Interesting, informative and a must read for anyone contemplating the benefits of a pet dog for a child with autism. Dr Annie Bowes writes about her experiences in a straightforward manner and effectively explains the ways in which dogs can contribute positively to the life of an autistic child. My son (on the spectrum) has been advocating for a pet dog for years now. He has Dr Bowes to thank for finally convincing me to make his wish come true this year.

This is a very hard book for which to give a rating.
The relationship between dogs and humans is a very special one and Bowes takes this further to look at the relationship between those on the spectrum and dogs. Her argument throughout about the importance of having a dog for an artistic child is reiterated throughout with varying supporting evidence provided. Much of that evidence comes from anecdotes about the author and her own childhood dogs and dogs today. The book is a rather scattered and the transition between sections can feel a bit jumpy. Each section is interesting, but the overall flow of the book and its argument could have used some editing in terms of flow and structure. It was frequently repetitive and some areas that were meant to be more of a guide were not always as fully developed as they could have been. It felt like an academic stream of consciousness rather than a finely crafted scientific argument. Or it was a personal memoir with science thrown in, or maybe it was instead a guidebook with some of each? However, one of the most interesting things to me about reading this, was seeing the way in which the passion and drive of sharing these ideas were communicated. I found that as I read it I was particularly focused on the way in which the communication process was happening in writing and how that related to the ideas of communication that the author was sharing about dogs, neuro-typical and non neuro-typical humans. I would be interested in reading much more on the topic, but in a more clearly laid out piece, though I was also quite moved by the way this revealed personal experience.

This was an interesting read. However, it was mostly focused on anecdotes about the author's experience growing up as an autistic child with a dog, rather than research. I would have liked to see more scientific information interspersed with the personal stories, and maybe also some more practical advice for picking out a dog.

If you are thinking about getting a dog, then this is the book for you.  The author, a veterinarian, does a thorough job of explaining the benefits of having a dog, how to obtain a dog, what different types of breeds there are, service dogs, and dealing with the death of a dog.  I love that she promotes adopting dogs from shelters rather than breeders and puppy mills.  I also love that she lists the many benefits to the reader of having a dog. I thought this book would be more about the benefits of autistic individuals having a dog but in reality it was more about the benefits of everyone having a dog.  The author does relate her own experiences having autism and growing up with dogs and how they helped her and she has a whole chapter on how dogs understand autism and the research to back it up.  Overall, this is a wonderful book for any dog lover and those looking into adopting a dog into their family.

Having a son with autism I found this book very interesting. It was very informative and there was a lot to learn through reading it

The author laid out the many advantages to having a dog when diagnosed with autism. I will definitely be reading more about this topic.

This is a very informative book which borders on a scholarly journal in places. It is short enough to read in one sitting and has answers to many questions regarding dog ownership.