# Autism and New Puppy!



## Odieo (Jan 1, 2013)

I guess it's not too late to ask this question, but does any one have some knowledge they can impart on having an autistic kid at home and bringing a new puppy? We are bringing Odeo home next Friday!!!!

I don't know if any one of you will be of help here, but I thought I should ask any way!


My younger son is on the spectrum, he is 8 yrs old and hi-moderate functioning, he can talk (we decided to throw grammar out of the window at this point), he is very independent and is an extremely funny little guy. He is very social and initially wanted a cat and not a dog. Since he is a fan of Garfield (go figure!) but my husband has a lot of allergies and my older one (10 yr old) wanted a dog, so we picked Odeo. Finally after lot of talking and explaining my little guy is all excited, we have all of Odeo's gear (crate, ex-pen, pee-pads, kongs) and he keeps telling us it's for "his puppy". I'm glad he is able to connect, and every time we visit the puppy he is little antsy (since they have other dogs there as well) He did pet Odeo couple of times and is really excited seeing him and one time he even kissed him. 

Are there any specific things/ tips we have to keep in mind to make the transition easier for both of them? Some time tips are applicable to all kids...special needs or not


----------



## Sheri (Oct 11, 2008)

There is a experienced Forum member that may be checking in on this. Welcome.


----------



## Atticus (May 17, 2011)

Take your time with the pup and your son,this can be a wonderful relationship but patience with both will help! You may enjoy going on youtube and searching dogs and autism. There is a group, 4 paws something, that trains dogs to be with autistic kids. I realize this is not your situation but you might be interested. I am retired now but have worked with many kids, Deaf with autism some had dogs at home. Of course children and dogs vary but it can be a wonderful experience for both! Just keep in mind that this puppy in a few years may be a wonderful companion but is a puppy now! good luck! and enjoy it all!


----------



## Laurief (Nov 7, 2006)

Welcome to the forum!! How exciting for you and your family!!

I do not have an autistic child, but will say that this past Sunday I started a research project with Rutgers University trying to establish the benefit of therapy dogs with autistic children. 

My Logan met his "child" this past weekend. He is a very Low functioning boy, very very very active. As a dog owner, my first inclination was to be sure that Logan was "safe" He did have to be held many times during our visit to keep from getting run over  

I think it is fantastic that your son is asking about the pup, and has reached out and pet him! My recommendation would be to 100% supervise them for quite a while, until you are comfortable with how they are together. If Odieo is a "reactive" pup, you dont want him getting frightened - and need to be sure that the "active" puppy does not upset your son. Both my therapy dogs also visit with nursing homes and dementia units and I see a MAJOR benefit to those people, so I would have to imagine your son will do great! 

I think it is such a great adventure you guys are starting on! 

If you are interested on keeping up with the progress of our research project, feel free to private message me!

Best of luck to you guys!
Laurie


----------



## Julie (Feb 8, 2007)

Welcome Odieo :welcome:

I have a son who is also autistic on the slightly higher then moderate spectrum. He is going to be 12 Feb. 15. He is a very loving little boy, verbal but almost all is echolalia. We had a beloved sheltie pass away when Robbie was 5 and brought another sheltie into our family shortly after losing him. Robbie loved Vinnie. He was what I would call a "hard lover". You know what I mean? Wanted to push a little hard, wanted to have them not get away. Vinnie was a sheltie and didn't really like Robbie much. He was a great dog and still is a wonderful dog (even did a certified reading program with at risk kids at school) but he is a bit careful around Robbie,even to this day. Vinnie loves Robbie and interacts with him,but I would say Vinnie would prefer to nuzzle him as opposed to having Robbie pet him etc. Shelties are rather known for being a bit standoffish anyway, but I am happy how Vinnie and Robbie have boundaries up and respect each other. You can see my beautiful Vincent at the bottom of my post in my signature line.

Because of Vinnie's lack of interaction with Robbie as a young dog, I started lots of research on a breed that would suit Robbie. I read how havanese make great therapy dogs,how lovable and playful they are,how they adapt and love children and I was sold! My husband thought I was completely nuts,but a havanese was in our future!

