Final Trend Story

Though a little late, read below for my final trend story - my most successful one so far! :-) Now to find the perfect publication for it....

Newfound Hope: Autism Service Dogs

With autism on the rise, autism service dogs prove to be beneficial to many

 By: Kelly Martin

Justus Lambert couldn’t relate with people. Always resorting to his toy figurines, he was more relaxed with objects. Star Wars or Transformer pieces didn’t ask questions, stare at him awkwardly, or judge him. “If people we knew came up to us while taking a walk outside, Justus would stick a toy in their face or just stare blankly at them; he never talked,” Laura Lambert, his mother, recalled. He felt safe and secure, yet he never felt more alone.

Justus has autism, a neurological brain disorder that affects language skills, social interaction and abstract thinking. He has tried many different therapies, blood tests, and gluten-free diets, but nothing seemed to drastically help his condition – until Zoro, a trained autism service dog, came into his life.

He was 5 years old when he received the St. Bernard dog, about a year and a half after he was diagnosed with Asperger’s syndrome – a milder form of autism. After getting the dog from 4 Paws for Ability, a service dog agency in Xenia, Ohio, the Lambert family saw immediate changes with Justus. Now 6 years old, he is able to easily talk with people and make new friends at school. He still feels safe and secure, except now he feels like he has a place in the world – all because of Zoro. The once nervous, eccentric child is now calm and relaxed because of his canine friend – and he is only one of many people who have benefited from autism service dogs.

Currently, 1 to 1.5 millions Americans have autism – and the numbers only continue to grow. Each year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, diagnoses have been growing at a 10 to 17 percent rate. With more autism diagnoses than ever before, autism service dogs have also been on the rise. It has become increasingly clear that people with autism need an effective treatment of some sort – and that’s where many trained dogs can help. While autism is the fastest-growing disability, autism service dogs have been one of the fastest-growing therapies for many.

Throughout the United States, many service dog agencies have seen increases in the number of applications submitted each month. Karen Shirk, the executive director of agency 4 Paws for Ability, has seen this high demand for service dogs – especially autism service dogs. “About 60 percent of our applications we receive are for autism assistance dogs, with the remainder being for children with a variety of disabilities,” Shirk said. Another agency, Compassionate Paws Inc., has also witnessed this increasing demand. With just obtaining its non-profit status in June of 2007, the small organization in Appleton, Wis., already has about 100 applications pending.

With more people demanding autism service dogs, effective training is necessary. Many agencies vary in how they train them, but most can agree that it is important to select dogs with a laid-back temperament. Pris Taylor, the founder and director of Autism Service Dogs of America, knows that training a more calm, relaxed dog will be helpful for autistic children. “Since autistic children tend to have many emotional outbursts, a relaxed yet protective dog will be able to handle these spontaneous acts,” Taylor said.

From the very beginning, Zoro provided Justus with a calming presence. The night that he received his new canine friend, he did something that surprised everyone – slept in his own bed. Usually too uptight and anxious, Justus never slept by himself. He would throw fits when his parents told him to sleep in his own room. With Zoro at the foot of his bed, though, he became completely relaxed – all tantrums suddenly stopped. “Zoro is his warm and fuzzy security blanket,” his mother said. “Justus has slept in his bed ever since then.”

Once a calm, relaxed dog is chosen, the training process begins. One of the biggest differences between an autism service dog and other service dogs is how they are not just trained to help people – they are also trained to be family companions. Trainers for autism service dogs usually mix these two styles of training together to teach the dog how to respond to autistic children. During this process, the dogs are exposed to different environments – both of the general population and autistic children. “It’s important to put the dog in different situations early on in the training process so that when they really are in those environments, they are used to it and ready to take it on,” Taylor said.

Even though the training by the service agencies is very important, most of the training happens after the placement of the dog in the family’s home. “The bond between the child and the dog is what really counts down the road,” said Vicki Pingel, director of training for Compassionate Paws Inc. “If there’s no bond between them, it’s a flip of the coin as far as if the dog will be an effective tool.”

It was only a month after receiving Zoro when Justus discovered the power of an unbreakable bond. After taking a shower, Justus decided to run off in his towel just as his father was helping him get dressed. Running too fast, he tripped and fell to the floor, splitting his chin open. The family had no choice but to take him to the emergency room for stitches – with Zoro. They were not looking forward to going since they knew Justus was probably going to be overly emotional and unstable.

After throwing a tantrum on the hospital’s bed, however, he looked down to find Zoro’s head resting on his lap. This was the last image he saw before he calmly went to sleep. The doctor was easily able to stitch his chin without any hassles. “I remember the doctor saying, ‘I wish every kid who needed stitches had a dog just like this one,’” his mother recalled. The bond that was beginning to form between Justus and Zoro has only continued to grow – and shows no signs of stopping.

Most autism service dogs, like Zoro, have been trained effectively due to the increased demand for these dogs and the ensuing success after receiving them. Many agencies follow-up with the families that receive their autism service dogs, including Compassionate Paws Inc. “I am always in constant contact with the families,” Pingel said. “They are expensive, but they are always worth it.”

A simple follow-up can reemphasize the good placement of these dogs, as Pingel experienced. She worked with a young boy from Iowa, who received a service dog from Compassionate Paws about a year ago. The family was traveling from the agency to their hometown in Iowa. They decided to stay in a hotel for the night on their way back. In the middle of the night, when everyone was sleeping, the autistic boy decided to wander off near the hotel pool – without knowing how to swim. The mother awoke to see the dog pacing back and forth until he started barking to be let out the door. Once the door was opened, the dog bolted down the stairs to the pool. The entire family then awoke to find out the dog had probably saved their son’s life. If Pingel never bothered to follow-up with this family, she might have never known the power behind the autistic child and dog bond.

Shirk, from 4 Paws for Ability, also follows up with families. She remembers working with a 10-year-old boy who received an autism service dog. Before he got his dog, he constantly told her how he was “from another planet, but no one ever understood.” About a year after the boy received his service dog, she decided to follow up. When he accepted her invitation to come visit 4 Paws for Ability, he suddenly seemed to be proud of who he was. The boy looked up at Karen and said proudly, “I am happy to be from Earth.” From forming a bond with his dog, the boy has learned to accept who he is. “To see such a drastic change is all I can ever ask for,” Shirk said. “That is what makes this job completely worth it.”

Shirk is also happy to be a part of Justus and Zoro’s life. Now whenever the Lambert family goes out for a walk, Justus doesn’t hesitate to talk with people. He carries no toy figurines – only Zoro’s leash. Never hesitating to show off his canine friend, he proudly exclaims, “This is my service dog Zoro.” He isn’t afraid to be who he is, and has a companion by his side to remind him of this fact.

“Zoro is the first thing with a heartbeat that he has become attached to,” Justus’ mother proudly remembered. “It makes this whole process worth it to see him this happy.”