[nagdu] Dogs for autism

Wed Aug 28 18:35:26 UTC 2013

While I didn't find the answers we were seeking at the CCI website, I
did a bit of research on this topic. I found a great description at
Service Dog Central.
Source: http://servicedogcentral.org/content/node/214

When considering what kinds of tasks to teach a service dog for an
Autistic person, it is important not to get hung up on the concept of
an all-purpose 'Autism service dog' but rather a dog specifically
trained to mitigate the individual problems that a specific person
experiences as a result of Autism. Autism is a spectrum disorder, and
no two Autistic people will have precisely the same difficulties or
strengths. Also, because Autism is a developmental disability, the way
in which it affects the person will change over time, most noticeably
in childhood and adolescence, but in adulthood as well. Autism may be
frequently diagnosed in childhood, but it is a lifelong neurological
condition.
 While Autism itself is no longer considered to be a psychiatric
disability, it is a neurological disability that affects the way a
person thinks and processes sensory information. Many Autistic people
also have dyspraxia, which affects both fine motor and gross motor
skills. Thus, people familiar with other types of service dogs will
recognize tasks that are frequently taught to dogs trained to assist
those with visual, hearing, mobility, and psychiatric disabilities.
Remember, the dog is there to help the person, not the disability. It
is also important to remember that a dog should not necessarily be the
first choice in mitigating a difficulty that a person has, nor is it
usually the easiest, best, cheapest, or most flexible solution.
Generally, the purpose of a service animal for any disability is to
replace dependence on human assistance, not on properly used assistive
technology.

Sometimes alarms and timers alone are not sufficient for an Autistic
person who has trouble processing sensory information or who becomes
panicked in emergency situations. For example, a person may have
difficulty in responding to a traditional alarm clock. For most
people, simply getting a louder alarm clock, or a bed-shaking alarm
clock such as those used by the deaf and hard of hearing may be
sufficient. If these technological solutions do not work, a dog may be
taught to respond to the sound of the alarm by touching the handler,
by removing the blankets from the bed, or perhaps by switching on the
light. It is possible to train a dog to wake a person at a specific
time of day, however this limits the handler to only getting up at
that time of day, which is problematic when one considers travel to
different time zones, daylight saving time changes, waking from naps
or schedule changes due to changes in a person's job or work schedule.
A dog may also be trained to lead a person to other kinds of alarms,
such as timed pill dispensers or kitchen timers--some Autistic people
may become distracted while cooking and forget that something is
cooking, resulting in ruined food or possibly a fire. Another
situation in which a dog may be trained to respond to an alarm is in
the case of a smoke alarm. Many Autistic people are sensitive to loud
noises and may become disoriented. A dog can be trained to respond to
the alarm by waking the person if the alarm goes off when the person
is asleep, and once the person is awake, leading the person out of the
building.

Another group of tasks which are related to the previously mentioned
task of leading the handler out of the building in response to a smoke
alarm are the leading and guiding tasks. It is important to remember
that dogs are not Lassie or Rin Tin Tin, they have limited abilities,
they are not human beings in fur coats, and one must remember the
limitations of a dog's senses and mental ability. With guide dogs for
the blind, the dog's job is to lead the handler around obstacles in
the handler's path, stop at doorways, curbs, stairs, and drop-offs,
and occasionally to find specific types of objects such as doors and
staircases. The dog is told when to turn right, turn left, or keep
going straight ahead by the handler. At all times, the handler must be
aware of the surroundings and know where the team is and where they
are going. Although dogs can become habituated to familiar routes
(this is known as 'patterning' in the guide dog world) and may not
need the handler to direct every turn, it is not reasonable to assume
that a dog can learn a large number of routes on autopilot. The dog is
there to provide information to the handler, and the handler makes the
decisions on what to do about that information. The same should be
true of a dog partnered with an Autistic person who has difficulty
processing spatial information and may have trouble navigating through
space using visual information. Another type of guide work is really a
form of tracking, such as is used by search and rescue dogs. A dog may
learn to back-track on the scent trail of the team to get the team to
the exit of a building, or perhaps to lead the team back to a familiar
place should the team get lost while out walking.

Another concern some Autistic people have is remembering to bring
vital objects with them when they leave the home, such as shoes or
other clothing items, keys, wallet, etc. There are two ways to
accomplish this. If a person uses checklists as a management
technique, but has difficulty remembering to use the checklists
themselves, the dog can direct them to the checklist if it is placed
in a prominent place. The dog may also fetch the objects if they are
kept in the same general area, and direct the handler to the objects
before exiting. The dog could be taught to find and retrieve the
objects by scent, although this is limited to objects that have a
distinctive odor and if the object was left in an area that is
accessible to the dog.

Previously discussed in this document was responding to the sound of
alarms. Other sound response work may also benefit an Autistic person.
The dog may be taught to signal the handler to the sound of the
handler's name if the handler has auditory processing difficulties, by
a tactile signal and by looking in the direction from which the sound
came so that the handler knows who is trying to get his or her
attention. The dog may also be taught to respond to the sound of a
doorbell, telephone, etc. and lead the handler to the source of the
sound.

A dog may also be taught to signal the handler of specific
self-stimulatory repetitive behaviors ('stimming'), particularly if
the behavior is physically harmful or may cause extreme social
problems. It is important to understand that most self-stimulatory
behavior has a specific cause and that the extinction of all stimming
may be impossible or even harmful to the well-being of an Autistic
person. Therefore, it is probably best to limit interruptions and
signals that truly put the handler at risk of physical harm, such as
head-banging or skin picking.

A dog may also be trained to find specific family members in the home,
whether to summon assistance, or to carry notes, particularly if the
handler has speech difficulties.

On 8/28/13, Michael Hingson <info at michaelhingson.com> wrote:
> Have you checked out www.cci.org?  You may get answers there.
>
>
> Best,
>
>
> Michael Hingson
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: nagdu [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Star Gazer
> Sent: Wednesday, August 28, 2013 10:14 AM
> To: 'NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog Users'
> Subject: Re: [nagdu] Dogs for autism
>
> So would I. The terminology sounds so vague, "the dog keeps the person from
> getting lost" How exactly? "the dog calms the person" Again, how exactly?
> I'd be very interested to know more.
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: nagdu [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Tracy Carcione
> Sent: Wednesday, August 28, 2013 11:06 AM
> To: NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog Users
> Subject: [nagdu] Dogs for autism
>
> Mike, or anyone, you said you'd been to CCI and heard about dogs trained to
> help autistic children.  I'd be real interested to know what they do.
> Often
> what I hear makes them seem like emotional support animals, with their only
> training being basic obedience and house manners.  That seems like a scam
> to
> me, to charge a family thousands of dollars for a dog that any competent
> trainer could pick out at the shelter and train fairly quickly.  So I'd
> really like to know what these dogs do, task-wise.
> Tracy
>
>
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