Autism Awareness Month: Past Posts on Autism and Service Dogs

The first installment of my Autism Awareness Month post-a-thon showcases past posts I have written in the past dealing in some way with autism and autism service dogs:    

1. Choosing a program  -originally published June 23, 2008- I mentioned in an early post I mention that I had been accepted as a potential recipient for the Purdy Prison Pet Program years ago. The reason I did not reapply to the that program when Bastien needed to retire was that program had changed the format of its team training format, so it was no longer possible for me to meet their requirements. Especially since I now lived more than 200 miles away. When choosing service dog programs to apply to there are many things one must consider .... Read More 
2. News: Service Dogs for Kids-originally published January 11, 2009- Today I came across two articles about service dogs for children:

• Colchester: Billy, the dog who helps Tilli hear
• Fort Lewis eighth-grader soon will welcome a new best friend

While I did not have a service dog as a child, it was the interaction between myself and one of the family dogs as a child that caused my mom and myself to think a service dog would be a great help to me as an adult on my own. Read More 
    3.  Book Review: New Blogs on Blog Roll- originally published February 14,2009-I believe that reading honest accounts of life with service dogs helps people decide whether adding a service dog to their lives and family is right for them.

New this month:

• Charlie the North Star Dog-a tale of a a boy (with Autism), his mom, and a service dog in training. This blog shares the triumphs and challenges of tandem training a service dog with a program. Read More 

    4.  Commentary: Schools and Service Dogs -originally published August 26, 2009-Recently there has been a lot of chatter on the Internet over young children with Autism and the burgeoning movement partner them with dogs. Read More

    5.  News: Exploring the Health Benefits of Pets -originally published October 9, 2009- When Chad, a yellow Labrador retriever, moved in with Claire Vaccaro’s family in Manhattan last spring, he already had an important role. As an autism service dog, he was joining the family to help protect Ms. Vaccaro’s 11-year-old son, Milo... Read More

    6.  We met Temple Grandin last night! -originally published February 10, 2010-Yesterday was a whirlwind day for Shiloh and me (though Tuesdays usually are since I work two jobs on Tuesday). After working from 9-7:30pm I drove back to the University of Oregon to hear Dr. Temple Grandin present "My Experiences with Autism and Animals" Read More