Pete and his animals

Pete loves animals and wants to be a vet one day. Read his story here.

Pete Pirie loves animals. He wants to pat every dog he sees while walking his own dog Enzo and check out every living creature he passes - cat, bird, hedgehog… He is also best friends with a pig called Willis!
Pete signs “pig” to Mum Bridget about 10 times a day to tell her he wants to see Willis.  It’s not surprising that one day he would like to be a vet.

Willis belongs to Pete’s caregiver Maureen Smith.  The Captain Cooker is so friendly he tries to jump in Pete’s car to ride home with him and responds to a few simple commands.

Pete’s dog Enzo is a very patient American bulldog/greyhound cross and happily puts up with Pete being “quite bossy.” He has Pete in hysterics tearing around the sub division next door and is happy to be examined and prodded.

Pete has also been the focal point of a lot of medical attention himself. The Ranui eight-year-old was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia (ALL) in April 2007, when he was three.

Treatment was difficult with a lot of infections and side effects as children with Down syndrome are more sensitive to chemotherapy.
“There was huge relief when treatment was finished in August, 2010, it was one of the happiest days of our lives,” says Bridget.  “But unfortunately Pete relapsed five months off treatment in February this year.  It was our worst fear.”

Pete was given a poor prognosis and wasn’t expected to live more than a few weeks, but after further intensive treatment he is now on maintenance again and his family will never give up hope that he will beat the cancer.  Pete is adored by Dad Colin and big brother Griffin (11).

“We want him to enjoy every chance he has, so Pete goes to school at Waitakere Primary because he loves it,” says Bridget.  “He is such a cool, funny kid, he is always doing naughty things to make people laugh.  He even likes going to Starship Hospital, because he knows he is going to get my undivided attention and the nurses are so lovely to him.”

The hardest part of treatment for Bridget, has been that Pete has not been able to communicate his pain.  “If there is anything we could change it would be that – it is a million times worse when we can’t find out exactly where he is hurting, or if he is hurting at all and not just unhappy.”

Pete’s cognitive ability has also been affected by chemotherapy. He has never spoken well, but was good at writing but since relapse he has lost some of his writing ability.

Bridget and her family have connected with several other families who have children with Down syndrome who are also going through the cancer journey.
 
“I always try and help out any other families, in particular those in the same situation,” Bridget says.
There is an increased incidence of ALL in children with Down syndrome.

Pete is one cool little guy. He may be up against many more challenges than most eight-year-olds, but he certainly takes it all in his stride, with his cheeky grin and mischievous nature. He’s an inspiration!

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