Nora O Mahony - Service Dog Instructor

My name is Nora O Mahony. I am a mum of 4 and 2 of my children are on the Autism Spectrum.

When my daughter was diagnosed with Autism we always knew a dog was going to work for her. Bethany adores animals and being a flight risk we needed a service dog for safety. We researched into it and found My Canine Companion so we applied and put our name on the waiting list.

In February 2016 we got a call to say Bethany had been matched with a dog. A beautiful Black Labradoodle called Gia. From the moment Gia came into my daughters life they had a bond that was unexplainable. I attended puppy training classes with our puppy trainer Karen along with other parents. Here I learnt why My Canine Companion's motto is Bringing Families Together because it did just that. Beth always found social situations difficult. She would go into a sensory overload followed by a meltdown when in busy, crowded and noisy  situations. So we avoided them. With Gia by her side, she slowly started to go along to places with her best friend by her side. She would turn to her for a hug or have a time out on the floor to regulate herself. We started to go out more as a family having Gia there just seemed to make it all a bit easier. Myself and my husband and children also made friends for life in our fellow parents.

In June 2017 Gia went off to start her final phase of training. In the time she was gone we boarded a dog. I also continued to fundraise and volunteer wherever I could for the charity I loved. Autism can be so isolating I felt it gave me a new lease of life. Gia qualified in September 2017. It was the best feeling in the world. My daughter had a qualified service dog and was attached to her for safety. The piece of mind it gave me as a parent to know my child was safe was a feeling I just couldn’t describe, and Beth had a furry best friend always by her side.

When Cliona approached me in December 2017 and asked would I be interested in training to be a service dog instructor I jumped at the chance. I started training under the guidance of Cliona and other trainers Linda and Orla. I loved every minute. I suppose I had the advantage of being a service user so I knew what these dogs truly meant to my clients and children and I loved the feeling of giving the gift of what we got to other people. In September 2019 I qualified as a service dog instructor. It was the best feeling in the world to have a job doing what I loved.

To date (November 2020) I am proud to say I have qualified 17 dogs. My favourite part of the job is putting the pieces together so to speak. Once the class is over and the dogs qualify I then travel all over the country to do the attachment side of the training. This is where the child wears a belt attached to the dog for safety. I just love seeing the look on parents faces happiness sometimes relief in knowing that their child is safe. I know because I’ve been there. I know exactly what it feels like. I feel so lucky to be able to give that gift to another family.