The bond between Joe Soueidan and Dani strengthens each time they meet.
And, within a few months, Dani should be a permanent member of the Soueidan family.
But, the furry Labrador won’t be the typical man’s best friend. She is a seizure response dog that will serve as a helper and protector for a young man who has lived a lifetime with the unpredictable and debilitating effects of epilepsy.
“We have seen what the dog is capable of,” said Joe’s mother, Natalie Soueidan.
(Courtesy of Natalie Soueidan)
On one occasion during a family visit to Canines 4 Hope, Dani recognized signs of a seizure and immediately went over to Joe Soueidan, licking his face to keep him alert and offer comfort.
“It was amazing but simple,” his mother said.
Canines 4 Hope is a certified training center for service dogs, located in Palm City.
Seizure response dogs can activate a life-alert alarm, find someone to help, retrieve medication, food or a phone, and provide comfort. They wear vests to identify what they do, and also carry brochures and other materials with information on how to respond to a seizure.
However, service dogs, with such skills, require months of training and are expensive.
Dani will cost the Soueidan family $12,500.
To help with the expense an online donation site has been set up at YouCaring.com. About $4,900 in donations have been given so far.
On Oct. 15 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., hairstylists at Pulse Salon & Spa will have a fundraiser to help the family.
Half of the proceeds from shampoos, haircuts, blow-drys and other spa services will go toward the fund to pay for Dani.
Food and drinks will be provided. There also will be basket raffles.
Jennifer McCaslin organized the event with Pulse’s owner, Alberto Franco.
Soueidan is one of her clients, but they met years before when McCaslin took her then 3-year-old son, Mitchell, to Soueidan for speech therapy.
To help her own son, Soueidan had returned to school to earn a master’s degree from the University of South Florida in communication sciences and disorders.
“I love working with kids and working with families with special needs. I know what they go through. I’ve been there,” she said.
When McCaslin asked Franco about holding the fundraiser for Natalie’s son, he readily agreed.
“I’m very appreciative of that,” McCaslin said.
Natalie Soueidan hopes Dani can be life-changing for her son.
For the first eight months of his life, Joe Soueidan was a happy, curious toddler. He learned to walk at nine months and was saying a few words.
But, then he “just stopped,” his mother said.
Emergency room trips and doctors’ visits didn’t immediately yield answers to why her son was having very subtle seizures.
“That was the beginning of a crazy time,” she said.
For awhile, his seizures were controlled with medications obtained legally through Canadian pharmacies. But, the seizures returned – as many as 75 in a day – and Joe Soueidan had the first of two brain surgeries.
By third grade, he was off medications and doing well in school. As he entered his teen years, he went bowling, swimming, took guitar lessons and hung out with friends.
He was a typical teen.
On Jan. 12, 2012, though, he suddenly had a grand mal seizure, followed by more episodes and a second brain surgery.
He needed speech and occupational therapy.
He has dyslexia and has trouble reading, and is unable to do math.
It all became too much for him, his mother said. And, after the first week of his junior year, he left school.
He can’t be left alone night or day for fear of a life-threatening seizure.
He also struggles with severe depression.
But, Natalie Soueidan said, “I can’t give up hope.”
She wants him to regain moments of independence, and Dani could give him that.
Plans are underway for Joe Soueidan to return to high school, with Dani at his side.
“It’s not so much about him getting a degree, but about him getting out of the house and being part of society again.”
What: Pulse Salon & Spa Charity Event; 50 percent of proceeds will be donated to fund for service response dog. Food and drinks will be provided, and there will be basket raffles.
When: Oct. 15 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Where: 3756 Turman Loop, Suite 101, Wesley Chapel
Information: (813) 428-6917 or Facebook.com/pulsesalonandspawc
Published October 12, 2016
