But there's a lot of news going around lately about using therapy dogs for children with autism.
My local news ran a segment on the Austin Dog Alliance last night that was really interesting. Click here to watch it.
While I am certainly not ready to take on the challenge of raising a dog alongside Lily, I'd be interested in going to classes like the one in the video. I'd also love to set up a few times for the dogs to come visit at Lily's school.
Some questions for you:
Do any of you attend classes like these?
Do you have a specially trained therapy dog?
If so, please share your experience with me! I'd love to hear more about it.
Have a great weekend!
I have seen children being introduced to these highly trained dogs. It's amazing! Some kids really love them and begin to open up in ways that we always hope for, but are afraid won't happen. I would definitely recommend a visit!
ReplyDeleteI am specifically talking about children with Autism...they're just children to me.
There was a whole mess of a story about service dogs that you can read here - http://stinkerbaby.blogspot.com/2012/01/we-will-not-go-quietly.html We must be very careful if we consider this possibility.
ReplyDeleteAnd yes, I've definitely thought of it for Tootles but for now I think we will remain animal free in this zone... Happy Weekend my friend!
We actually have a great service dog organization really close to where I live. http://www.wilderwood.org/
ReplyDeleteI know they work with a lot of Goldens, which we already have, so I asked them about getting her trained to be Cam's service dog but since she is already a family pet and a senior dog, they were not sure she would be a good match. I am strongly considering applying for the program though once he gets a little older. I can't remember what the age requirement is but I know we have a couple years before he could get one. I think it would provide me great peace of mind should Cam try to wander and I like the sensory aspect of it.
We are on a list to get a service dog for Beebs. We have been on it for a year and it will take another year or so to get a dog placed with us. I live near San Diego and I found an organization that trains dogs specifically for autistic children. I went to a training and now we are just waiting. If your thinking about it get on a list now and by the time a dog is ready you may be ready too. You can call your nearest organization and ask to go to one of their dog trainings and talk with the trainers.
ReplyDelete