Re: autism Hello and welcome to the forum . Without knowing all the details , I would err to saying a big yes I know someone whos son is severely autistic , she had four terriers but after seeing our Lab Sam , decided to get one themselves , her Lab is being trained following guidelines of Dogs for the Disabled . In her case , her now one year old Lab has made a huge impact as I understand that whilst autistic children may struggle for forge relationships with humans, they find it much easier to forge relationships with dogs . Maybe you could contact Dogs for the Disabled for some advice ? Good luck, please let us know
Re: autism Hi and welcome from us, me Helen, Hattie 6 years and our rescue Charlie 2 3/4 years. I have a son Joseph with High Functioning Autism who is 16 years old. If you look on the forum under OFF TOPIC entitled EVIDENCE FOR THE BENEFIT OF THERAPY DOGS, you can read an article that Pippa posted and lots of comments from myself and others. A lot would depend on the severity of your sons Autism, if you feel you would like to post a little more information maybe we could all try to help a little more . I hope this helps you. Helen x
Re: autism Hi Kevin, I would think that a lot would depend on your son. A puppy would not be able to cope with all the situations that might arise in some cases. There are dogs that are specially trained to support and befriend autistic children, and I think Kate is right, you would really benefit from talking to dogs for the disabled. Check out this link Best wishes Pippa
Re: autism Hi thanks for the replies. Our son Joe is low functioning autistic with learning disabilities and is very active he seems to have a fascination for dogs. This has led to some close shaves with dogs that were not so friendly. But I am worried that any puppy would not be able to tolerate his roughness as he is quite strong for a 7 year old.would a Labrador be able to tolerate this until he learns control?
Re: autism [quote author=editor link=topic=2925.msg30727#msg30727 date=1382039044] Hi Kevin, I would think that a lot would depend on your son. A puppy would not be able to cope with all the situations that might arise in some cases. There are dogs that are specially trained to support and befriend autistic children, and I think Kate is right, you would really benefit from talking to dogs for the disabled. Check out this link Best wishes Pippa [/quote] Hi Kevin, I definitely agree with Pippa and Kate, you would do best to contact dogs for the disabled and they will be able to advise you in more detail what would be the best way forward for Joe and a puppy/dog. A puppy would not be able to tolerate unintentional rough handling and this could result in anxiety for your son and most likely a badly behaved puppy which you don't need. I hope we have helped and please let us know what you decide to do for Joe. Good luck. Helen
