Why I Support "A Paw to Hold": A Grandparent’s Perspective

Being a grandparent to a child with an attachment injury is hard. It’s confusing, frustrating, and heartbreaking. It also means I’ve had a front-row seat to something I never expected—watching my grandchild struggle with a kind of pain I couldn’t simply hug away. And watching my daughter get hit, kicked, and yelled at while feeling the need to protect her from her own son. Standing between them to keep her safe.

My grandchild lives with attachment injuries and mental health and behavioral challenges. I didn’t know what that meant at first, but I’ve come to understand it deeply. It means fear masquerading as anger, silence where there should be laughter, and heartbreak behind eyes too young to carry it. It means watching my own child—now a parent—pour out every ounce of love and still feel like they’re failing. It’s hard to explain this journey to others. Sometimes, it’s even hard to explain it to myself.

There have been so many moments I’ve sat at the kitchen table with my daughter, trying to offer words of comfort when there just weren’t any. We tried everything. Therapies. Routines. Prayers. But the breakthroughs came slowly, if at all. Then one day, I thought of something we had not yet tried: a service dog.

I wondered if a service dog could make a difference where trained professionals had struggled. But as I learned more, something clicked. These dogs don’t just follow commands or provide companionship. They become emotional anchors. They sense dysregulation before it spirals. They offer non-judgmental love and calming routines. Most importantly, they don’t require emotional vulnerability in the way humans do—which, for a child with an attachment disorder, is a rare kind of safety.

Watching a service dog help a child is amazing. Not because it was a miracle cure—it isn’t—but because I saw a moment of peace. A softening. A bond that didn’t feel forced or fragile. It was real. And that kind of connection is everything for these kids.

That’s why I support A Paw to Hold. This program doesn’t just hand out dogs. It offers a lifeline to families who are doing the hardest work imaginable, often with the fewest resources. The cost of a trained service dog can be overwhelming. This scholarship program brings it within reach for families who otherwise couldn’t afford that kind of support.

As a grandparent, I may not be the one navigating the daily storms—but I feel the weather just the same. Loving a child with attachment trauma takes a toll on everyone, and yes, that includes grandparents. The emotional strain of this journey affected me more than I expected. In fact, it’s impacted me so deeply that I’ve decided to have a service dog trained—for myself. I need that same kind of grounding and stability now, every single day.

If you’re a grandparent too, or simply someone who wants to make a difference, I invite you to stand with us. Support this program. Share its story. Offer what you can—because what you give might be the very thing that helps a child take their next step toward healing.

There’s no magic fix for trauma, but sometimes healing arrives on four paws, with soft ears and steady eyes. I’ve seen it. And I believe in it.