NKY family selling homemade dog treats to raise money for epileptic 3-year-old’s service dog

BURLINGTON, Ky. (FOX19) - A three-year-old Burlington boy is helping his parents bake and sell dog treats so that he can get a medical service dog.

The boy’s name is Blake Payne, and his parents say that in many ways, he is a typical kid. He loves to bake and loves donuts and warthogs.

However, Blake’s day-to-day life is not always easy.

Not long after Blake’s younger brother was born, Blake, his parents say, suddenly started having seizures while sleeping. Doctors diagnosed him with epilepsy, a neurological disorder.

Blake’s father, Jon Payne, says it has caused other struggles, including speech delays.

“He’s lost a lot of his abilities from these seizures to, ya know, be able to throw a ball, to be able to run like a normal kid," Jon said.

For Blake’s parents Samantha and Jon, it has been a roller coaster of highs and lows. Samantha says she rarely sleeps a full night because she is fearful she could miss something.

“Our greatest fear is him, you know, us losing him without us not knowing that he’s having one," Samantha said.

They do not know what Blake’s future will look like, so they started searching for ways to help him and landed on an idea they loved: getting him a medical service dog.

Samantha says the dog would be trained to alert them to Blake’s seizures, even before they happen.

“This dog can wake us up," Samantha said. "They’ve had some dogs that ring bells. They’ll bark.”

The price tag for the pup is $17,000, according to Samantha.

The Paynes decided to start a fundraiser, but wanted Blake to be able to help, so they settled on baking and selling homemade dog treats.

The couple expected to bring in a few hundred dollars, but everything is exceeding expectations. They have already received 300 orders from across the country, and each order ranges from one bag of treats to many.

“I think we’ve raised close to $4,500," Jon said.

It may take time for them to fulfill all of their requests and hit their goal, but to them, every second is worth it.

Blake will be going to Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center next week to be part of a three-day sleep study that should help them learn more about his specific disorder.

To order dog treats from the Paynes, fill out this Brave like Blake order form.

You can follow Blake’s journey through the Brave like Blake Facebook group.

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