Take a deep breath. We’re about to dive back into that ocean of
information I threw you into last night.
Ready? One…two….three…dive!
Here’s what we have left to cover
from last time:
11. How to introduce your dog guide to
a a.
The house
b b.
Family
and friends
c. Other
pets
23 . How
to maintain the dog’s training without the rigorous school’s rigorous training
regimen
3 a. Dog
Guide Protocol for Non-Handlers.
aside--gasp! there's an "a" under a main point but no "b"! Make sure my English teacher doesn't see this!
i.
Welcome Home, Juno!
Meet the New House
Juno is very stressed. She’s just spent a long time on an airplane
(in my case that will be 8 hours) for probably the first time in her life. She’s with a new handler, maybe even shifting
time zones—a concept that puppies just don’t get. She’s tired, thirsty (can’t drink on the
airplane), and surrounded by new people.
Now she obediently leads you up to the front door of your home.
You feel comfortable here. This is your natural environment—but not Juno’s. As you enter for the first time Juno is
greeted by thousands of new smells, foreign objects like furniture, shoes by
the door, and an unfamiliar floor plan.
Where is her ‘place?’ Where can
she go to get out of the way? Where can
she go where she knows she won’t be scolded for anything?
1.
When you bring Juno home for the first time, keep her
on a leash in the house. Take her
immediately to where her ‘place’ will be, put her mat down, and let her just
chill out for a little while. Close the
door of whatever room her place is in to minimize interruptions and the amount
of space she feels responsible for exploring and cataloguing. Praise her frequently every time she sets paw
on her place, let her sniff around and explore things, and try to avoid
correcting her. Depending on the nature
of the dog and the size of the room this can take up to an hour or so.
2.
TSE instructors recommended we keep the dogs on leash
at all times in the house for at least the first 1-2 weeks. This way Juno never feels separated or
abandoned, becomes familiar with the rules of the house, and has little to no
opportunity to get into the trash or go counter-surfing for forbidden snacks. (Mom, Dad, we need cabinet doors in the kitchen…like…yesterday
lol)
3.
Keen Juno’s food and water on a schedule to prevent
parking indoors and to make Juno feel more at home. Structure is good for tired, overwhelmed dogs. That means there is no confusion about will
or will not get Juno in trouble.
(I forgot about keeping Prada on
leash for the first week or so. It led
to some initial confusion about roles in the household, but we got that straightened
up. More on that later. And no, by the time we got home we did not have
cabinet doors in the kitchen. That is a
long saga of home-improvement that still—almost ten years after their removal—has
not ended, but it seems to work well for us J it did present some interesting challenges
with Prada, though. Most Tupperware and
serving dishes had to have the floating dog hair rinsed off before use, and we
move the kitchen trash can to another location every time Prada comes home to
Oregon.)
II. Juno,
Meet Fluffy!
For the purpose of this entry, “Fluffy”
is any other dog currently living in the house.
Fluffy is also male so I don’t have to use one gender pronoun to refer
to two different proper nouns. Dog
guides usually like having a friend at home to play with. It’s not uncommon in multiple-dog households
to come into a room and find all canine residents curled up on one big pillow
or in a crate together. But
introductions can be tricky because of the number of variables involved.
a.
How is Juno with other dogs? Juno is trained to be submissive to other
dogs, but training only goes so far with genetics.
b.
How is Fluffy with other dogs?
c.
How territorial is Fluffy?
d.
How big is the space these two furry bodies now
cohabit? Two big dogs in a small
space? One big and one little? Is there a yard?
e.
1.
Pick up ALL of Fluffy’s toys and food and anything else
contestable before Juno comes home. Make
sure Fluffy has gone outside to park, and if you have a yard let Fluffy run off
some energy. Fluffy or Juno may still
mark inside the house, even if both have parked before the meeting. It’s really hard to program out this strong
instinct. Have vinegar and carpet
cleaner on hand, just in case.
2.
Walk Juno to the street corner well away from the front
yard and driveway—off Fluffy’s territory.
Take the harness off but keep the leash on. You want control, but Juno needs to feel
comfortable and be allowed to introduce herself doggy-style (yes, the
butt-sniffing thing) to Fluffy. She also
needs to feel like she can hide behind your legs if Fluffy is hyper—say, a Jack
Russel Terrorist…er…Terrier.
3.
Bring Fluffy out to the corner on a leash. Commence closely monitored butt-sniffing
routine. You and the person holding
Fluffy’s leash should do your best to avoid leash-tangling for safety’s sake.
a.
If they get along well right off the bat—wonderful! Walk them together back to the house. If the doorway is wide enough, let them enter
side-by-side. If not, let Fluffy enter
first so Fluffy doesn’t feel threatened or usurped by June’s presence. Take Fluffy off the leash but keep Juno
leashed (see above about leashing inside the house). After a couple of hours, depending on
weather, if they seem to still get along well, let them out into the yard to
play and get their wiggles out.
b.
If Fluffy or Juno initially dislikes the other, walk
them apart from each other, then approach each other again. Repeat until they accept one another, then
walk them side-by-side into the house.
Dogs are pack creators by nature and will eventually grow to accept one another
and develop a hierarchy, even if you never find them napping or playing
together. Just be patient and don’t try
to force the issue. Growling at one
another should not go unpunished.
