Family in home stretch of seizure dog fundraising

Jeremy Ervin | Times Herald

SMITHS CREEK - In many ways, Linkyn Oliver is a cat person. He adores his cat Cupcake so much he developed it into a comic book character, alongside several other series he's created.

"Probably, the hardest part is if I have more than one idea in my head, it's hard to decide what the character is going to do," the 9-year-old said.

But soon, Linkyn will receive a special dog that could help safeguard his health.

Linkyn's family is on the cusp of bringing him home a seizure assistance dog. In the home stretch of the process, they're hoping to raise about $4,500 to help with travel expenses associated with the adoption.

Linkyn said he's excited to meet the new dog when it comes, and it may soon be a comic book character, too.

On Aug. 25, the family will hold a Putting for Paws – Play for Linkyn fundraiser at Solitude Links Golf Course in Kimball. Registration is $80 per player and includes 18 holes, a golf car, continental breakfast, lunch and a Bloody Mary bar starting at 8 a.m.

"It's just been amazing how everyone's come together and helped us," Linkyn's mother, Buffy Oliver, said. "This is hopefully the last fundraiser we're going to do."

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Linkyn, has suffered from epileptic seizures since age 3. When he was 7 years old, he walked out into traffic during a fit associated with his condition. His family started fundraising in December 2016.

The family has raised the $24,000 they need to secure a dog through San Diego-based nonprofit Little Angels Service Dogs. The final leg of the journey involves a trip to the San Diego area so that Linkyn can go through a two-week acclimation period with the dog.

The first week will involve an in-house introduction between Linkyn and his dog, Buffy Oliver said. The second week involves field trips out and about town with the dog, to get it used to being in public with the family.

Seizure assistance dogs offer a number of benefits to their owners, according to the nonprofit. They can alert surrounding people to the seizure, carry medicine and sometimes predict seizures before they happen.

Oliver said the dog will likely not be able to predict Linkyn's seizures because it needs to be smell trained, and Linkyn's seizures are somewhat infrequent. She wants the dog to be able to sleep in Linkyn's room with him, and alert the family if something goes wrong.

Another part of the benefit is the reassurance Linkyn will have with a partner by his side, Linkyn's step-father, Mike Dingman, said.

"With this dog, it would give him more confidence," Dingman said. "He's always worried he's going to have a seizure."

The family does not yet know when exactly they'll have to make the trip. Linkyn is moving up the placement list, and the family expects to receive word soon. The dogs are placed as they complete training at Little Angels Service. Once the family receives word, they will have a window of time to make the trip and collect the dog.

For more information about the Putting for Paws – Play for Linkyn fundraiser, visit the registration page at bit.ly/2JUif9R or the event's Facebook page at bit.ly/2yp73Nd.