While reading the Illinois Appellate Court's opinion in K.D. v. Villa Grove Community Unit School District, (found here) I came across "Autism Service Dogs of America." What an incredible organization that serves children with autism and their families! Service dogs are allowed in Illinois schools, so long as they fall within the scope of Illinois School Code, and specifically if they are "trained to perform tasks for the benefit of a student with a disability." The court in K.D. affirmed that autism service dogs constitute "service animals" under the code.

As a dog lover myself, I was touched by this section of the opinion:

Nichelle and her husband obtained Chewey to keep K.D. safe and calm him down. Since receiving Chewey, K.D. becomes upset for shorter periods of time, completes his homework, and sleeps between six to eight hours per night.  He has less difficulty transitioning between home and other public places, including school.  As an example, Nichelle cited K.D.'s morning arrival at school, which used to involve frequent tantrums but, after Chewey, occurs "calmly, happily."  Nichelle attributed these changes to Chewey's ability to apply pressure upon command to K.D., which calms K.D. and recenters him to the task at hand. Nichelle also noted Chewey makes K.D. safer because he keeps K.D. from running away and barks in the night if K.D. leaves.

Who could possibly argue with the benefits that this dog provides for a child with autism?  The Illinois Appellate Court certainly did not.

For more information, I enjoyed this article. It is older (before the Appellate Court opinion was filed), but I can't get over the picture. Too cute.

Chewey is also discussed on the ASDA's Facebook page.