III. Welcome Home Party!
A family member or good friend
bringing home their first dog guide can be very exciting for everyone. It represents a change in the blind person’s
independence and confidence, and dogs are just fun! It’s new and exciting and a very unique
experience that few people in America get to enjoy. So naturally, we want to celebrate the
accomplishment and the start of a new phase in our lives!
Unfortunately, we must curb our
enthusiasm and support and express it in much quieter, subtler, and less
overwhelming ways. As I said above, Juno
is tired, stressed, and overwhelmed. Parties—with
food and people everywhere—present suffocating
affection and temptation and scoldings on every flat surface available. Juno will develop fear or dislike of crowds,
may park inside involuntarily, become depressed and skittish, and uncertain in
crowds. These are unpleasant and often
dangerous characteristics for a dog guide to develop. But how, then, should we share the new love
and joy in our lives?
Arrange a few low-key lunch dates
over the next few days. Have one or two
people over for dinner, take Juno to church—on harness—introduce Juno to a
couple of coworkers…the key here is to spread things out. Everyone still gets a chance to meet Juno,
but Juno gets breathers and safe time in between. And this way everyone gets a chance to
personally ask questions and spend more quality time with you and Juno.
When I brought Prada home I asked
the pastor of my church to put an announcement in the bulletin about how the
congregation should interact—and not interact—with Prada. That worked out very well. To my amusement, though, people who had known
me for years suddenly asked if I were training Prada—apparently they’d
forgotten that I was “that blind!”
At each interaction, though, make
sure you educate whoever you’re meeting on the proper ways to treat a dog guide
in harness—that is, IGNORE THE DOG. The
dog is invisible when wearing the harness—the harness is some cool new sci-fi
cloaking device J Many people will just instinctively reach out
a hand to let the dog sniff. This counts
as interacting with a dog in harness, and is a no-no. Yes, it’s proper technique when meeting
Fluffy. It is strictly prohibited when
meeting Juno. And, as always, when
meeting a dog (even a dog guide) for the first time, ask permission before
petting, even if the harness is off. (This
is particularly a problem with people meeting Prada. Her fluffy coat is very inviting to
people. What makes me shake my head in
wonder, though, is how many people just walk up and start petting the
unfamiliar German shepherd without
asking! I mean—the dog could take your
arm off just for getting within 2 yards of his person! These dogs have a reputation! And yet…the unauthorized petting
continues! It amazes me how many people
set their brains aside when they react to their “oh, cute!” instincts…)
Dear friends and family;
You know how much I love you. You know my “open door, open cupboard, open
refrigerator, open couch” policy. You
know I’m pretty open. I’ve even had
friends walk up and ask to borrow my cane to get a Frisbee out of a tree before—and
I’m totally ok with that! You may not, under any circumstances, take
such liberties with Prada. It does not
matter how long I’ve known you, if we shared a toothbrush at summer camp, if we’re
so close we finish each other’s sentences.
You may not take such
liberties with Prada. Family members—yes,
we feel a sense of ownership towards one another. You may
not take such liberties with Prada.
This is a safety hazard for both me and the dog and I will not tolerate her training being
compromised. Here’s why…
One day Prada and I are crossing a street in the
crosswalk. On the far side a friend
calls out to me. “hey, Anneliese, hey
Prada!” Prada pricks up her ears. Suddenly, she’s paying attention to this
person who has petted her while she was in harness before—and not the SUV
bearing down on us! Squish, splat,
crunch, yelp! By choosing not to ignore
the dog guide while she’s working, you just hit me with an SUV. Thanks, really, I appreciate it.
Seem a bit melodramatic?
Get over it. Them’s the rules,
and those could be the consequences.
Just think of the harness as a uniform—like those guards outside the
palace in Lundon. She has a job to do
and she has to put 100% of her attention into that job. Don’t be that stupid guy who films a video of
himself harassing a guard and putting it up on youtube. Don’t acknowledge the dog guide while she’s
working.
In addition to the “harness=cloaking
device” speech, you should include a clause about never feeding a dog guide.
These critters cost over $70,000 to breed, raise, and train. If you feed a dog and it gets sick or
develops a food distraction that leads to retirement, you’ve just wasted that
$70,000 and lots of peoples’ time and energy.
Don’t be stupid, and don’t be disrespectful—don’t feed the dog
guide! Even if you feed your dogs that
baby carrot all the time, DO NOT FEED THE DOG GUIDE. Even if Juno looks at you with big brown
puppy-dog eyes that plead “My handler hasn’t feed me in weeks!” DO NOT FEED THE DOG GUIDE! Sensing a theme here?
Food distraction is the #1 cause of
premature dog guide retirement. We have
the unparalleled privilege of taking our dog guides to restaurants, grocery
stores, and other public places serving food.
If the dog develops a tendency toward narking French fries off a table
(nod to Jennifer Rothschild—your story inspired me to seek out my first dog
guide, and I love your music, too! J ) then the dog is more
focused on food than work and becomes a danger to the handler. That means retirement. Additionally, if dog guides start become a
regular cause of problems in food establishments, we may very well (and
justifiably, under these circumstances) lose the privilege of taking our dogs
out to Chili’s or Kroger with us. This
severely limits the usefulness of the dog and puts a great strain on our
mobility and independence. DO NOT FEED
THE DOG GUIDE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Ok, I do believe that’s all of
it! Please, if you have any questions or
want literature describing dog guide rules and protocols, don’t hesitate to ask
me. The more people that distribute accurate
information about how to interact with a dog guide, the better, and I am all
about the teachable moment.
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