Teddy's Touch Information
Philanthropic non-profit 501(c)3 fund established
to offer assistance to the Community through two programs: Teddy's Touch: Canine
Human-Cancer Detection Fund and Teddy's Touch: Breathe. Teddy was a Shiloh Shepherd
who lost his struggle with bone cancer at age 6. In that time, he touched hundreds
of lives as a therapy dog, agility dog, companion animal, behavior modification training assistant, and more. Start-up funds
were donated in memory and honor of Susan Leitzan, DVM., whose profound influence, contributions and guidance helped give
us the strength, courage, and direction needed to fight and stand tall for what we personally and professionally believe and
to take full responsibility when we failed. Her principles and standards will continue to light our way.
The Breathe project will raise funds to
purchase pet emergency oxygen masks for all fire departments in Erie County. PET STOP and A Pawsitive Experience will work together to match every dollar donated.
Teddy’s Touch: Canine Human-Cancer
Detection Fund will help underwrite a human-lung cancer canine detection research project currently undergoing final formation.
This ground-breaking project conceived by A Pawsitive Experience, will be conducted in partnership with researchers at a nationally
respected Institution, utilizing a team of volunteers consisting of experienced trainers and their dogs. This will be only
the fourth true controlled formal canine human cancer detection study in the U.S.,
and the first to target lung cancer.
The dogs will learn to mark specimens indicative
of lung cancer as an alternative to using invasive procedures and to aid in the development of equipment able to accomplish
the same end result. The study objective is to determine whether dogs can be trained to more accurately identify people with
lung cancer on the basis of urine odor rather than on chance alone. Evidence suggests chemical markers may exist in urine
indicating volatile chemicals are released from cancer cells in amounts sufficient to allow early diagnosis. Dogs make excellent
study participants with an estimated sense of smell as much as 100,000 times superior to humans, depending on various factors
including breed and environment.
