Assistance Canines

Our dogs are highly specialized for work with children with an Autism Spectrum or Pervasive Developmental Disorder (PDD) diagnosis. Our Autism Assistance Canines are specially trained to help a child with Autism or a PDD to function at a safer and more comfortable level.

Eligible families are provided with an Autism Assistance Canine in order to help them take positive steps towards promoting the health, positive development and autonomy of their child. Each dog combines the benefits of a therapy dog, the skills of a service dog and the security and safety of a search and rescue dog. Our Autism Assistance Canines help families with an Autistic child in the following ways:

Safely Walking in Public. Our Autism Assistance Canine walks with the child and family wherever they go, often tethered to the child with a safety harness under adult supervision. Our Autism Assistance Canines are large enough to physically restrain the child from dangerous situations.

Behavior Disruption. Our Autism Assistance Canines are trained to interrupt a specific behavior by interacting with the child during disruptive or self-harming behaviours.

Search and Rescue. Our Autism Assistance Canines are trained in search and rescue and can locate a frightened child. They are trained to alert the parents in the event of an elopement and track the child if they disappear.

A Comforting Friend. Bonding with our Autism Assistance Canines can have a calming effect on the child, inspiring confidence, positive modeling, and reassurance. The dog is a constant companion at home, in public, and even at school.

A Social Bridge. Children with Autism often have difficulties talking, making eye contact, or understanding social rules. Creating social support networks can be daunting and often impossible. Parents of Autistic children with assistance dogs have reported that their child has a newfound interest in being social.

Assistance in the Classroom and in Public Spaces. When given permission to retreat to a safe place with their dog, children have been shown to react more positively to educational and public settings and succeed at accomplishing their schoolwork. For an Autistic child, this is an enormous window that could lead to a lifelong change, self development and enhanced interpersonal relationships.