Page 18 - Talk of Tequesta - August '24

Page 18, The Talk Of Tequesta

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The Pet Cottage Post

4-Pound Senior Pup Finds Her Forever Home At The Pet Cottage

Angel, a 13-year-old long- The Pet Cottage makes
haired chihuahua, was living a forever promise to all
her best life in Stuart with pets that they will have
her senior mom Val and was homestyle care for life,
very attached. They had been no matter what. Grace
together since Angel was 10 was comforted in knowing
weeks old. Angel would return to The
When Val had to move into Pet Cottage and again, not
a nursing home, her daughter have to face the inside of
Allison brought Angel home and tried to integrate her a shelter.
into their family for six weeks. But because of Angel’s Angel returned to The
attachment and grief, it just didn’t work and was causing Pet Cottage, and it was
too much turmoil. determined that what was
Allison contacted The Pet Cottage for support because best for Angel was no
she couldn’t imagine sending her mom’s beloved dog to more big changes. Her
a shelter. Angel and Skylar sharing a bed home would be here at The
The Pet Cottage had a perfect solution. Grace, a senior Sanctuary with the other
Pet Cottage volunteer and Forever Guardian had recently Even though it was a bit nine dogs on site.
lost Coco, a senior schnauzer, and was ready to open her of a rocky start, with Angel Today, Angel spends
heart and home to another Pet Cottage dog. demonstrating some fear her days shadowing Angel in her stroller with Kari
aggression, Grace did not Wendy, the Executive
give up. Eventually, they Director of the Pet Cottage, playing with the other pack
bonded, and Angel settled members and being the dog she was meant to be. She is
in beautifully within a slowly warming up to the volunteers, allowing weekly
month. baths, taking treats and now gets excited for her very
An unfortunate situation favorite activity — stroller rides!
all abouT Kids arose when Grace, who Angel’s journey is just one example of the incredible
mission at work at The Pet Cottage. Every single day,
lives with COPD, had a
serious medical episode pets who lose their humans due to death, disability
and was hospitalized. Wendy Derhak with Angel or deployment are given the highest level of care and
support. The Pet Cottage also provides pet companionship
Her doctors gave her the
Autism Or Just An heartbreaking news that she could no longer have a dog for senior people and covers all veterinary expenses.
because of her health. Even though this was incredibly
To inquire about volunteer opportunities or becoming
Awkward Kid? sad for Grace, the silver lining was the forever promise a Forever Guardian, visit: https://www.thepetcottage.org
or call (561) 818-5025 for more information.
of The Pet Cottage.

By Jim Forgan, Ph.D. Licensed School Psychologist

A concerned mom
came to me seeking
insights on her son’s
behavior. She explained,
“Sometimes Joseph can
seem zoned out and
not always in tune with
what is going on around
him. He can be socially
awkward at times. He can
also be so hyper-focused
on something like his
hobby and interest. He can get easily bored and likes
to be pretty active all of the time which is a good thing
but sometimes it is hard for him to relax.” This mom
wanted to know if her son might have autism, ADHD,
or anxiety so she knew how to best support him.
Upon meeting Joseph for the first time, he presented
as a well-groomed and athletic adolescent. He was
slightly rigid in his social mannerisms as if he had been
taught skills such as greeting someone by looking them
in the eye and shaking their hand. While this was an
appropriate behavior, his interaction came across as
scripted or practiced. While talking with him I learned
he had an advanced vocabulary and could converse
about many different topics. He understood humor
and idioms such as, “She let the cat out of the bag.”
My school neuropsychological testing with Joseph
revealed two main contributing factors. First, he had
low cognitive flexibility which is a fancy term for
flexible thinking. His mental rigidity contributed to
him being a blacker and whiter thinker. He saw things
his way which created his social awkwardness. The
second factor was slower processing speed which
helped explain why he seemed zoned out at times. In
certain situations, Joseph quickly used up his mental
fuel which resulted in mental fatigue. When this
occurred he disengaged and seemed out of touch with
what was going on around him.
I helped create a plan and recommended activities he
could do to improve these areas. Mom planned to share
the report with his school. Call (561) 625-4125 if you are
concerned about your child and would like understanding
and answers. Our website is JimForgan.com.