Quincy is my havanese and he is wonderful with Robbie. He engages Robbie and Robbie engages him and I think my favorite thing about Quincy is his forgiving nature. For example: My son has lots of tone in his left hand and left foot so his gait is a bit ackward. If Robbie accidently steps on Quincy's tail, Quincy may react with a snarfy sound,but forgives Robbie and is ready to approach him or interact seconds later.


----------



## MopTop Havanese (Sep 25, 2006)

Congratulations on your new puppy! I have placed two of our puppies in a home with an autistic boy. They are all thriving and doing so good! Just be sure you have an xpen or someplace to put the puppy when he needs time alone, or time for your son to be able to play without the puppy biting at his heels!
I also have a 13yr old autistic boy that lives next door. They have two dogs also, (not Havanese) and Kane was petrified of dogs when he was younger! I was absolutely blown away at how those dogs brought Kane out of his shell and he is no longer afraid of dogs. Of course, this took awhile, as they have had the dogs for a few years now. But Kane is the most loving sweet boy with his pups!


----------



## Julie (Feb 8, 2007)

I think the most important thing is to be careful when they both meet for the first time and put up rules for your son regarding the pup. 

He can pet the puppy when you say etc. Keep it all supervised. A havanese puppy is small and can easily get hurt. You want to foster a great relationship between the two,but with boundaries. My son could not pull hair, so I was not worried about that. I did make a rule that when the puppy was in the crate,he had to leave him alone. Puppy in crate meant he was tired and needed sleep,etc. Keep it simple and straight forward.

Quincy is now almost 7 and he jumps in Robbie's bed each night to listen to the book I read, then gives Robbie "ear lickies" goodnight. They have a wonderful relationship but with boundaries.

If you have any specific questions please ask...I would be happy to help you any way I can. I know having a child with autism is the toughest job I have ever had...so I know PART of what you go through each day. :hug:


----------



## shimpli (Mar 24, 2010)

Hello. I have an autistic daughter. She is older than your son but still a 'little one' so my experience can help. I have two Havs. Both of them were chosen by the breeders with my daughter needs in mind, so that helped a lot. 
She is not too happy when she sees other dogs but she LOVES our dogs. I didn't force her to pet them, everything was as she wanted. I always taught her how to be gentle with them, how to touch them and how to respect their space when they were resting or eating. I never let them together without me supervising. 
Remember that when the puppy gets home he will be playing hard and biting a lot (just playing ) I tried not to let the puppies play like that with her so she didn't get afraid of them.
Try to let the puppy visits his bedroom with you a lot so they get used to his life, his voice, his laugh and his possible tantrums also. When my daughter gets angry, it is very natural to them thanks to that exposure. 
It can be very difficult during training because of all the attention the puppy needs and your son too. The expen will be very helpful so when you can't watch the puppy he is in a safe place. In my case, I used a small crate a lot. My first Hav cried a lot when puppy if I was out of her sight. It made my daughter anxious so I was moving all around the house with the puppy in the crate by my side. When I was busy with my daughter, the puppy was relax with us.
At the beginning, let your son give treats to the puppy so the puppy knows good things come from his new friend. Involve your son in the training when you practice at home what you learn in puppy school. My daughter said she was a good trainer and was very proud of it. haha Let them play for short periods of time. Remember the puppy needs a lot of rest.
Your son will LOVE having a dog and Havanese dogs are sweet, playful and great companions so it will be wonderful for your son.
I hope this helps. If you have any questions, feel free to send me a message. I will be happy to help. Congratulations on the puppy and welcome to the forum!!! Ahh we will be waiting for pictures!!!


----------



## Odieo (Jan 1, 2013)

Thanks a lot for all the input! this is all very helpful. I will check out for those youtube videos. 

Laurief, I will send you a PM I'm interested in learning more. 

Julie & Terista, Yes, we have a crate and an ex-pen ready for Odeio. My son did not like the idea of dogs, he was scared of them. But then before we made the decision we dog sat couple of our friends smaller dogs. We had a yorkie for a week and then another one for 2-3 days at home full-time. That made a big change, he did not want to play with them or let them lick him, but he would pet them if I held them and would call them by their names and even now asks if he can visit those dogs. I do have a full time nanny at home who is wonderful with dogs (she has 2 of her own) she is at home from 11:00-5:30 everyday and she is also an ABA therapist. My husband works from home and travels sometimes. So the dog will have some quiet time and training time before my son gets home from school. I do have to teach him to be gentle, he can be "hard lover" sometimes. 

