PITTSBURGH — Sophia, also known as Pip, is almost 2 years old. She is full of energy and laughter and loves to dance. But when her parents first brought Pip home from the hospital, they received a chilling phone call, that could have derailed Pip’s growing personality.
“It was our first night home from the hospital, and we were getting calls at 2 a.m., we picked it up and it was our PCP for Sophia,” said Shelly Budz, Sophia’s mom.
Just three days after Sophia was born, her mom and dad got a call from UPMC Children’s Hospital. Pip had been diagnosed with MCAAD, a rare genetic disorder.
“The fear when they are a newborn is that they have to eat every three hours. If you miss a feeding they could die, they could go into a comma, they could have seizures or organ failure,” Budz explained.
While the condition can be frightening, Budz told Channel 11 News she credits that phone call with saving her daughter’s life.
“The newborn screening is lifesaving. Before MCAAD was on the newborn screening they would have just thought that these were crib deaths,” she said.
Shortly after Sophia’s diagnosis, her parents learned that a service dog could help.
“The dog will be trained. It’ll know what her scent is when everything is OK, and it’ll know this is what her scent will be like when she is close to a crisis, and then it will be able to alert us that way,” Budz explained.
The 4 Paws for Ability organization has admitted the family into their training program, but the cost of the service dog is a whopping $23,000. After months of fundraising the family has less than 10 thousand saved.
“As soon as you have the funds then you get on their waitlist to get assigned to a program. Following that it’s about a year and a half to two years to actually get the dog,” she said.
Budz said any donation will help, and appreciates how her community has already surrounded her family with support.
“It’s not only going to be a pet for her to build confidence and feel reassured, but it’s also something that can save her life,” she said.
To donate click here: https://www.mightycause.com/story/S32hif.
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