Giving “Piece” of Mind, One Family at a Time.
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Autism Service Dogs are specially trained to assist an autistic child with a variety of skills, including safety, sensory, and social skills to more effectively explore their world. These dogs become part of the family and provide support in a surprising number of ways.
Safety Skills
One of the behaviors common to autistic children is not noticing dangers when outside, such as darting into the street or wandering away when noticing something that interests them. Service dogs receive training to track and locate, or the family can choose to tether the dog and child together when going into a busy situation for an added measure of protection.
Sensory Skills
Anyone who has had the pleasure of having a dog curl up next to them knows how comforting it is to feel the warmth of their body. For an autistic child, this same concept can provide them the deep pressure they need to find calm. Their dog can lay side by side with them or even lay on top of the child to provide this tactile sensation.
Social Skills
As a child is out with their canine companion, it is natural for other people to show interest in their dog and what kind of work they are doing. This tendency offers an opportunity for the child to interact by being the person that gives permission when someone asks if they can pet their dog, opening the door for increased social interactions with people.
Given all these benefits of having an Autism Service Dog join the family, it is something that Ady’s Army wants to help families achieve. The cost of obtaining a service dog is considerable, so the Ady’s Paws program helps people to afford the cost of this invaluable companionship. If you want to learn more about how this program could help your family, please contact us. If you have an interest in donating to make these connections happen, we invite you to learn more about Ady’s Army and our full reach of programs.
