Autism Assistance Dogs Ireland
This organization has already been registered
Someone in your organization has already registered and setup an account. would you like to join their team?Profile owner : i**o@a**i.ie
Mission Statement
Autism Assistance Dogs Ireland is a national charity training dogs for children with autism
About This Cause
AADI are a national charity providing highly trained Assistance dogs for children with autism. The charity provides a life changing service for children with autism and their families. AADI dogs are specially trained to provide safety, independence & companionship to children with autism who would otherwise live in a very isolated world. Many children with Autism have a tendency to run away from their parents and have no sense of danger. Like most children, Children with autism do not always want to hold an adults hand but an Assistance dog can help; In public the child is attached to their assistance dog, which is under control of an adult at all times. This makes outings possible and pleasant for all the family. Also some children with autism find it difficult to communicate but the Assistance dog gives the child confidence and improves the child’s socialisation skills. How it works? The dog wears a specifically designed jacket which is connected to the child via a belt around the child’s waist and a connection from this to the jacket. There is also a handle on the side of the dog’s jacket for the child to hold onto. This means the child is completely safe and the parent holds onto the lead controlling and giving instruction to the dog. All Assistance dogs have a high standard of obedience and social behaviour which is needed as they have to access to public places including shops, restaurants and cinema’s. The dog lives with the family in the home environment and it is encouraged that the dog goes everywhere with the family. Training an Assistance Dog? It costs €25,000 to train each dog and AADI are not government funded so all money raised is through fundraising. Each Assistance dog takes 2 years to train and is placed with a foster family initially from 8 weeks to 14 months old where they learn the basics like socialising and basic commands. The dog then returns to our centre in Mallow where the dog enters its final stages in training which takes a further 3 months at which time it is matched to a suitable child and family who will have already been assessed and accepted for an assistance dog. The family go through intensive training to ensure they are confident before taking the dog home and this is then followed up by aftercare visits to the home. AADI do not charge the family for the dog as Autism Assistance Dogs Ireland retains ownership of the Assistance Dog throughout its working life, but the families are responsible for their day to day care including vet costs. Autism Assistance Dogs Ireland changing lives for children with autism. Helping to change lives.