Alex & Pepsi

Pepsi and Alex walking

For those of you who don't know my family, I wanted to tell you that both of my younger brothers, Alex and Todd (who are both diagnosed with autism), have autism service dogs. Todd has had his dog, Boomer, for six years now and Alex has had his dog, Pepsi, for about a year and a half.

This is Alex and Pepsi's story . . .

My family originally decided that Alex needed an autism service dog because of all of the repetitive behaviours that Alex began to develop when he was about eleven-years-old. Repetitive behaviours are common in with people who have autism, and have always been present with Alex. However, these repetitive behaviours were new, and really affected Alex's everyday life. These behaviours mostly included tapping and shuffling his feet has he walked. A five minute walk down the street would take almost twenty minutes, because Alex would have to tap the cracks of the sidewalk, flowers on the grass, stop signs or fire hydrants, etc. As he walked along, tapping all of these things, he would also shuffle his feet. In some cases, Alex would backtrack to something he had already walked past, and tap it again. Needless to say, this was very time consuming and something that wasn't going to end just by us saying, "Alex, stop tapping!"

It's amazing to see the difference when Alex walks with Pepsi. The tapping is greatly reduced, and you can see that Alex is more focused on walking his dog, rather than on what he needs to tap next.

This isn't the only great thing that Pepsi has done for Alex . . .

Occasionally Alex and I will have to walk home without my mom and Pepsi. Because Pepsi doesn't go to school with Alex full-time yet (a goal for this school year!), my mom brings him to and from the school, so that Pepsi can be with Alex. However, this means that when my mom isn't available, Pepsi isn't either.

So when it's just Alex and I, I have really noticed how much easier things are with Pepsi, and not just because of his tapping. Although Alex isn't considered to be a flight risk, he has been known to bolt occasionally onto the road. This impulsiveness is also common with people who have autism, and is one of the main reasons for parents getting a service dog for their child.

I get worried because I never know if/when the bolting will occur. What am I supposed to do? Am I supposed to hold his hand so that he can't run away? (And face it, what kinda fifteen-year-old boy holds his older sister's hand?!) If I only considered safety, then I guess this is what I'd have to do. I would have to hold his hand and not let go until we're safe in our home.

But what about Alex's freedom? His dignity? His independence? Obviously holding his hand would completely limit all of these things. I'd be treating a fifteen-year-old like a five-year-old. In these situations I feel like I have to make a decision about what to do, and with have to decide which is more important: safety, or independence. I have to say, I don't know any high school student who would want to hold their parent's, teacher's, or sibling's hand.

Pepsi is a blessing, because with him I don't have to make this decision. Alex can be safe, because he is tethered to Pepsi, but he can also be independent because he is walking his dog, and not holding someone's hand.

Keeping Alex focused and giving him independence is only two advantages of having Pepsi. Having Pepsi has also decreased other behaviours that are a result of anxiety. Overall, Alex's everyday life has been greatly changed because of this one dog.

Now, would you believe that there are actually people out there who don't see the value in autism service dogs? And that there are people out there who actually try to refuse them from public places?

Families don't get a service dog because they want one, they get a service dog because they need one. Refusing someone who has a service dog is like refusing someone who has a wheelchair; Just because they have something extra to help them get through the day, doesn't mean they have less rights to be out in public.

I am really looking forward to Alex going to school with Alex full-time. I think that there are so many more ways that Alex could improve at school, and I hope that Pepsi will be the one to help him achieve that. He has already done more for Alex than any other person could.

For more information, please visit Alex's website: www.autismdogforalex.piczo.com and the ADS website: www.autismdogservices.ca.