25/02/13….Dogs that brought love to disabled couple in Crufts final
TWO very special Assistance dogs that support a disabled couple from Thame, have made it to the top five in the final of the Crufts Friends For Life competition 2013.
The Kennel Club?s Friends for Life competition, which has been running since 2006, celebrates heart-warming stories of friendship in adversity, where dogs have truly earned the title of man?s best friend, through bravery, support or companionship. The winning dog or dogs will be chosen by public votes as having the most deserving tale and will be presented with the trophy during a special ceremony in the main arena at the Birmingham NEC, on the final night of Crufts (Sunday, March 10,) which will be televised live by Channel 4.
Sue and Byron Harvey, who live in Wellington Street, Thame, are well-known in the town, with their Assistance dogs, Max and Ziggy often trotting alongside their wheelchairs attracting strokes and a fuss wherever they go.
The following extract from the Crufts website tells their story:
“Max and Ziggy (from Thame, Oxfordshire): Assistance dogs who helped owners on the brink to find love ? In a wheelchair and feeling isolated by disability caused by several life-threatening conditions including spinal surgery, brain tumour and double bilateral mastectomies leading to spinal bacterial meningitis, Sue Harvey almost gave up on life until her first assistance dog, Inka, arrived.
“She was then left heartbroken by her premature death. Byron Harvey, who has been in a wheelchair since boyhood due to polio, was devastated by the tragic loss of his childhood sweetheart and his assistance dog Isis was the only one to keep him going.
“In a truly inspiring story Sue and Byron were bought together because of the link between their two original assistance dogs, who were sisters. Their friendship blossomed into love and then marriage in 2008, and now they and their current dogs Max and Ziggy show a love and care for one another that can scarcely be matched. Bryon said: ?Both Sue and I had been through a lot of heartache due to our disabilities and the loss of ones closest to us. It was our original assistance dogs that bought us together and the journey to get our new assistance dogs helped cement that growing love. We share the knowledge of how life changing these dogs are, giving us independence and a second chance at life. We are now such a close knit family.?
All the information about the competition is on the website. To vote for Sue and Byron and MAX & ZIGGY, call: 0844 646 0202
IMAGE: Courtesy of http://www.crufts.org.uk (still taken from video)
