03/09/2026
This is Harry and his Assistance Dog Kลwhai ๐๐พ
Harry's breathing can fail at a moment's notice. When it does, he needs a ventilator to keep him safe.
His body doesn't make enough acetylcholine โ the chemical that carries messages from the brain to the muscles, including the ones he uses to breathe. When Harry is too active, it can trigger respiratory arrest.
But Kลwhai has been trained to help keep him safe. The moment she sees him overexerting, she gently nudges him behind the knees to remind him to stop and rest โ then stays with him, chin resting on his legs, until he's recovered.
Because of his condition, Harry can't go to mainstream school or run around a playground the way other children do. But the hardest part, his mum Natasha says, isn't the medical side. It's the isolation.
Harry watches his big brother James head off to school and playdates โ the everyday things he can't have. "While most kids get confidence, support and a sense of belonging from friends," Natasha says, "we see Harry get those things from Kลwhai."
"Harry knows he can do anything with Kลwhai beside him."
He happily tells anyone that his body doesn't make enough acetylcholine โ a self-advocacy that will protect him for the rest of his life. "We know Kลwhai is a big part of this quiet confidence he's developed. He never feels alone."
And her impact reaches the whole family. "Kลwhai gives us a can-do attitude," Natasha says. "Things we'd have shied away from before โ the cricket, a show at the local theatre โ we believe we can do now. She keeps us connected, calm, grounded and positive."
Now imagine Harry without her.
"We hate to think what this time would have looked like," Natasha says โ a little boy with no best friend at his side, and a family without the confidence to get out into the world.
That's the difference an Assistance Dog makes โ and right now, 15 more children are waiting for theirs.
Please donate to the Blue Puppy Appeal and help train the dogs these children need: www.bluepuppyappeal.co.nz
