Autistic dog

Looking for advice. I have an 8yr old dog that is potentially autistic and looking for advice. She's lovely and friendly, but sometimes I worry.

She seems to be under sensitive to touch, and needs constant stroking. However, this brings on a severe tail stimming episode.

She's over sensitive to sounds and doesn't like fireworks.

She never licks people - not even her lord and master! (That's me)

She can't feed herself. I have given her a tin of dog food yet she waits for me to open it.

She can't got to familiar places without supervision as she can't safely cross the road.

Socially, she is friendly but struggles to make friends. She wants to play with every animal but they run away laughing at her :( for example, we have a cat that hides and runs away when she sees her.)

She is socially unaware of certain behaviorus. She will happily fart in a room full of people and not be bothered. She has also eaten a full meal, then the contents of the cat litter tray, then puked, eaten the puke and puked again before walking off and leaving me to clean up - with guests.

Is there a test I can do? I think she qualifies for PIP but not sure what to do there Disappointed

Happy Monday Smiley

  • I had to read it twice before I got the joke too!

  • without a doubt lol that's why i said that i don't think qwerty got it

  • I’ve read the post through twice and I’m pretty sure it’s a joke. At least I hope it is!!

  • My problem is, I forget all about her all too soon and the result is, she burns my blinking food!!!! Mean, she is!!! So I’ll show her. I’ve switched to a raw food diet and I’m going to buy a coffee machine so I don’t even have to use her stove top to make my coffee. And I’m going to get bamboo chopping boards that cover her stove top up perfectcty. I’ll show her, for burning my food Punch tone3

  • I am sure one of mine was autistic, I loved him to bits  because I could relate to him, sadly he passed away 2 years ago, everybody who met him said " oh Duke he's 'special'", he used to bark like mad at other dogs because he wanted to say hello but at the same time he was really fearful and would run off the minute they wanted to play, and not in a chase me kind of way either, he was always so over the top in the house as well and really hard work but when he passed I missed him so much I went back to the same rescue and said, ' I want another dog just like him, Duke, because I knew most NTs wouldn't want him and would find him Too much like hard work, and believe it or not I now have a greyhound who Im sure is dukies double and so not like a typical grey.

  • I also have problems with my cooker. The first problem is she hates me calling her that...

  • whoosh right over your head lol

  • Mine too, but my fridge, freezer and washing machine are all working perfectly ~ shame I don’t use any of these! Joy Maybe that’s the trick, to keep them in perfect working order ~ don’t use them! Lol! 

  • Sounds like mine! Works for 45 seconds then stops makes a stupid noise and refuses to do any thing until you turn it off and spin the drum! Repeat process until clothing is dry! Cooker also has tantrums and has tendency to over/under perform but at least it makes life interesting !

  • I think I’m about done with my drier! It has also stopped doing the one and only thing that it’s supossed to do! I think mine is trying to assert its individuality, to say it’s not like all the others and it refuses to be pushed into acting like the rest!!! Punch tone3

  • Ah the dreaded electricals! I think my drier has a personality disorder. At least it has stopped doing the one thing it is supposed to do! 

  • I think the evidence is pretty affirmative. I think this is a case of canine asd. I must advice though, that even though the new autism act is a great step in the right direction, it is still lacking in any real guidelines, meaning, you may still get some funny looks when you take your dog to the doctors to request an assessment. 

    But don’t give in. With PIP, again it can be a bit tricky. You could always ask for the assessment to be carried out in the middle of a field, with plenty of running space, so the assessor gets a good feel for your dog in her natural environment. Maybe they could play a few games of catch (you could throw the ball to them!), and if you get a good assessor, I’m sure they’ll do what they can to make your dog feel more comfortable, for example, by dressing as a dog so your dog doesn’t feel so different from the off. Maybe they could teach your dog how to eat as well, by example! I’m sure some extra dog food will go down well with the assessor. 

    It would probably be a good idea if you could get your dog to puke in the doctors surgery and at the pip assessment as well, just so they get a good idea of the behaviours you’re having to deal with etc. 

    I know it’s not easy, but don’t give in. If more and more of us start to take our dogs to the doctors and start to demand something is done, I’m sure we could change things a lot quicker. I took my dead parrot the other day. They tried to tell me that because the parrot is dead, they couldn’t see the benefit in getting a diagnosis, so I had to remind them, how important a diagnosis is to us and just because the parrot is dead, he should not be excluded from his right to know who he is. 

    I’m thinking of taking the tortoise as well, as he has some very anti social behaviours which I’m sure are on the spectrum and my mouse, has never said a word to me in all the years we’ve been together, so I think there’s some autism going on there as well. 

    I guess it’s true what they say, that autism effects not just the individual but the whole family as well. When we’ve seen to the animals I’m starting on the electricals ~ don’t even get me started on those!!!! 

    Hang in there and never give in. 

  • She seems to be under sensitive to touch, and needs constant stroking. However, this brings on a severe tail stimming episode.

    Pet dogs do enjoy being stroked. When you say tail stimming, do you mean tail wagging? Dogs wag their tails when they are happy. 

    She's over sensitive to sounds and doesn't like fireworks.

    This is very common in dogs. Many dog owners can tell you that. 

    There are ways to help dogs dealing with fireworks, you can google to find some information. There also this https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/dog-spies/good-and-bad-ways-to-help-a-dog-afraid-of-fireworks/

    She can't feed herself. I have given her a tin of dog food yet she waits for me to open it.

    Um? Are you saying that she can't open a tin, or that she can't feed herself after you've emptied the contents of the tin into her bowl? Normally dogs can't open tins by themselves as they don't have thumbs. If she needs feeding, like spooning into the mouth, that is quite unusual.

    She can't got to familiar places without supervision as she can't safely cross the road.

    It's the same with my dog. But she's a small sized dog, so it's harder to see traffic. And all dogs are colour-blind so they won't be able to tell apart the green and red lights.

    Socially, she is friendly but struggles to make friends. She wants to play with every animal but they run away laughing at her :( for example, we have a cat that hides and runs away when she sees her.)

    Well, dogs and cats are two different species. And stereotypically they are enemies. 
    This website might be helpful. It gives some reasons why they might not get along "the biggest problems are related to specific compatibility issues where the dog is too playful and the cat is too fearful, or the dog has a strong chase - or even predatory - drive. Also a cat that is fearful and aggressive and a dog that does not know how to react." But it also gives some suggestions on how to help them learn to get along https://www.petsit.com/dogs-and-cats-learning-to-get-along

    She is socially unaware of certain behaviorus. She will happily fart in a room full of people and not be bothered. She has also eaten a full meal, then the contents of the cat litter tray, then puked, eaten the puke and puked again before walking off and leaving me to clean up - with guests.

    It is common for dogs to fart in a room or puke in front of people without being socially aware. It's a dog. It's IQ is probably like a 2 year old toddler, or maybe even lower. You wouldn't expect a pet mouse to know where and where not to drop their faeces, right?
    You should train it to not eat cat litter though - it's not healthy. Whenever it attempts to do so, you should try to prevent it, like carry her away.