In this post, we'll cover:<\/p>\n
- Do Children with Autism Benefit from Pets? <\/a><\/li>
- Dogs: Man\u2019s Best Friend for a Reason<\/a><\/li>
- Cats: Gentle, Loving Companions<\/a><\/li>
- Guinea Pigs: A Smart Choice<\/a><\/li>
- Do All Children React to Pets the Same Way? <\/a><\/li>
- References <\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n
<\/span>Do Children with Autism Benefit from Pets? <\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Children with autism can benefit from pets
![\"Opens](\"https:\/\/safesleepsystems.com\/wp-content\/themes\/acabado-6\/img\/extlink.png\" "\\"Opens")
<\/a> in many ways. Multiple studies have been conducted regarding the variations in the social behavior of children with autism in the presence of animals. One study<\/a> that compares the effects of animals and effects of toys on children with autism concludes that: <\/p>\n\n\n\nChildren with ASD demonstrated more social approach behaviors (including talking, looking at faces, and making tactile contact) and received more social approaches from their peers in the presence of animals compared to toys. They also displayed more pro-social behaviors and positive affect (i.e., smiling and laughing) as well as less self-focused behaviors and negative affect (i.e., frowning, crying, and whining) in the presence of animals compared to toys. These results suggest that the presence of an animal can significantly increase positive social behaviors among children with ASD.<\/em><\/p> https:\/\/www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov\/pmc\/articles\/PMC3584132\/
<\/a> <\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\nApart from improved social interaction, pets and animals can also teach compassion
<\/a> for others and help children with autism build strong, loving, and reliable relationships. Pets can also help reduce typical or separation anxiety to keep the child calm. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/span>Dogs: Man\u2019s Best Friend for a Reason<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Dogs are charming, loving, and extremely loyal. But do they make a good pet for children with autism? Well, according to one
<\/a> study, around 67% of families with autistic children owned a dog. 94 % reported that the child with autism bonded with the dog. The statistics show that dogs are great pets for children with autism. <\/p>\n\n\n\nSome breeds of dogs that make the best pets for autistic children include Golden Retrievers, Saint Bernards, Newfoundlands, and Labrador Retrievers. If you are looking for more than a companion dog, you can also consider choosing a service dog or a therapy dog for your autistic child
<\/a>based on their needs and sensitivities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/span>Cats: Gentle, Loving Companions<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Cats are often considered to be aloof and detached. However, according to a study
<\/a> published in Frontiers in Veterinary Science, children with ASD value their relationship with their cats. Most parents with autistic children reported positive comments about cats like they calm the child and act as a soothing guardian. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/span>Guinea Pigs: A Smart Choice<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Guinea pigs can help autistic children
<\/a> in multiple ways, which is why they can be a great pet for autistic children. Research<\/a> shows that the presence of guinea pigs can positively affect the quality and instances of social interaction in children. <\/p>\n\n\n\nThese facts are backed by research. According to a study
<\/a>, \u201cwhen asked whether they preferred reading, toys, or the guinea pigs, 81.8% of children with ASD indicated that they preferred the guinea pigs, followed by toys (12.1%), or both (6.1%).\u201d <\/em>The same study concluded that children with autism smile and laugh more when they are around guinea pigs as compared to when they are surrounded by toys. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/span>Do All Children React to Pets the Same Way? <\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
While children with autism generally bond well with pets, unfortunately, there are no guarantees as there is no one best pet for autistic children. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
According to Temple Grandin,
<\/a> an American professor of animal science at Colorado State University and autism spokesperson, \u201conly about a third of people with autism are unusually good with animals, about a third are terrible with animals, and a third, are about average in how they get along with other species<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/span>References <\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
- https:\/\/autismawarenesscentre.com\/animals-benefit-individuals-autism\/<\/a><\/li>
- https:\/\/www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov\/pmc\/articles\/PMC3584132\/<\/a><\/li>
- https:\/\/www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov\/pubmed\/24183985<\/a><\/li>
- https:\/\/www.autismspeaks.org\/expert-opinion\/service-dog-or-therapy-dog-which-best-child-autism<\/a><\/li>
- https:\/\/www.frontiersin.org\/articles\/10.3389\/fvets.2018.00039\/full<\/a><\/li>
- https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=tcItVu1pCf4<\/a><\/li>
- https:\/\/www.animalsandsociety.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/krskova.pdf<\/a><\/li>
- https:\/\/www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov\/pmc\/articles\/PMC3584132\/<\/a> <\/li>
- https:\/\/www.psychologytoday.com\/us\/blog\/animals-and-us\/201505\/the-beneficial-effects-animals-children-autism<\/a> <\/li><\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Children share a special bond with animals which is why bringing a pet into your home is never a bad idea. However, if you have an autistic child, you should<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2150,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[195],"tags":[16,68,209],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/safesleepsystems.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/dreamstime_m_112479500.jpg","acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/safesleepsystems.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2144"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/safesleepsystems.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/safesleepsystems.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/safesleepsystems.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/safesleepsystems.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2144"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/safesleepsystems.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2144\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3360,"href":"https:\/\/safesleepsystems.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2144\/revisions\/3360"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/safesleepsystems.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2150"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/safesleepsystems.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2144"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/safesleepsystems.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2144"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/safesleepsystems.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2144"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
- https:\/\/autismawarenesscentre.com\/animals-benefit-individuals-autism\/
