Like many other disabilities such as being blind, deafness and seizures many Autistic People have service dogs. The problem is many schools are not allowing service dogs for people with Autism into their school calling them comfort animals.School districts are saying that that the service dogs for autism provide no service, but just rather comfort autistic students. School districts claim to be looking out for the best interest of the children in the school due to the fact that many students have dog allergies or are afraid of dogs.
What Do Autism Service Dogs Do?
An Autistic child and his service dog
Service dogs for Autistic People provide a constant during changes in routine, places and people as people with Autism have a hard time coping with change. They also provide a constant companion as those with Autism have often have trouble with social interactions. Service dogs also help manage meltdowns when people with Autism get overwhelmed as they react in a non-judgmental manner when a person with Autism is overwhelmed.
The Courts Are Weighing In
There have been many cases in the last few years where families have sought court orders allowing their autistic children to bring their service animals to school. Cases have been won by Autistic Families in Illinois, and California.
According to Department of Justice spokesman Alejandro Miyar under the Americans With Disabilities Act “a person with autism would be considered a person with a disability in nearly all cases, and a service animal is any guide dog, signal dog or other animal individually trained to provide assistance to someone with a disability”
What rules and laws should be in place to certify and regulate Autism Service Dogs?
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