CALGARY – The perfect way to spend a day for 13-year-old Thomas Tetreau is an Easter egg hunt with his best friend, Shilo the dog.
“He just kind of comes around with me. He’s my friend…I think of him as that,” said Thomas, who has autism.
Thomas was paired with Shilo four years ago—they’re together 24/7—and initially had to be tethered to Shilo to keep him from bolting.
“So if he would try to run, we’d tell Shilo to halt, and Thomas would have to try and pull a 70-pound dog,” said Thomas’ dad, Dennis.
But now, just having Shilo nearby is all that’s needed to keep Thomas calm.
“Sometimes as humans we don’t recognize things,” said Dennis.
“Shilo can recognize Thomas’ anxiety a lot quicker than we can, and be there as that companion to try and calm it before he can get excited or upset about something.”
It costs tens of thousands of dollars to train and care for a service dog like Shilo. In an effort to fundraise so more kids can get dogs of their own, Calaway Park was filled with about 150 dogs for the National Service Dog Easter Egg Hunt on Friday afternoon.
“The dogs provide a life-changing difference in the families that they go to, providing independence, helping the children navigate safely—emotionally and physically—through their days,” said Alison Archambault with the National Service Dogs organization.
It’s a life-changing experience Thomas says will continue to shape him.
“Shilo has been an interesting part of our family and always will be,” said Thomas.
With files from Erika Tucker
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