Oh! I'm so excited and nervous at the same time!!


----------



## Laurief (Nov 7, 2006)

Dont worry - it sounds like you have thought of everything. 
Sit back and enjoy the joy of a Havanese puppy and watch how it wiggles it's way into everyones heart!!!!


----------



## shimpli (Mar 24, 2010)

It will be great. Have fun!!


----------



## Buzzys Mom (Sep 28, 2010)

I did not read through all of the responses due to time constraint, but my nephew is autistic and has 3 dogs. The only thing I can really tell you is that he needs to be gentle with the dog- my nephew managed to break the dogs leg by mishandling him and then dropping him. He also has meltdowns when the dogs don't want to sleep with him or do what he wants to do. The reverse of that is that he is learning to be patient and tolerant and keep his frustration in check. He is 7 years old also. Good luck!


----------



## morriscsps (Aug 17, 2010)

We are an Asperger's family. I am not sure what works for your guy but if I was introducing a puppy into the family when my eldest was younger, I probably would have had charts for the puppy just like we did for the kids. It is a member of the family, too. 

If your guy is a visual guy, perhaps visual charts to remind him that it is the puppy's nap time, feeding time, quiet time etc. A checklist on the door of what the puppy needs to have on before he can go outside. Visual reminder of how to hold him properly. I taught my kids that they could only pat using the back of their fingers. 

Even kids without autism constantly need to be reminded not smush the puppy.


----------



## Odieo (Jan 1, 2013)

Yes mine is a big on visuals that is a great idea I will make some visual charts and some social stories on puppies for him.

Yep, I plan to implement every bit of ABA on the puppy!! When we were doing therapies with my son I always thought it was very close to dog training. Now that I have 6 yrs of experience I plan to use all of it on the puppy 

Sent from Petguide.com Free App


----------



## Becky Chittenden (Feb 4, 2009)

A number of years ago, I had a family visit to perhaps buy a Sheltie puppy from me. They had an old rescue sheltie they'd had 10 years and had an autistic son. They'd decided they should get a puppy so if the older dog died (who knows how old) they'd still have a dog to love. I had a little mixed feelings but the family sounded so nice. It was a lovely spring day, so I set up an x-pen (actually 3 connected together) in the front yard. The family had 4 or 5 kids, don't remember how many for sure and the youngest was the autistic child, all stairsteps. Not knowing how these kids would behave, decided this was better than running through my house if they were that kind. When they arrived, I told them I'd bring the puppy out and she would be put in the x-pen. I went to get the puppy (a show hopeful only child that was going to grow oversize) and when I brought her out, all the childrem were sitting on the ground in the x-pen. I put the pup in and watched a bit and went to get the mother. I didn't own the father and he'd been sold to Japan as a show dog by then. I watched. Both mother and pup interacted well with all the children and parents and especially more with the youngest who had the biggest smile on his face. They bought the pup and when it was time for them to go, he started crying. He couldn't understand why they couldn't bring "Lassie" (the mother) too. The mother explained to him that she needed to stay here and help us but was generous enough to allow his family to love her daughter. The only family I ever insisted they not name the dog Lassie, and they did.


----------



## Odieo (Jan 1, 2013)

Becky such a nice story. So did they end up giving the puppy mommy's name so that the child wouldn't throw a fit?

We let my little guy pick the name so he will be able to connect. He thought the puppy looked like Oreo ( he is black and white) but he likes the name Odi from Garfield so he picked Odieo. We decided to stick to the name since it sounds pretty good!!

Sent from Petguide.com Free App


----------



## Becky Chittenden (Feb 4, 2009)

I really don't remember what they called her. The mother's name was really Xena, but I didn't correct him and Xena would come to any child even if they called here Rat. Like how you came up with your pups name.


----------



## Atticus (May 17, 2011)

I'm so glad you are getting such good advice from all these families with children who are on the spectrum. They are special kids with special families and it just feels great that this Havanese forum can connect you all! keep us posted!


----------



## morriscsps (Aug 17, 2010)

I would probably have a "No picking up" rule without parental supervision. This would be for your older son as well as your younger one. Yeah, yeah... I know, I know. It isn't fair but Havanese puppies are really tiny. Leaning over an ex-pen to grab a puppy is awkward for a kid. I don't think I would be comfortable with my 11 year old doing it. 

