Assistance Dogs and Autism
You are currently viewing this item in Basic level. Alternative information may be available in Intermediate or Advanced.
Ranking : 
Type(s) : Other
Introduction
An assistance dog is a dog which has been specially trained to act as a companion to the person with autism.
It encourages him to communicate and be more sociable.
It may also prevent him from getting lost or hurting himself.
Opinion
There is currently very limited scientifically valid or reliable research evidence to support the use of assistance animals for people with autism.
However the personal experience of some of our trustees/members of our scientific and advisory committee suggests that assistance dogs may be beneficial to some individuals with autism. The benefits reported are not huge but do go some way to making life better for certain individuals.
For these reasons we believe that research into this the use of assistance dogs for people with autism is warranted.
Further information
Please see the Advanced version of this page for more information about this intervention, including relevant research studies and details of how we ranked it.
Disclaimer
Please read our Disclaimer about this intervention.
Last Updated : 25/03/2013 Back to Top
