Quaden Bayles is a five-year-old Murri boy who was born with a common form of dwarfism, Achondroplasia. He has just found a new best friend; Buddy who is a Shih Tzu and also has dwarfism.
Quaden has been a victim of bullying on the street and online because of his condition. The bullying was so bad it led Quaden to become very embarrassed about his condition. But since he got his new dog Buddy, Quaden's spirits have been lifted.
“Before we couldn’t even mention the word dwarfism; now Quaden is so proud to tell everyone about himself and Buddy having the same thing,” Yarraka Bayles (Quaden’s mum) tells Buzzfeed.
Ms Bayles says Quaden's four-legged friend has lifted his personal confidence. She says her son and his dog now do everything together.
“Buddy has brought so much joy after so much grieving and so much sadness…we just love him so much,” Ms Bayles says.
Quaden’s condition affects one in every 25, 000 people. His mother was told that he had it when he was three days old, but she didn’t want to believe it. It took her years to come to terms with the news.
When he was four, Quaden was only 65 centimetres. Last year Living Black travelled to Queensland to learn more about Quaden and his condition when his family and doctors were preparing for his emergency surgery.
In September 2015 supporters took to social media with the tag #TeamQuaden to stop online trolls from targeting the sweet four-year-old.
His new dog Buddy is helping Quaden to gain the confidence he deserves, and his family think Buddy is “the best dog ever”.
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