My Jack is 2. I think I did all the lifting off the floor and handing to the kids to hold. Unfortunately, Jack didn't enjoy being carried. He snuggles and sits in your laps but likes to keep all 4 paws on the ground.


----------



## Julie (Feb 8, 2007)

My son also loved our cat Jasper. We had our sheltie and our cat Jasper when we brought Quincy home. Robbie wanted to call Quincy Jasper. Jasper was a black tiger stripe and white color so we thought he just likely thought the puppy should be a Jasper too. It took a while to come up with a name but my other children actually named him. For quite some time we had 2 Jasper's but eventually Robbie started calling him Quincy.

He really was a blessing for us (although lots of work) and I wouldn't change a thing. Quincy sat in Robbie's lap in the car seat for the entire 2 hour drive home. My son could not pull his hair or anything because of the tone in his hand,so I did not worry about that. He did like to squish and tough love an animal,but he soon realized,that he didn't need to as Quincy was not trying to get away. I was diligent about watching him like a hawk though because the pups are small. Quincy has actually help reduce the tone in my son's hand. Robbie now has a pincher grip and could actually pull hair although he never has. Petting with the back of the hand can help reduce the desire to pull hair or get fingers tangled up in hair.

A social story would be great and also maybe a chore list with stickers? My son likes to put the food in the bowl. It makes him feel special to get to feed the dogs. I don't have him do anything else and you may not want your son to do anything further either,just throwing it out there.


----------



## dodrop82 (May 21, 2010)

I work in a Waiver home...for higher functioning individuals with disabilities. Two individuals live in the home I work. One has MR and autism, and loves cats, and has a pet cat. The other has MR and various other diagnosis, and prefers dogs (He had one when he first came to our agency, but he didn't do well at caring for it, so it was rehomed.) Anyway, I have taken Yogi and Boo to visit them several times, to visit the guys, and play with the cat. Yogi was very well socialized as a pup, as we got her in the summer, and exposed her to everything, everyone, all sounds, all circumstances, and she's very unreactive because of this. Boo, on the otherhand, was brought home during the winter months, and wasn't socialized like Yogi was, and hence...she barks at everything. So when I've taken the girls to work with me, and Boo plays with the cat, she barks and barks and barks...and my guy with autism does not like it and will always slam his bedroom door shut when Boo's doing her barking thing! So, altho it is alway so important to the pup's well being, to be properly socialized...I think it's doubley important in this situation, to get your puppy socialized to everything you can!!! Good luck, and keep us posted how it's going!


----------



## davetgabby (Dec 29, 2007)

dodrop82 said:


> I work in a Waiver home...for higher functioning individuals with disabilities. Two individuals live in the home I work. One has MR and autism, and loves cats, and has a pet cat. The other has MR and various other diagnosis, and prefers dogs (He had one when he first came to our agency, but he didn't do well at caring for it, so it was rehomed.) Anyway, I have taken Yogi and Boo to visit them several times, to visit the guys, and play with the cat. Yogi was very well socialized as a pup, as we got her in the summer, and exposed her to everything, everyone, all sounds, all circumstances, and she's very unreactive because of this. Boo, on the otherhand, was brought home during the winter months, and wasn't socialized like Yogi was, and hence...she barks at everything. So when I've taken the girls to work with me, and Boo plays with the cat, she barks and barks and barks...and my guy with autism does not like it and will always slam his bedroom door shut when Boo's doing her barking thing! So, altho it is alway so important to the pup's well being, to be properly socialized...I think it's doubley important in this situation, to get your puppy socialized to everything you can!!! Good luck, and keep us posted how it's going!


Right on Stacey and good for you.


----------



## Odieo (Jan 1, 2013)

Thanks all for your valuable input I'm taking notes. The plan is to have him interact with puppy as much as he wants and not push him too much. Make sure he is not rough with the puppy and watch both of them like a hawk and never to leave either kid alone with the puppy. Yes and planning on big puppy socialization I have started to invite families ( one at time) to come and spend time with Odieo next weekend. We have been visiting Odieo every week and we can tell he is very well socialized. We went today and he was so playful with his new chew toys and does not bark ( still haven't heard him bark, others in the litter do some barking). He did not try to chew/ bite us the whole time we were there. He was content chewing his toys and playing with us. I hope it stays that way.

