Students and teachers from a Maine Elementary school are raising money for their service dog who has had a “ruff” year.
The school has started a GoFundMe to help pay for Ory, the service dog’s three surgeries. The goal of the “Pennies for Paws” fundraiser is $20,000, which is needed to cover the operations. According to WABI5, the community has also launched a webpage to help bring in more money.
The 16-month-old has hip dysplasia, degenerative hips and two torn ACLs. Jess Jones, an Ed Tech at the Willard School, expressed that the surgery will help improve the pup’s quality of life once the pain is gone.
“She’s only 16 months and she deserves that opportunity to have a great life,” Christen Suratt, a teacher at the school told WMTW. “The vet said her life will be amazing once this is done and dealt with.”
Ory has been a huge asset to the school by helping students with special needs calm down when having emotional outbursts.
Research suggests that therapy/service dogs can decrease stress and give students emotional support. Some other benefits of using therapy dogs include helping to improve social cues and teach empathy in students.
Studies also prove that student’s have a reduction of stress and less anxiety when around a therapy dog.