All Cats Are on the Autism Spectrum

Product Information

Another photo shows a kitty alone, and states that although "he likes to be near those he loves, he doesn't want them to hold him, preferring squishy places to a hug".

Most families had multiple pets, so, they were optimizing opportunities for the child to connect with an animal. This study on the behaviors of cats with young children focuses on the affectionate behavior that cats demonstrate toward children and that is appreciated by most children, and is calming and comforting to the children. Six personality dimensions were identified, and one of these, amiability, was strongly correlated with the respondent’s satisfaction with the cat and the bond quality, and the extent to which the cat was not perceived as troublesome ( 19). This study focused primarily on the particular features of cats’ interactions with children having ASD or less severe ASD, and these children’s responses to the cats. The descriptions provide an accurate balance between the qualities and difficulties associated with Asperger's syndrome, while the photographs will make the journey of discovery enjoyable and remarkable.Although genetics and gender are important, so also are the manner in which the cat is reared and managed and the ways in which humans behave toward the cat. A good book for giving parents hope that their child is not a lost cause and explaining it to siblings. I grew up on a small farm and we always had a house cat or two that were loved and cared for, plus lots of barn cats that bred wild and kept down the mice, but definitely did not like to be cuddled. Another described the cat and child ignoring each other, and two said the child was slightly fearful of the cat.

Although the surveys did not ask about the age of the cat at adoption, half of the feral cat adopters voluntarily mentioned acquiring their cats as kittens (whereas adopters from other sources did not); thus, we attribute the positive results for feral and purebred cats to their younger status at adoption, which is consistent with other aspects of the results. Concerning the cats, most were at least moderately affectionate toward the ASD child, with almost 20% very affectionate. Two said the children hated and were afraid of unfriendly cats; one usually unfriendly “cat comes into the bedroom at night purring to get petted, child will scream for parents to come get the cat. D. Institute CHARGE (Childhood Autism Risks from Genetics and Environment) study (PI: IHP), we acquired 557 potential participants’ names and mailing addresses.I get this book, I understand the author is trying to educate in a cute way but our aspie kids take everything seriously and often do not know their endless stories are not everyone's cup of tea, or that some things that they say are outside of social norms.

The book is just 65 pages, but not only does the book have great photos of kittens on every page but there is something to be learned by each photo and how the various cat photos relates to Asperger's Syndrome. Expecting that a cat would be affectionate with a child may pose particular challenges, since cats were found by Mertens ( 12) to prefer adults to young children, in terms of approaches and duration of proximity. The children welcomed affection from the cats that provided love and support in some distinctive ways; not surprisingly, the cats’ affectionate behaviors differ in some ways from those of dogs ( 24). Acquiring a pet dog was found to be associated with improved family functioning and reductions in parenting stress with these children ( 18). The data that had been collected pertained to 16 children diagnosed with severe ASD, 11 with less severe ASD, 17 designated as being typical, and 3 with delayed development, as well as 1 child with incomplete diagnoses.Kathy Hoopmann is the best-selling Australian author of All Cats Have Asperger Syndrome, All Dogs Have ADHD and All Birds Have Anxiety. We distributed the web-link and solicited participation via listservs and groups serving families that have children with ASD. The effects of additional socialization for kittens in a rescue centre on their behavior and suitability as a pet. Your mileage may vary, but I am still delightfully sharing and spreading the magic of All Cats Are on the Autism Spectrum – and hope you do, too. Parents often feel disconnected from their autistic child and other family members and are required to engage in extremely vigilant parenting of the child ( 17).

Results of interviews are shown in Table 4, rating the cat–child interactions on the scales for the cat’s aggression, affection, and playfulness, as well as the child liking to hold the cat. The primary node (the first split) depended on the source of the specified cat, with cats from a shelter or from neighborhood breeders having the lowest quality interactions with the autistic child, and cats adopted as ferals ( n= 19) or from a purebred breeder ( n= 2) having the highest quality interactions.Apart from the change in the diagnostic terms used, other changes were occurring in the autism community.