Sent from Petguide.com Free App


----------



## Ewokpup (Nov 3, 2012)

I have aspergers...it's not as 'noticeable' as when I was younger and it can be trickier to recognize in girls, so I wasn't actually formally diagnosed until I was an adult. 

Feel free to PM me..,I was going to send you one but couldn't figure out how to do that...viewing the forum on an iPhone isn't the easiest. 

I have some resources out there I will have to dig up. 

Congrats on the dog! Adorble puppies, in my opinion, are great for social interaction. No one notices if you don't make much eye contact when there's a cute pup to focus on. Plus there is a pretty standard 'small talk' when talking about a dog.


----------



## Ewokpup (Nov 3, 2012)

Odieo said:


> Thanks all for your valuable input I'm taking notes. The plan is to have him interact with puppy as much as he wants and not push him too much. Make sure he is not rough with the puppy and watch both of them like a hawk and never to leave either kid alone with the puppy. Yes and planning on big puppy socialization I have started to invite families ( one at time) to come and spend time with Odieo next weekend. We have been visiting Odieo every week and we can tell he is very well socialized. We went today and he was so playful with his new chew toys and does not bark ( still haven't heard him bark, others in the litter do some barking). He did not try to chew/ bite us the whole time we were there. He was content chewing his toys and playing with us. I hope it stays that way.
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com Free App


That's good to hear he isn't too vocal. Bama wasn't at first but she is a bit more talkative now. I'm rather sensitive to sounds...Bama actually does better with vacuum cleaner noise than me. ;-)

As far as learning proper puppy interactions, have you looked into dog themed social stories? I found one online, not sure if it is useful at all...

http://209.197.91.184/socialstories/ss0001.html


----------



## Ewokpup (Nov 3, 2012)

Odieo said:


> Yes mine is a big on visuals that is a great idea I will make some visual charts and some social stories on puppies for him.
> 
> Yep, I plan to implement every bit of ABA on the puppy!! When we were doing therapies with my son I always thought it was very close to dog training. Now that I have 6 yrs of experience I plan to use all of it on the puppy
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com Free App


I totally use ABA with Bama when I can. I was doing an internship years ago for a program that was very ABA based and so poor Miss Yorkie got caught up in my ABA enthusiasm. ;-) 'want treat? You need good sitting'. 'You need nice paws and quiet mouth'.


----------



## Odieo (Jan 1, 2013)

Thanks all for your advise. Ewokpup I will send you a PM and thanks for the link with the story.

Sent from Petguide.com Free App


----------



## sprorchid (Mar 30, 2010)

Hey - 
I'm a speech therapist in the public schools. elementary is my current site, and the school houses the mod-severe autism special day classes (SDCs). I have a 1/2 hav, 1/2 shih tzu now 3 yrs old, and he's a certified therapy dog, and comes to work with me to do push-in whole class, or in the case of the SDC (only 12 students per class), small group push-in to assist and give the student's opprotunities to practice skills learned via discrete trials, basically an opprotunity to generalize and master skills.

I think dogs in general, whether it be a dog bred and trained to be a service dog for a child with autism, or my Ollie that I use to generalize language skills, dogs are an invaluable tool, not just to child with a specific diagnosis, but for all students.

good stuff. feel free to PM me, if you comments or questions.


----------



## Odieo (Jan 1, 2013)

It's been 4 weeks since got Odeo home and my younger one (Autistic) has been doing OK. He hates it when Odeo tries to lick him and nipping is a big no-no. He likes the chase game and will pet Odeo when I hold him up. Today's amazing weather helped in lot of bonding. They both took a walk...and Odeo did great on leash with him. Both of them enjoyed it very well puppy was so tired he had to take a long nap afterwards.

ETA Pics

Sent from Petguide.com Free App


----------



## morriscsps (Aug 17, 2010)

Awww... You have a couple of cuties there.


----------



## motherslittlehelper (Mar 18, 2010)

Cute! Glad it is going well!


----------



## shimpli (Mar 24, 2010)

Ohh Licking is a big no no for my daughter too. She is always saying: " Yunque, no licking... ". Hahaha. They look great together!

Sent from Petguide.com Free App


----------

