Prineville family seeks man’s best friend to aid son

A little boy in Prineville needs help. Stryder Doescher has been diagnosed with a myriad of complications, including Severe Apraxia of Speech, Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, and most recently Landau-Kleffner Syndrome.

The Prineville 5-year-old was diagnosed to Landau-Kleffner Syndrome just a few weeks ago and is one of the more severe types of epilepsy.

Fewer than 300 people worldwide have ever been diagnosed with the disease, which causes silent seizures that can cause permanent brain damage.

But it is man’s best friend who could be his best medicine.

“We spent almost two months at the Mayo Clinic last year, and we didn’t know he was having seizures,” Stryder’s mom, Angela Doescher, said Thursday. “They showed me on camera sitting next to him and said, ‘He’s having a seizure right there.'”

Making trips across the country, trying to find help, the Doeschers are now turning to a service dog for help. The family is trying to raise $13,000 to buy a specially trained dog from “4 Paws for Ability.: The dog would alert Stryder or his parents of a seizure, moments or even an hour before it happens.

“I’m kind of lost in all of this, trying to figure out a way to get this dog for him as soon as we can,” Doescher said.

Stryder’s mom is looking for any help she can get from organizing fund-raisers to donations for the specially trained dog.

“Because of the LKS, each time it relapses, he does get brain damage from it,” said Doescher. “The sooner we know he is having these seizures, the sooner we can change his medication and prevent some of the brain damage.”

For now, Stryder sleeps with his parents, in case there are any problems during the night. But with the help of a service dog, he one day will be able to do a lot more on his own.

If you are interested in helping the Doeschers, they have set up a Website to learn more, at www.StrydersStory.com