For most children, a pet is a great way to learn about responsibility and enjoy the unconditional love of a furry family member. And for children with autism spectrum disorder or ASD, pets also provide companionship, safety and independence – as well as help build social skills they can use throughout their lives.
The idea is that a family pet may help break the isolation of children suffering from ASD, allowing them to better interact and communicate with the world around them. Autism is a very complicated disorder without a single diagnosis, but it is known for “social impairments, communication difficulties, and restricted, repetitive, and stereotyped patterns of behavior,” according to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.
Novelty of pet plays an important role
Specifically, getting a new pet after the age of 5 may help autistic children improve their ability to share with and comfort other people according to new research from the Centre Hospitalier Regional Universitaire de Brest in France.
Researchers compared autistic children whose families adopted a pet after the child had reached the age of five, to those whose families had no pets in the home. In a separate study, researchers also compared autistic children born into homes that already had pets to those born into pet-free homes.
Children age 5 and up benefit most from new pet
Children with pets showed improvements in two areas: “offering to share” and “offering comfort” – but only when the animals had been introduced to the home after the child’s fifth birthday. Children who had been around a pet since birth showed no difference in social skills; similar to children who had no pets at all. However, children who were introduced to a new pet after age five interacted more with the animal, families reported.
Researchers aren’t entirely sure why the new arrival of a pet, after the age of 5, makes such a difference for children with ASD, while being around a pet since birth had no effect on them. They suggest it could be the novelty of a pet that catches the child’s interest, or the way a new pet brings the whole family together. The child may be old enough to pick up on the easy social cues involved with a pet, and imitate how the adults talk to and care for the animal. More research is needed to better understand the link.
Service dogs for autism expensive
While this study provides some exciting new possibilities for dealing with autism, the idea of using service animals to help children with the disorder is nothing new. Not only can service dogs help with behavioral problems, but they can even be trained to track down autistic children who have a tendency to wander off.
Service dogs need extensive training and that comes with a hefty price tag. For many parents, it’s more than they can afford: like the Eaton family, currently struggling to raise the required $15,000 to get a specially-trained dog for their 11-year-old son. Do you know someone with an autistic child? Check out these charities 4 Paws for Ability and Autism Dog Services, which provide service dogs to autistic children in need.