Anyone found a dog helps?

I have a severe dog phobia but only around certain breeds - most terrior breeds, guard dogs and strange jumpy dogs - but I had a dog when I was growing up, who I loved dearly and who I miss to this day.  She was a cross between a Welsh spaniel and a Welsh collie. She was there when I was born and she died when I was 15 - she was 16 when she died, and she  had to be put to sleep because she had kidney failure, but until that point she had no health problems. She was called Jessy and had red, quite long hair, a long bushy tail with a white tip, spaniel ears, a white patch on her head, a white belly, speckly white legs with red spots, and a pink nose. She was quite a small dog and she was very friendly and affectionate. I would spend hours kissing, hugging and petting her, and holding her paw!.

I would love to have another dog like Jessy. I adore Welsh spaniels (quite a rare breed, and they are very friendly - not as outgoing as English springers), and I also love Golden Retrievers (never anxious around them), and I quite like Brittany spaniels too.

We have a Cavalier King Charles and he is the most placid, loving dog ever, I would recommend one without hesitation

Hi hibbsy.

i'm an aspergers teenager and i grew up around 3 dogs, two lived with us and one with my nan, all cavalier king charles spaniels, so i've always had an attachment to dogs. so when more recently my mother got another dog of the same breed it was a help, chester is a bit lively but he's a loving dog and one of the few people i can tolerate physical contact with. i would say that for me, having a family dog was a great help, even if they arent paws trained.

Thankyou for your reply, it's really lovely to hear how a dog has helped your daughter. I really do think that would be where it could help my son - with his anxiety and meltdowns, and we are swayed towards a retriever. Our friends have 2 and my son loves them, they are so gorgeous and so gentle with them, and he loves to just sit and cuddle them. Thankyou for your honest advice, it's much appreciated.

All the very best to you, and your daughter.

My daughter is 15 and has Aspergers, we got a dog to help her and he's helped a lot. He's a Golden Retriever and is just over a year old now. When he first came home my daughter rejected him, even though she'd been excited about him coming home and was a full part of his homecoming and preparation she still had a meltdown over him and wanted to get rid of him within the first 24hours. But we got through that and now she loves him to bits. If she's had a rough day at school she'll come home, give him a cuddle and everything is okay again. Before we had him she had literally shut herself away in her room and wouldn't have any contact with anyone, but by having Harley he gave her a reason to get out and about again. She started walking him, just to the end of the road to begin with, and gradually got further as her confidence  grew. Now she'll go out with friends again, even without Harley.
Harley gave her something to talk to her friends about, he broke the ice and gave her something to focus on other than her Aspergers.

I'm not saying its been easy because it hasn't. Having had him from a puppy its been hard work training him, and trying to get my daughter to understand why he doesn't understand things etc but its gotten easier as time goes on.
Having worked with dogs for many years I would say a Golden Retriever or a Spaniel of some kind would be an ideal breed for this. Labradors are very intelligent but can be a bit bonkers (I had one for 12years and wouldn't have another one) however if its being trained specifially for your son's needs then it should be fine.
Golden Retrievers are a lot more paitent than Labs, hence why we got a Retriever this time around. But our dog has certainly helped our daughter, and regardless of the mud, slobber, dirty and muck he brings in with him, hes been worth his weight in gold.

I'd recommend a labrador or golden retriever, as they're known to be intelligent and calm.

I have aspergers and I find that having pets (3 cats, one dog, all family pets) are a big help, as they don't judge me and don't mind affection. i.e. the worst my cat does when I hug him at an inappropriate time is sulk, not yell at me or avoid me for days on end like a person would.

Also, theres been loads of reports on the news about how children can improve in their reading by reading to therapy dogs, as once again the animals don't judge them if they struggle, and the dog also doubles as a best friend and protector. If your son has problems going outside then you could encourage him to walk the dog who will look after your son and hopefully make him feel more confident.

Best of luck.