Published on 12, July, 2020
My nearly 6 year old high functioning lovely son suffers with anxiety and lack of confidence. We think a family dog coud really help. We understand that the opportunity to get an assistance dog is extremely slim and we are not even trying to go down that road. We have contacted a dog trainer who will assist when we find the right dog and we are prepared to find and pay for a dog ourselves. The issue is that I like recue dogs as I think that breeding dogs is often irresponsible and no more than an opportunity to make cash. However, we need the right dog. Calm, gentle, willing to play and be trained. Ideally we need a young dog. We have started looking around the rescue centres where we live in Merseyside but we can't go on a waiting list so it's about touching lucky. Any advice or shared experiences would be much appreciated. Thanks, Tracy
I was just idly looking around the NAS SITE in general, and I spotted this "new" "thread"...
1- If you're really truly serious about ANIMALS (DOGS), then jolly well go out buy a book or search the Internet elsewhere, concerning APPROPRIATE BREEDS OF DOG, instead of having to ask such questions on a website dealing with HUMANS. Then you would already know which animals (dogs) have which the correct "temperament" you are asking for. The kinds of dog most commonly used for "assistance" should give you the best clues.
2- Your words do not make it clear if you are buying a "rescue" dog from a "Rescue Centre"... or if you are buying a dog to "rescue" your child: "Rescue centre" means that the dog has been rescued from an abusive environment, and so is already upset and stressed, and so for any inexperienced person you should not be buying such an animal. Try and locate another reputable breeder, or just go to any other reputable shelter/centre (DogsTrust, BlueCross, BatterseaDogsCatsHome, etc.), and purchase a puppy/half-grown dog. Even if you have someone helping you, if the dog has been abused, then they will act like a human that has been abused, and you cannot always understand why... but dogs have sharper teeth, you know.
3- You say that you "have contacted a dog trainer"... Is it not strange that this person is not advising you concerning all that you ask, instead of you having to ask it here?
4- ...Lastly. Please do not tell me off if I have seemed to be rude at you. Seeming rude seems to be a seemed part of being Autistic, seemingly. I am also Autistic and I would LOVE any kind of FRIEND - animal or otherwise, but I am not allowed true happiness in my life, and so your child is darned lucky that you are even thinking about gaining a pet for them. I also know about the fact that you have to satisfy certain conditions and then pay huge amounts of money for an "official assistance dog", as opposed to any "unofficial" means of obtaining dogs for free... but how to purchase dogs is a discussion for websites not primarily concerned with human Autism, surely...
5- I can't believe you're still reading. Recommending certain breeds and dog training techniques... is something I shall leave for other people and websites to argue over. さよなら.
Forums such as this are a place to seek support, guidance , hints and tips from people in similar situations as yourself. They allow experiences to be shared and can be a great source of help.
Response such as that provided by 'Disallowed Cynosure' (DC) will only push people away from using this resource.
DC has completely missed the point of this post. Tracy has undertaken countless hours of research into the subject and is simply seeking further information from members who may have been in a similar situation. How can having a responsible attitude to a potential decision that will impact not only on a young autistic boy's life but also the life of a dog be criticised?
Surely obtaining as much information before taking such a decision is the correct approach. It is beyond me how such a post can be met with a vitriolic, negative response as that provided by DC .
Not only has DC missed the point, she has also shown an incredible level of ignorance. The post is clearly made as a possible assistance to an autistic child. It is made on the National Autistic Society's forum. So how can it not be the correct platform?
It is also worth noting that not all dogs at rescue centres have been abused . They can need rehoming for a multitude of reasons. A rescue dog should not simply be written off.
My advice to DC, is to simply ignore threads that you have nothing positive / informative to add to.
I would go further and suggest that you are removed from this community as your input is not what forums such as this exist for.
NAS24883 said:I would go further and suggest that you are removed from this community as your input is not what forums such as this exist for.
in response to what is very clearly a 'social and communication' difficulty ON the National Autistic Societies community forum.