Bitch Bella: A lifesaver for little Johannes!

Bitch Bella: A lifesaver for little Johannes!

Thürnbuch, Österreich - in a moving story about the support of children with special needs, noe.orf.at about the two -year -old Johannes, who fights with language development disorders. His parents, Stefanie and Thomas Ziervogl, described the challenges they experienced in dealing with his autism. "He brawled, but the typical words that come with young children did not come," says his mother. To help Johannes, the bitch Bella was integrated into the family, who was specifically trained to support children with autism. Bella not only has the task of supporting Johannes emotionally, but also following practical commands in order to be able to act quickly in an emergency.

support from an assistance dog

The loving and careful support that Johannes receives through Bella is the result of intensive training that took one year, sponsored by the “Light into the Dark” project. The bitch understands commands that are given in English to avoid confusion in public. An example of how Bella was trained is the "bridge" command, in which she lies down on Johannes to prevent it from sometimes impulsive, which often occurs with autism in children. Fortunately, the family has not yet had to experience this emergency, but "Bella has already brought John a lot of joy," said the mother.

parallel to this story, the entries in the chronicle of the volunteer fire brigade Thürnbuch-au Insight into the long tradition of the fire brigade in the region. The fire brigade was founded in 1923 with around 20 men and has managed a variety of challenges, including floods and fires, since then. The weir has grown steadily and has developed to offer the population the necessary protection. Their tireless willingness is evident in the numerous operations and the continuous modernization of their equipment, which is of the utmost importance for the security of the community.