Therapy Dog

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A small dog might give some companionship and also provide therapy.  Cats are lovely too, but they can be very independent, whereas dogs are much more socialable animals. 

As for issues with landlords, it would be worth discussing such concerns with the landlord/lady/housing association or whomever else.  If a person has autism and if a dog is well-behaved, they might make an exception. 

(Coincidentally, a little dog came running up to me, the other, and leapt up to me at knee level.  Very excitable little thing!  I gave a stroke and he ran off very happily!  I found him utterly delightful.  There is another local dog in my area that always like to meet new people when she is out and about.  Domesticated dogs are very socialable.)

Hello everyone,

Thank you for your input.  After posting my question I went away and did even more research.  As you said Wolfbear, it is extremely hard to get a fully trained Therapy Dog, waiting lists are long and even with my son having just turned 6 we don't feel we can wait for a trained Therapy Dog to come into our lives.

We went away and researched many different breeds and now have a Pup coming just before Christmas.  I am off to a Seminar next Thursday all about Dogs for the Disabled where I hope to find out some information on how I can train my own Therapy Dog for my son.

After all the research we have done my Husband and I both feel that a dog could really benefit my son and we would really be upset with ourselves if having a dog was the one thing that could make my son's life that little bit easier.

My youngest son is at Nursery 5 mornings a week so we have decided that once the Puppy is home I will dedicate the mornings to providing it with the training that it will require to fulfill a Therapy Dog Role.

Again Thank you for your input and for those of you hoping to get a Therapy Dog or Pet Dog I hope you find a way to do it, as I have no doubt that having a dog can make a huge difference to any person on the spectrum. :)

yea there not entertaining any thing im getting short one sentence replies  minus salutations 

no pets is there word. really stinks the anxiety is so bad i never leave my flat ifi can avoid it so i leave maybe 2 times a week and thats it

i know my phychiatrist  recommended a therpy dog to help with a great many things 

i didnt how ever get the chance as the housing im in disallows any pet

any ideas

I don't have experience of a therapy dog but I do know that my son with ASD is devoted to his cat.  He shows so much affection to the cat that he does not seem to be able to show to other people and he talks to the cat about everything.  Without the cat, I think that things would be much more difficult for my son. I have thought about a dog and would love to know what other people think. 

I hope that this helps 

ColinCat 

Hi jambert,

Though I know nothing about therapy dogs as such, I will say, as an aged aspie who was brought up in a house with dogs, that they were vital in to my childhood.

Dogs are much simpler to read than humans, they are always your friend - you cannot say the wrong thing and offend and no small talk is needed or expected. I could cuddle with my dog when things got too much for me and human contact was too uncomfortable. They also allowed me to ramble local woods in relative safety. All these things make a dog a great companion to a growing aspie and one I would heartily recommend.