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>> At 22 months old Cooper Mulley was diagnosed with autism.
With conditions of sensory processing issues and apraxia.
Cooper cannot be
touched, held or hugged without screaming.
Late in the night his mother Elizabeth Mullin would sneak into his room while he was sleeping.
With Cooper's condition this was the only chance Elizabeth had
to hold and cradle her autistic child.
According to the
Child [inaudible] website from September 11, 2012.
After years of believing that one day Cooper's condition would improve,
a guinea pig named Coco came.
Upon three months of Coco's arrival Cooper's tolerance to different sensations changed.
Today the I will inform you
about the potential guinea pigs have in helping autistic children cope with the social
and communication difficulties associated with autism.
According to medical news today last update of August 1st 2013 autism is known
as a complex developmental disability which affects the development
of a person's communication and social
interaction skills.
A new study in science shows that animals
such as guinea pigs can significantly increase positive social behaviors
in children who have autism.
To better understand how a guinea pig like
Coco can help Cooper's condition I will first begin
by discussion the recent research and theories of Maggie O'Hare.
A doctorial candidate in psychology at the University of Queensland.
Second, I will
further examine the beneficial results of O'Hare's research
and finally I'll consider the limitations and future implications of her research.
First, it is crucial that we understand the role guinea pigs take
on toward helping autistic children.
By discussing the recent research and theories of Maggie O'Hare.
In an interview with ABC
News access January 12, 2013, Maggie O'Hare explains that by interacting
with the guinea pig autistic children learn valuable lessons
of empathy, nurturing and caring.
An article published by [Inaudible] on October 22nd, 2013
explains that some of the reasons guinea pigs were chosen are because they are small,
mild mannered animals who are very social and can be kept in a classroom.
One of the major reasons
guinea pigs were chosen for this study are value creation they are low maintenance animals.
Meaning that guinea pigs are easier to take care of than cats, dogs or horses.
The [Inaudible] Natural Library of
Medicine on August 2nd, 2013 describes that Maggie O'Hare's research consisted
of a total of 99 children in two schools.
From ages five to 13 years old.
This research focuses on the social improvement of
children with autism in the classroom.
First Maggie O'Hare identifies that engaging
with their classmates is often a struggle for autistic children.
Social isolation, bullying and stress are some of the
problems this struggle creates.
These stressful conditions in the classroom can lead
to poor academic performance and problematic behaviors.
Second, in O'Hare's study she encounters problems with
teachers who also have difficulties interacting with autistic students.
As a result there is poor student teacher relations and more teacher burn out.
According to Maggie O'Hare's study published in the Public
Library of Science, also known a PLOS on February 28, 2013 an exam of how the presence
of guinea pigs affected the interaction of autistic children
with adults and non-autistic kids.
Revealing that
the presence of a classroom pet stimulates social interaction among humans.
Furthermore the National Public Radio on February 27,
2013 explored several theories why an animal might have this impact.
The first
theory illustrates that animals facilitate social interaction
by giving people a common focus of attention.
Meaning that children are more drawn to the attention of an animal than to no animal at all.
The second theory initiates that animals have a calming affect on children.
Maggie O'Hare argues that be interacting
with the guinea pig autistic children feel more comfortable with their peers.
The final theory is that people with
animals are seen as friendly, less threatening and most importantly, are more approachable.
Now that we have examined Maggie O'Hare's research, let us explore the benefits of this
new emerging study.
First, an article published by the University of Queensland explains
that Maggie O'Hare's research is a low cost program compared
to all the other alternative programs that are out there.
Dr. Harbucks, from the Centers for Autism and related disorders, also known as CARD,
discussed to KTLA News on February 25, 2013 that the program
in which CARD offers that does not involve an
animal, can cost anywhere between $50,000 to $100,000 per year.
[Inaudible] to four years.
Now, according to PetSmart.com that I accessed
30 minutes ago, the retail price for a guinea pig is $37.99.
But, they're on sale.
You can buy a guinea pig at PetSmart for $32.99.
Needless to say CARD is one of those alternative programs.
Second an article published in the Los Angeles Times on February 28,
2013 reported that autistic children who play with guinea pigs were more talkative,
made more eye contact and displayed a more
positive attitude.
Finally, O'Hare states in the Huffington Post on February 28, 2013 that children
with autism engaged in 55 percent more social behaviors when they were
with the animals compared to toys.
With the previously sited ABC interview they interviewed an 11 year old boy named Angus
who was part of O'Hare's research.
Angus stated that having a guinea pig as a classroom pet channeled all his bad mood away.
Angus's teacher reports that he is making more friends than she expected.
Many autistic children are unable to verbally convey their feelings.
Crying, yelling and physically harming themselves are
some of the ways children with autism are able to relieve their stress.
Maggie O'Hare's research shows that the presence
of guinea pigs let's more smiling and laughing and less frowning.
O'Hare states the
presence of an animal appears to encourage socialization among children
with autism and their peers.
Now that we know about the beneficial results of guinea pigs from O'Hare's study,
we will examine the limitations of the study and its future implications.
According to
the [inaudible] further exploration into the animal human relationship may be useful.
To better understand the influence of animals on autism children social
and communication development, in O'Hare's
study, children with autism demonstrated warmth and affection to the animals, but not humans.
The guinea pigs in O'Hare's study were not trained therapy animals.
They were chosen because they make good
classroom pets.
According to the Times on August 2, 2012 research suggests that interacting
with creatures less complicated than humans could help autism children understand social
and communication skills.
The truth is, that getting a child with autism a pet will not magically improve their
social skills.
And pets are not for everyone.
O'Hare's study only investigated whether interacting with an
animal could change a child's behavior.
Dr. Melissa Wallace, an assistant professor in the child's fitness center
at the New York University Lincoln Medical Center stated
to the Huffington Post on July 25, 2013
that animal assisted therapy isn't a young area.
It has been around for several decades
but the past five years have seen a real uptake in research.
Looking at the possible health benefit ties in human, animal interaction.
So today I talked about the potential guinea pigs have in helping autism children
by first discussing the recent research and theories of Maggie O'Hare.
I then further examined the beneficial results of O'Hare's research before finally
considering the limitations and the future applications of this research.
For the first time in four years, Elizabeth Mullins was able
to gently hug her son without him screaming.
A story of hope.
Coco was able to help Cooper in ways that his mother could not.
With continued research on animals and their positive influence on children who have autism,
we can now see that helping autistic children may only be a guinea pig away.
[ Applause ]