My Story

Hi! I'm Aaron. I'm 7 years-old and I have autism. I can't talk yet, but I'm close. I do have a little problem (okay a big problem) with running away. I'm stealthy, fast, sneaky and silent.

Because I have such a problem with escaping, I need help from a service dog to help prevent me from escaping. A dog that would block me when I was trying to run. This would help me and my parents a lot. See, it's hard to go to the park or beach because they spend the whole time chasing me (I have a brother and sister too). It's hard to go to friend and family get-togethers because they spend the entire time chasing me and can't visit with other people.

Check out my Diary of an Autistic Escape Artist for some of my escape stories. This would be an actual service dog so it could go to the store, school, and vacations with me. It would be my companion, and would help keep me safe.

The only roadblock is that a service dog is expensive. My parents have decided to go with an organization called Brigadoon Youth and Service Dogs. The fee for a service dog from Brigadoon is $5,000. That's where this blog comes into play. Getting a service dog is a long process. It will probably be 2009 before a dog could come home with me permanently. My dog is being trained by Denise CoStanten, the owner of Brigadoon Service Dogs.