Paraplegic teen getting new leash on life with Aggie guide dog
Nov. 14--All his life, 14-year-old Andy Borden wanted a dog.
His wish was granted Wednesday night when the Aggie Guide Dogs and Service Dogs organization and the Make-A-Wish Foundation presented him with his new yellow Labrador retriever, Endal.
He and his family drove up from his home in Webster to meet the 1-year-old puppy at Endal's graduation from the A&M service program school.
"Beautiful dog," Andy murmured when he first laid eyes on his new service dog. Endal walked up to Andy in his wheelchair and accepted treats out of his hand.
"He has the fluffiest ears I've ever seen," said the dog's new owner.
The Texas Gulf Coast and Louisiana branch of the Make-A-Wish Foundation had been working with members of the Aggie Guide Dogs and Service Dogs organization at Texas A&M to find Andy a service dog since June.
Andy lost the ability to use his legs after a tumor was removed from his spine about a year ago. He was having back pain and underwent an MRI, but his doctors could not determine the cause.
"One night, July 24, 2012, he just all of the sudden was in bed and couldn't feel his legs, he was really afraid and the ambulance came and took him away," said Andy's father, Jason Borden. "They did some testing and determined he had a spinal tumor and did emergency surgery to remove the tumor."
Andy had an Ewing's sarcoma removed at the base of his spine, but the surgery damaged some of his nerve endings and he became a paraplegic.
He was in bad shape after the surgery, his family said, and the doctors kept him in a drug-induced coma for 17 days. He contracted an infection while in recovery, caught pneumonia and both of his lungs collapsed. Andy lived in the hospital for three and a half months before he got to go home, his father said.
"I didn't leave at all for 28 days," Borden said. "I didn't even go out the front door."
After the doctors removed the tumor, Andy started doing heavy rounds of chemotherapy and radiation treatments for his very aggressive cancer. He was able to stop the treatments in June and has been declared cancer-free.
Make-A-Wish grants wishes for children between 2-and-a-half and 18 years old who have a life-threatening illness. The Texas Gulf Coast and Louisiana chapter granted 495 wishes last year, said Julie Baldwin, a Wish Coordinator with the organization who helped start the process after Andy decided he wanted a service dog.
Baldwin contacted several service dog organizations before discovering the student organization at Texas A&M. The Aggie guide dog organization does not plant their service dogs with individuals, but sends them straight to organizations. One of their former members, Hailey Mauldin, recently started her own organization in Dallas.
When Baldwin contacted her, Mauldin said Make-A-Wish had granted her brother his own wish to swim with dolphins, Baldwin said. Mauldin eagerly agreed to help, and knew of a dog graduating from the A&M program in November. She made arrangements to train Endal through her non-profit organization once he graduated.
"[Andy] said he actually wanted a yellow lab, but he didn't want to ask for one," Baldwin said. "So he's getting the most stunning yellow lab I think I've ever seen."
Endal graduated from the Aggie guide dog program on Wednesday with all the other training dogs in attendance. He has now completed Phase I training, and will move on to Phase II training with Mauldin, said Nancy Boostrom, a volunteer with Make-A-Wish.
While he knows tricks such as sliding a credit card or opening the fridge, she will take the yellow lab to Dallas and train him for Andy's specific needs. Andy will officially get to take Endal home around February, Boostrom said.
"He's always wanted a dog, but I've always told him no, because they're not usually well trained," Andy's father said. "But this one's real well trained."
During their first meeting, Andy stroked Endal and tested out a few of his tricks, such as having him fetch a dropped pen and car keys.
"He's adventurous," Andy said with a smile. "He likes to move, just like I do."
Copyright 2013 - The Eagle, Bryan, Texas
