Special dogs help autistic children

[Skywatch_NC]

For Autistic Child, Happy May Be Months Away

POSTED: 12:06 am EDT October 9, 2005
UPDATED: 12:06 am EDT October 9, 2005

HENDERSON, N.C. -- Molly is waiting for "Happy." It's the name Dale and Susan Williamson want to give to a yet-to-be trained service dog that will eventually help their 3 1/2-year-old daughter cope with the world and her moderate level of autism.

Learning to speak is still difficult for Molly, but "Happy" is a word she yells out with delight.

How soon her companion-to-be comes to live at the Williamsons' home will depend on how fast they can raise $12,000 in contributions for 4 PAWS. The nonprofit organization in Xenia, Ohio, trains service dogs to help children such as Molly.

It usually takes three to six months for families to come up with the money, according to Susan Williamson. More than a week ago, she started mailing out donation request letters to civic organizations and sending e-mails to friends.

Susan also is trying to generate funds on a Web site that was created for free by Sunset Web Design in Henderson.

Even if people don't donate to Molly's fund, spreading the word about service animals helps those who use them gain more acceptance in public, Susan Williamson said.

"4 PAWS has never had anyone who started a fund who didn't wind up with a dog,' Susan said. 'If people had trouble with fund-raising, 4 PAWS would help them find a way."

As soon as the goal is met, 4 PAWS will begin the search for Happy. He or she will be chosen to meet Molly's specific needs after the Williamsons send the trainers a lengthy video of her.

The dog will probably be a golden retriever or a Lab since both breeds are considered to be the right size and good with children. It's possible that Happy could come from an animal shelter.

Then the hundreds of hours of schooling in obedience and search-and-rescue will begin. Being able to find Molly quickly if she gets away from her parents will be one of Happy's most important skills.

"Autistic children who go missing are almost always found dead in a ditch or at a lake," Susan Williamson said, quietly but matter-of-factly. "They get frightened of new things. Their instinct might be to hide in a small, dark place."

At the same time, they are typically very strong, are easily startled and have no fear of traffic. "That combination is deadly," Susan said. "It means the child can jerk out of your hand without warning."

In a store or other public place where the Williamsons have had trouble controlling Molly in the past, Happy would help keep her calm and serve as a guide for her. A leash attached to a harness on the girl would be fastened to a vest on the dog. A second leash connected to Happy would be held by one of her parents.

Another curious trait of children with autism is that they love water. "If Molly sees a lake, her instinct is to run into it," Susan said. "She would just keep going if no one stopped her. That would be an important function of the dog."

Since Molly has always been good at pressing buttons and turning knobs, she could soon become an "eloper" who unlocks doors, unlocks gates, climbs out windows and takes off from home with no thought of returning.

"Because of that, we thought search-and-rescue would be important training," Susan said. "I think it's only a matter of time before Molly will try to open the backyard gate. It could be a matter of months."

Many children who are autistic have self-stimulating, repetitive behavior that has no purpose except to serve as an outlet for them. It could be banging their head on the floor or knocking on things with their hands. Another one is flapping their hands, which Molly does. Happy would be trained to react to her behavior and distract her.

"They train the dog to put its nose or a paw on the child," Susan said. "That would help her fit in more in public."

Happy would also be very useful in helping Molly socialize, Susan Williamson said. "Autistic children have a hard time making friends. In Molly's case, her lack of speech doesn't help. We would be encouraging people to talk to her and pet her dog."

Molly was officially diagnosed with "early onset autism" about six months ago at the TEACCH Center at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill.

Molly had exhibited some possible symptoms of the condition for a long time, according to her mother. In a separate effort, the Williamsons hope to raise enough money so the whole family can spend a couple of weeks in Ohio when the time comes for personal training with Happy.

There is an animal-friendly hotel where everyone stays, Susan Williamson said. "Someone will have to take care of Molly while I train with the dog," she said.

Her daughter will have to bond with Happy and get used to walking with him or her, Susan said.

Dale, 36, and Susan, 34, have been married seven years. They moved from Chapel Hill to Henderson four years ago. The couple has another child, Natalie, who is 5. He teaches English and journalism at Northern Vance High School.

She writes children's stories for books and magazines. Susan is working on her thesis at home. She wants to get a master's degree in English with concentration in creative writing.

"The support we have received from my family has been wonderful," Susan Williamson said. "Going through my own struggle with Molly has made me closer with my own parents."

Her daughter's uphill battle has been a real trial, Susan added. "At the same time, it has done a lot for us," she said. "I feel it opened my eyes to the struggle many people who have disabilities go through every day."

http://www.wral.com/news/5074195/detail.html

Sidenote: I was diagnosed with Asperger Syndrome (high-functioning autism) at TEACCH in 1998 at age 35.

[Miss Mary]

My disabled brother-in-law has a therapy dog, a Golden Retriever dumped in a shelter once but Circle Tails found him. Trained him extensively. Goldens and labs are so smart, easily taught but mostly love almost constant human contact. Perfect for jobs like this. I am going to pray they find Happy for Molly very soon. I'm sure they'll raise the money. I don't recall my BIL having to pay much for his dog. Perhaps insurance covered it somehow or Circle Tails provides assistance dogs at a very low cost...I really don't remember but his dog is a wonderful comfort and a relief to all. That he's there if he's needed. We've never heard him bark, in 4 years now. He's trained only to bark if there's a concern.

Thanks for sharing this little girl's story Eric. Having an assistance dog would really help her I'm sure. For peace of mind for her parents but also for the bonding she would certainly have with the dog. I am so incredibly bonded with our Golden, I swear I never knew Goldens were like this before (so devoted), until we had one. I joke I often gave birth to her, she is almost physically attached to me, all day long. My family often jokes too, if they can't find me in the house, just look for Hope. I'm nearby.

Mary

[Skywatch_NC]

Mary,

A neighbor named Ed 2 doors down has an adult male chocolate Lab named Harley who is a big hit with our townhouse row neighborhood and his favorite exercise play activity is chasing after and retrieving tennis balls!

It was very entertaining, too, watching Harley at our 1st annual neighborhood block party this past Memorial Day weekend!

Eric

Sidenote: No, Ed's last name isn't Twodoorsdown.

[Miss Mary]

Eric - before Hope, I had been accustomed to small dogs. I grew up with several Cairn Terriers, b/c my mom is from Scotland. My husband grew up with Samoiyds (sp?) and wanted a big dog. Trust me he said. So I agreed to a Golden puppy, b/c on our street a neighbor had one. His dog was the sweetest, most gentle dog I had ever met. Our neighbor would walk over to the nearby Elem. School my girls went to, to walk his child home everyday (when the dad wasn't working, he had out of town jobs) and 50 strange kids would be petting this Golden. The dog would just sit there, with a huge smile on his face. Kids getting antsy to get a pet in, let me at him, you'd think a dog would get impatient with all this attention. Not for Goldens or Labs - they usually eat it up. I'm not surprised this Chocolate Lab is the hit of your neighborhood Eric.

I'm such a major dog lover now, but mostly a big dog lover. Of course I still like little dogs, but I've gravitated towards the really big ones.

Mary

PS - LOL @ your sidenote comment......Ed from twodoorsdown. I'm Mary from the up the street to a few neighbors. Which is odd b/c there are no Mary's at their end of the street but when I've had to make neighborhood phone calls, I start out my call that way - this is Mary, your neighbor from up the street. They reply back with - hello, from up the street.....he he