Autism Assistance Dogs

A 3 year old boy wanders out of his house, and drowns in a nearby pond..a 4 yr old girl gets lost for 2 hours in a crowd during a county fair, she had just taken off..away from her parents. A 6 yr old girl runs into traffic, thankfully..she does not get hit..what do these children have in common?..all three have been diagnosed with “Autism”. Would anything have been able to help these children..and their parents?..The answer is “YES”..in each case above, an “Autism Assistance Dog” would have been extremely helpful.

Many people with autistic children, simply can not afford an autism assistance dog..prices for these specially trained dogs run anywhere from $2,000.00 to $20,000.00..not a bad price, if it could possibly save the life of a child..and if you have the funds avaliable for such a purchase. But, sadly, most people do not have the funding for these impressive animals, and many children end up in very dangerous situations..or worse, losing their lives.

My son, Joseph, is a 4 yr old child with autism. I have been researching everywhere, as to how I can afford such a dog for him, and have been very impressed with what I have found..there are quite a few places offering Autism assistance dogs, they are very pricey..and most of them have a way that the family looking to purchase a dog, can “fundraise” the money to get one.

Theres “4 paws for ability” (www.4pawsforability.org), Assistance Dogs Of America” (www.adai.org),”Autism Service Dogs Of America” (autismservicedogsofamerica.com), “National Service Dogs” (www.nsd.on.ca), “NEADS” (www.neads.org), “North Star Dogs” (www.northstardogs.com), to name a few..but by far, the most amazing place that I have found during my internet travels, has been “Assistance Dog United Campaign” (www.assistancedogunitedcampaign.org). This wonderful place will help you to fund your assistance dog. If accepted, they will provide you with a voucher, to many, many different places, a few are listed above, to obtain an assistance dog. This absolutely helps cover a good part of the expense for an assistance dog, and vouchers are good for a year.

These dogs not only are an extra pair of eyes and ears for the family, they are also great for socialization in children with autism, and are a bridge between school and home for these kids.

In conclusion, although I am still researching for other funding avaliable, so far, this is the only place I have found, that offers to help people who can’t afford a service/assistance dog, to be able to. They only accept applications in April and May..next April, I will apply for my Joseph.