Dogs for Autisic Children

Brenda - posted on 11/15/2010

We adopted a 7 week yellow Lab when my daughter with Downs was 4. He's just the best dog ever. They potty trained together. He puts up with her, and is quite protective of her. And he's smart. All I have to do is make my wishes known to him, and he does it. Our Roy-boy is part of the family, in every sense.

Jennie - posted on 11/12/2010

I am looking for a dog for my 7 year old also. Go to Merlinkids.org. It is a free service.

Alison - posted on 11/04/2010

oh there and the trick to training bribery bribery and more bribery lotes and lots of treats and she it will do anythink to please you that is the dog tand start young as soon as you can afer teenage its so much harder

Alison - posted on 11/04/2010

lab are good if you get them as pups but not realy youg pups you can train them to do just about anythink they have puppy/dog training school here in oz im sure there is one were u are that starts at the basics and goes though to companion they realy helped us with ours

Marie - posted on 10/31/2010

Thank you for all the posts - It will help our family choose too.

Marie - posted on 10/31/2010

For about $150 for two puppies both will be trained. You can get a puppy from classified in the newspaper or find an online breeder by typing in buy a puppy.Service Dog Placements for Children with Autism
www.northstardogs.com -from a nice person on the internet (British) check it out. :)

Cheryl - posted on 10/26/2010

i have heard they can do wonders. i have never tried, as my daughter from the age of about 5 had an absolute phobia over dogs, if one came near her that wasn't leashed or behind a fence she would scream and run to me and try to climb my back....i have no idea why, as i have a pic of her at 3 patting a dog with no hassles, maybe she saw something on tv......i have no clue, but if your son loves dogs i would look into it for sure.

Rosemarie - posted on 10/20/2010

My grandon is two and a half and is Autistic also. We have three dogs different breeds and he is drawn to them. Maybe there is something to that.

Chana G - posted on 10/19/2010

dogwish.org has info about autism service dogs as well as help with funding they will even train your own pet provided they pass a test. Look it up. They also have a page specificicly dedicated to autistic kids this page is http://www.homesafety4autism.com/.

Alison - posted on 10/19/2010

Hi, my son Bobby is 5 years old and Downs Syndrome. We bought a labrador last year from a pet shop. He is the ideal dog, he adores the kids, more so Bobby, Bobby can do anything with him, when Bobby gets frustrated he can take it out on the dog, the dog just gets up and walksaway. I would recommend a labrador, they are fantastic

Carolyn - posted on 10/19/2010

Hi there. I am new on the forums. My name is Carolyn and I have a beautiful 17 year old son named John. He is my heart and I thank God everyday for him. I noticed you asking about dogs for your child. I have long been an advocate for dogs for children with Autism. We had a wonderful dog we rescued when John was 3 or 4. She was only 9 weeks old and wondering the streets in the heat. My husband called me to come get her and what a blessing this was. John spoke until he was 2 and then suddenly nothing. When Einstein (that is what we called her because she was so emaciated when we found her the vet could hardly tell if she was a boy or girl).
John loved her from the start and related through her. One of his first words when he bagan communicating agin was her name. He is high functioning and even learned at that young age to spell her name. They were constant companions throughout the many years we were blessed to have her. She was a Rodesian Ridgeback and so very patient and kind with him. When he was 8 or 9 he decided she needed darker eyebrows and drew them on her when I wasn't looking. I kept thinking she looked different and then I realized what he had done. She just let him. It was like she knew he was special. She would check on him every night before she laid down for the night. I cannot tell you what a difference this creature made in the quality of my son's life.
Unfortunately, she passed away in January of last year and since we have noticed a marked decline in John's behaviors. He is stimming and pacing more, he has nightmares and I have to sit up so that he knows he is safe. His security and safety seems to be a great concern to him. We still miss Einstein (John keeps her picture on the wall), but are considering a new dog. This time, we will most likely let him choose one he is comfortable with, who is comfortable with him.
I understand that Labs are good choices, but in my research, I have also found that Bull Mastiffs and Boxers are good breeds with these children as well.
As far as I have seen, dogs are great with these kids.

Judy - posted on 10/19/2010

I have a facility dog that I work with in my Speech Therapy practice. She is from a WONDERFUL organization called Canine Angels. They are worth looking into. Often what a family could benefit from is a well trained dog that is a Pal vs full trained service dog. There are a variety of options. They DO NOT CHARGE for the dog. They will charge for training-but it is a drop in the bucket compared to what other groups charge. It depends on what you want a dog to do. They do not currently train dogs to prevent bolting or wandering. Judy MK- Redwood City CA

Heather - posted on 10/19/2010

We have a service dog, we got her from Canine Companions and they are wonderful! The best thing we could have done for our son!

Renee - posted on 10/19/2010

If you are a service memeber or married to a servicemember there is a program called "pets for vets" that rescues and trains animals free of charge and places them with vetrans. I don't know if children of vetrans qualify but I am currently in the process of applying for that for my 3 year old autistic daughter.

Thida - posted on 10/19/2010

I have a dog from Canine Companions for Independence (CCI) who's wonderful and has changed my family's life. CCI offers assistance dogs for kids and adults with autism and other developmental and physical disabilities. They call them skilled companions. You pay nothing for the dog or for training. You do have to pay your own food and travel expenses to attend a two week training class. All of the regional campuses except one have a dorm where you can stay for free. www.cci.org

Thida - posted on 10/19/2010

I have a dog from Canine Companions for Independence (CCI) who's wonderful and has changed my family's life. CCI offers assistance dogs for kids and adults with autism and other developmental and physical disabilities. They call them skilled companions. You pay nothing for the dog or for training. You do have to pay your own food and travel expenses to attend a two week training class. All of the regional campuses except one have a dorm where you can stay for free. www.cci.org

Courtney - posted on 10/19/2010

I have a friend who got a dog from four paws, and he has been great! It was VERY expensive because you not only have to pay for the dog and trainaing, but she had to spend several days out of town for the trainaing in which she had to cover the cost of her hotel food and transportation. She did a great job at fundraising! She did several bowling events and she organized a big home party bash (Partylite, mary Kay..etc..) and a lot of other events as well it took some time, bu she has been very happy with the dog!

Jessaman - posted on 10/14/2010

go to canine companions and they will give you all the info you need

Myra - posted on 10/13/2010

HI there. I have a 7 year old with autism and a 6 year old with bipolar. We have a service dog that we are training for my son. He is doing quite well. Four Paws for Ability is a huge place that trains autism service dogs. There are a few others out there, but not many. I think there is also one in Canada. If you google it, you should be able to find a good trainer. The problem is, these dogs cost between $15-20,0000! Yes that figure is correct. They want you to fundraise part of it then come up with the rest. I think that is how it works. There is also a waiting list of up to a year or more most of the time. I am a HUGE believer in autism service dogs and hope to one day start to train them using rescure dogs, which is what our dog is. I am still figuring it all out, but training is going pretty well. We have a great trainer in the area who is awesome.

Look into Four Paws for Ability. They have a great and informative website. By all means......animals are healing creatures and can offer so many wonderful things to yoru son and for yourself!

Good luck and if you need anything further, let me know and I will see what I can do! :)

Tahlia - posted on 10/12/2010

Hi :) my son is 5 and was diagnosed with Autism when he was 3. We have a lab and they're best friends. Ive never really given it much thought to if it helps my son or not, but after reading your question it makes sense and i think a dog is a wonderful idea :) i havent heard of special dogs but i would check the internet or your sons school if he attends. Hope what ive said was helpful