.
Dewey had a profound effect on Kimberly's life.
She credits Dewey with giving her the motivation to
rebuild her life and it is heartwarming to read this
story.
Kimberly told us about some of the responses she receives
when she presents her message to groups:
While
I'd originally set out to educate, I decided to share my story
hoping that it would evoke compassion and make people think
twice before treating someone badly because they look, sound, or
do things in a different way. I was amazed when people responded
as they have... I've been told by kids that they'll never give
up on their dreams, and by senior citizens, that I inspired them
to think positively despite adversity of illness and pain. That
was the unexpected gift that I received from this program--the
ability to help others through my words.
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On
Canine and Abled
you can meet Kimberly's services dogs and see
pictures. Dewey eventually retired as a service
dog and then passed away after serving faithfully. You can
also learn about her current
service dog Dawson and service dog in-training Nadja.
After learning about Kimberly's story on
Canine and Abled,
you may be inspired to read about her life in detail in
her book: Canine and Abled Taking the Dis Out
of Disabled, which is available through the
Canine and Abled
website.
Besides
being informative and inspirational
Canine and Abled
is unique in that Kimberly Carnevale is a Traumatic
Brain Injury survivor. While the information
presented is applicable to anyone with any physical or
cognitive condition where a service dog would be helpful
to promote independence, we are not aware of another
site that comes from the perspective of someone who has
had a brain injury. So if you are a brain injury
survivor, a family member or professional - Kimberly's
story, as well as the work she does through
Canine and Abled can
be a valuable resource.
We asked Kimberly to tell us what she has learned from
her experience as a traumatic brain injury survivor and
having been an advocate through
Canine and Abled.
She noted:
What
I've learned from this experience can fill a book; and it
has...and I'm well on my way to filling a second book. To sum it
up; life is a journey. We may not like all the twists and turns
it takes, but those curves are needed if we are to make it to
our designated destination. There may be detours, but if we
adjust our response to those detours, continue to have faith
that we will get to where we want to go, and learn from every
challenge; we will be rewarded beyond our wildest dreams.
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There is a lot more to Canine
and Abled
then we have presented here so we encourage you to visit the site. We are
happy to feature this as our website of the month for April, 2008. Canine
and Abled
is just a click
away and don’t forget to
bookmark them so you can visit again.
Disclaimer:
Reference in this web site to any specific
organizations, commercial products, process, service,
manufacturer, or company does not constitute its
endorsement or recommendation by Northeast Center for
Special Care.
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