Editor’s note: This story is a follow-up to an April 27 article about the challenges faced by 9-year-old Brayden Ellis and her family. Brayden is autistic — a developmental disorder that affects an estimated one in 150 children today.

Dogs often bring tennis balls or chew toys to their owners.

It’s rarer that a dog will offer something abstract.

But a golden retriever puppy named Puah has given the gift of peaceful dreams and the promise of a more normal life to the Ellis family, whose daughter Brayden is autistic. The developmental disorder means the 9-year-old often seems to be in her own world. She communicates differently than other children, has trouble staying focused, tends to run off, and has fits of crying or yelling when she becomes agitated.

While Brayden’s disorder once placed her Decatur family on constant vigil and under continuous stress, that anxiety has recently begun to lessen. With the addition earlier this month of Puah — a service dog trained specifically for autism that stays harnessed to Brayden — the family has seen many major improvements.

“I’ve never just walked around the block with Brayden because she can get away from me,” said Wendy Ellis, a stay-at-home mother of three. “Now, she walks around the block with me. It’s little things people take for granted because now I’ve got this extra pair of paws that have me covered.”

Rare tool

Still a rare tool for the autistic, service dogs are trained to help people with autism function more effectively in society. Brayden and her mother trained a month ago with the dog for one week at Wilderwood Service Dogs near Knoxville, and will continue training with him at home for three months. As his handler, Wendy learned numerous commands for the dog that Brayden is also learning.

“It’s pretty new overall,” said Tiffany Denyer, president of Wilderwood. “Pretty much every family who goes home with a dog, this is the only one in their community, but we’re hoping to change that because it really works.”

The facility trains about 10 dogs per year, and is one of only about five places nationwide that specifically train dogs for autism spectrum disorder.

So far, Brayden seems to neither love nor hate the new addition to her life. Trainers say the bonding process often takes time, especially for children like Brayden who already had dogs at home (the Ellises have two cocker spaniels and a Shih Tzu).

One afternoon soon after the Ellises came home from the training in Tennessee, Brayden did what her parents had been looking forward to since they decided to get a dog — take down the gates from her bedroom door.

Though the gates were installed to protect her from getting out of the house at night, they weren’t needed anymore because Puah is trained to warn the family and retrieve Brayden if she gets out of bed at night.

Whether Brayden was more excited about using a power drill to loosen the screws than finally having the gates down was unclear. But when the last hinge fell off the doorframe, she happily threw up her skinny arms. “We did it!” she said excitedly in her high-pitched voice. “Yea!”

Her mother felt like jumping for joy, too, after Brayden’s first tap dance class with Puah. Before Brayden had the dog, she often ran to a corner when she felt overwhelmed by the class. With Wendy as his handler, Puah gently kept Brayden in place for almost the entire one-hour class. If Brayden needed to move to a new spot, Puah gently tugged her into place.

Toward the end of class, Brayden began to get irritable and vocal. Puah placed his paws on her to calm her and she became quiet.

Taking a chance

While the $6,000 price tag for a service dog was difficult to swallow (one-third of the cost that many service dog companies charge), the Ellises decided to take the chance.

Their constant worrying about Brayden — if she would sit through an awards banquet, run out the front door into the street, or cut off all her hair with scissors she brought home from school (which she did a month ago) — made the gamble worth it.

Parents of autistic children are constantly trying to decide what methods are worth trying because the disorder has few proven treatments, and even fewer covered by insurance. But sometimes, the gamble pays off.

“I feel like she is so much calmer already,” Wendy said. “To me, just not having the gates on her room at night made it worth it.

“And just being able to go out as a family and having her sit through an entire meal and not running around. It gives us the chance to do things as a family again.”

School days

Brayden and Puah also recently began school together at Somerville Road Elementary in Decatur. The duo drew few glances from other students who had already been debriefed about the dog.

While the Ellises initially faced some skepticism from school administrators concerning the dog at school, disability laws give Brayden the right for a service dog to accompany her in any public place, including school.

Principal Dee Dee Jones said she and Brayden’s teachers have already seen an improvement in her behavior and ability to focus.

“It has soothed her,” Jones said. “We had some questions, but after seeing how it interacts and is trained, it puts everyone at ease.”

The Ellises also have considered homeschooling Brayden to offer her a more individualized education.

‘What’s wrong with this child?’

Along with calming her, Puah also helps unite Brayden with the outside world.

“It’s difficult for them (autistic children) to connect to others,” said Jennifer Muller, executive director of the Autism Society of Alabama. “That animal may be the first thing to bring that child out. It’s really kind of a bridge with others and the individual.”

Unfortunately, few families can afford to invest the time and money necessary for a service dog, she said.

“It’s like anything with autism,” she said. “The expense is what stops everyone in their tracks. There aren’t good funding mechanisms to pay for services for autism.”

While Wendy was used to dirty looks from people who mistake Brayden’s autism for bad behavior, now most people realize that Brayden has a disorder because of Puah. Wendy’s first trip to the mall since Brayden was a baby made her giddy.

“I can’t tell you how long it’s been since we walked in a store and someone smiled at us,” she said. “I can’t tell you how long it’s been since we haven’t had someone look at me like ‘What’s wrong with this child?’ ”

“To me, that’s worth anything,” she said. “Just to be able to walk in a door and feel worthy because for so long you feel judged by everybody.”

On the Net

www.wilderwood.org

Service dog commands

Below are some of the special commands Wendy Ellis uses in handling Puah with her daughter, Brayden. Puah is a specially trained service dog for autism.

Dress: Time to attach dog’s harness

Release: Time to take harness off

Push: Close specified door if child is trying to leave

Snuggle: Nuzzle with autistic person to refocus and calm her

Visit: Allowed to be petted by a stranger

Move: Go to a single-file line behind child

Step: Slowly walk step by step up or down stairs

Come: Emergency call for dog to immediately run to handler

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