Pets Work As A Social Catalyst For Children With Autism

If your child is dealing with autism, a pet may be a good social catalyst for him or her. Researchers at the University of Missouri found that a dog can greatly improve his or her ability to interact with others.

"When I compared the social skills of children with autism who lived with dogs to those who did not, the children with dogs appeared to have greater social skills," said Gretchen Carlisle, research fellow at the Research Center for Human-Animal Interaction (ReCHAI) in the MU College of Veterinary Medicine, in a news release. "More significantly, however, the data revealed that children with any kind of pet in the home reported being more likely to engage in behaviors such as introducing themselves, asking for information or responding to other people's questions. These kinds of social skills typically are difficult for kids with autism, but this study showed children's assertiveness was greater if they lived with a pet."

Carlisle noted that when pets are present in public places, such as a school setting, children are more likely to talk among each other. The same effect is especially true for children dealing with autism and helps many increase assertiveness.

"When children with disabilities take their service dogs out in public, other kids stop and engage," Carlisle said. "Kids with autism don't always readily engage with others, but if there's a pet in the home that the child is bonded with and a visitor starts asking about the pet, the child may be more likely to respond."

The longer the children from the study owned a dog, the more their social skills seemed to increase, as well. During the study period, 70 families were surveyed who had children with autism between the ages of 8 and 18. All the children were patients at the MU Thompson center for Autism and Neurodevelopmental Disorders.

About 70 percent of the families that participated had dogs while the other half had cats. Some participants also had other pets, including farm animals, fish, rabbits, reptiles, birds or even spiders.

"Dogs are good for some kids with autism but might not be the best option for every child," Carlisle said. "Kids with autism are highly individual and unique, so some other animals may provide just as much benefit as dogs. Though parents may assume having dogs are best to help their children, my data show greater social skills for children with autism who live in homes with any type of pet."

More information regarding the findings can be seen via the Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders.

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