Pet Of The Month
Name: LylaSpecies: Canine
Breed: Golden Retriever
Age: 2 years
Gender: Female Spayed
Owner(s): Jennifer Zahm
Lyla came to our family in November of 2010. She was 17 months old when she was matched with the love of her life - a 10 year old boy named Jonah. From the time Lyla was born, she was trained for a very special job and when she and Jonah met... it was love at first sight. Lyla is a 2 1/2 year old Golden Retriever. She was trained in Georgia to be a service dog - destined to be paired with a person with a disability to make their life easier! Lyla is a seizure alert & response dog. She can sense when Jonah is going to have a seizure, usually about 10 minutes before the seizure hits. This has been invaluable for our family - it gives Mom a 10 - minute "head's up!" to get Jonah to a safe and quiet place, it lets Jonah know that if he's swimming or playing basketball, he needs to get out of the water or off the court and sit or lie down. Lyla and Jonah are quite the team! Jonah is an Ambassador for the Epilepsy Foundation and he and Lyla have gone to schools and community groups educating others about epilepsy and the special role service dogs can play in the lives of those with special needs. In December of 2011, Jonah's mom found a lump on Lyla's back and took her in to see Dr. Miller. We were quite surprised to learn that Lyla's little lump was a cancerous tumor, but she had surgery the following day and is well on the road to recovery. And the best news? Dr. Miller was able to remove the entire tumor and Lyla is doing great! Many Thanks to the whole Oakwood staff - After all of that, Lyla still loves coming to see you!