Both Thomas Tompion and Myridon state, "Needless to say in ordinary speech the meanings overlap." and "In most situations, they usually are used to mean the same thing." respectively. Although their analysis differ in prescriptive meaning of "as" vs "like," in general there is little/no confusion unless the sentence is ambiguous, or the reader insists on prescriptivism.
I completely agree with ManPaisa's statement: "If I remember correctly, there's no problem with using like as a preposition. The controversy comes up when people use it as a conjunction." There has been an aversion/fear towards/of the use of "like" even when it is quite appropriate.
If your sentence is ambiguous in a descriptive sense, it may need revision, but if the only ambiguity lies in a prescriptive sense, I don't see what 'all the fuss is about.'
"I treat my dog like a sister;" this is my preference over, "I treat my dog as I would a sister."