Assistance dogs should not be approached, Hawkesbury owners say

But what sets this duo apart from many pooches and their best friends is that Dominic has autism and developmental delays, and Buddy is Dominic’s assistance dog.

The Disability Discrimination Act 1992 states that an assistance animal is one that is trained to assist a person with a disability to alleviate the effect of the disability.

Assistance dogs are highly trained disability support service animals, and they have the same access rights as guide dogs.

But while Dominic’s and Buddy’s relationship is often tactile, Dominic’s mum Courtney Connor warned community members shouldn’t approach Buddy when he’s ‘working’.

She said patting an assistance dog like Buddy, feeding him snacks, and cooing over how cute he is - all of which she has experienced while out and about with Dominic and Buddy - could distract Buddy from his main task at hand ... assisting Dominic.

“So many people have no idea and pat [Buddy] without permission,” Ms Connor told the Gazette, adding that a good rule of thumb was to show assistance dogs the same respect you would a guide dog.

“Most people know not to pat a guide dog - they actually are assistance dogs, but they’re used for guiding.”

Buddy - who is not quite two years old - joined Dominic and his family around five months ago through an organisation called PADS - Personal Assistance Dog Solutions.

Ms Connor said Dominic had been in therapy “a lot”, yet he still found it challenging coping in general public situations, like going to the shops.

“He’d always be strapped in a pram and either screaming or hiding behind his iPad and not a part of functional society,” Ms Connor said.

Now he has Buddy, Dominic is better able to deal with overwhelming situations, as Buddy has been trained to perform a number of ‘tasks’ (or commands) to help him out when things get too much.

Ms Connor said Buddy has been trained to perform Deep Pressure Therapy (DPT), consisting of him laying his head on Dominic’s lap or on other pressure points on his body to alleviate a “meltdown”, as well as a task called ‘block’ where he will pass in front of Dominic when they’re out and about as a way to provide a barrier between Dominic and the public, allowing Dominic to approach the public when he’s ready.

“[Buddy] also licks and nudges [Dominic] when [Dominic] needs to be grounded,” said Ms Connor.

“When Dominic gets in a meltdown you can’t get through to him. To people on the outside, it might look like a kid having a tantrum and being a spoilt brat but it’s more than that - it’s his whole sensory system in overload and he can’t contain himself.”

They are also training Buddy to ‘track’ Dominic in case he goes wandering, and to retrieve certain objects by name.

Ms Connor said during the short time Buddy has been part of the family, he has helped Dominic sleep in his own bed, helped him eat more foods, and helped with his language and interaction skills.

Out in public - when he’s ‘working’ - Buddy wears a fluoro yellowy-green jacket or harness with the words Assistance Dog printed clearly on one side, and the PADS logo on the other side along with the words Canine-Assisted Therapy.

PADS behavioural trainer and educational consultant Adele Lindley of Mudgee, who helped train Buddy, said assistance dogs perform extremely important jobs and it was important not to approach them when they’re working.

“If Dominic were to wander and someone distracted the dog, he couldn’t keep up with Dominic [and stick to his task],” said Ms Lindley.

“Same as a medical assistance dog, and someone having an epileptic fit, or a guide dog. You shouldn’t approach any assistance dog when it’s working, and if you do, you need to ask first if you want to pat it. But if they have a badge on saying ‘do not pat’, then leave them alone.

“Some people don’t want to be approached, and it could cause the person to have an episode and it’s quite upsetting and frightening for them if people don’t give them the space they need.”

Resident of The Slopes, Michelle New, also uses an assistance or ‘service’ dog - a chihuahua named Harvey - to help her manage the symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

She said it was “understandably very tempting” to want to pat a dog like Harvey, but appealed to the public to always ask the owner first.

“It is always a good opportunity for me to train children and people I bump into at the supermarket [for example] that yes he is cute and small, but he’s there for a reason,” she said.

Harvey helps Ms New create “personal space” when she’s in crowded areas, and helps her refocus when she is experiencing a panic or anxiety attack (both of which he has been trained to identify).

“He assists me when I have nightmares, triggers or flashbacks that are trauma-related,” she said.

“During the night if I have a nightmare, he will lick my hand, then lay on my chest and wake me up gently, and I’ll start patting him and focus on him. He stays by my side the whole time until I’m in a better place. He also carries my medication for me.”

Ms New is the founder and director of the Australian Resource Centre for PTSD in Richmond.