This week (August 1st - 7th) is International Assistance Dogs Week - a week that recognises all of the devoted, hardworking Assistance Dogs helping individuals mitigate the challenges they face due to their disability. 

Our Assistance Dogs can be trained to perform a variety of tasks. These tasks are specific to each handler, and can either provide emotional support (such as anxiety and meltdown responses) or practical support (such as item retrieval and opening and closing doors).  

These tasks enable our Autism Assistance Dogs to help their handlers in so many different areas, including sensory regulation, diet and food tolerances, sleep, communication and social interaction, independence, confidence and self reliance, and responding to anxiety, self harm, and meltdowns.

Not only this, but our Assistance Dogs can enable their handler to access the community, including places such as shops and medical facilities, as well as to access and attend work and education. 

Autism Assistance Dogs can truly be life changing for their handler, and can also have a positive impact on the handler’s whole family! Our dogs do such an amazing job in their role, and we feel so privileged to be able to play a part in the change our dogs can have in their handlers’ lives.