Catchup #1

At last I am able to post again. We have found a work-around for the issue. Now, having not kept a daily journal as I had hoped, I will, by necessity take some poetic license with respect to dates and times.

Monday, December 5, we met the trainers and had a time ofintroductions all round. It was during this morning that we met Wheeler, Stuffy, and Juno. Wheeler is a dog harness on wheels, Juno is a trainer acting the part of a guide, and stuffy is a plush dog that is used to demonstrate Martingale chain collars, and head collars that may be worn by the dogs.

Only two of us have partnered with guide dogs before and the other four needed to learn a bit before receiving their dogs. It was also a good review for us retrains. Also during that time, we learned/practiced how to hold the leash and harness handle in our left hand and how to use our right hand to give various types of communication with the dogs.

Before we received our dogs that afternoon, we were each taken
out individually to walk with our specific trainer/instructor to
allow them to have one last check of our comfortable pace and
pull. They know the dogs that are class-ready and at what speed
each of them tends to work. This information had been provided
as estimated by the trainer that visited each of us in our home
environment as part of the application process. There is nothing
like first-hand experience, though. The point is that there is
lots that goes into the process of choosing the best dog for each
of us. It is not only about pace and pull. It is about
environment, family constellation including four-footed and
feathered members.

After lunch on December 5, we students each retired to our room
to listen for that sound of dog feet approaching our door. Dogs
were to be introduced to us between 1:30 and 2:30.

As 2:30 approached, I began to wonder if there was to be no dog
for me. I feel sure that I was last to be matched. You know the
outcome for me. Mensa was one of two yellow labs to be issued
this time. There were six labs in all. There were two males and
four females. One male was the only other yellow lab in our
group.

Once the dogs were issued, we each had an opportunity to walk
with our dog on the campus grounds. The trainer was at our right
shoulder giving minute by minute information and instruction.
She had a long leash attached to the dog's collar much like in
driver training where the instructor has a separate set of
controls. Each dog is different and the body language
transmitted through the harness to the handler is different. The
interesting thing to consider is that the dog also feels the
difference between my body language, gestures, and pull as
compared with the trainers she has known. We are both having to
work to understand each other.

When I first trained with a guide dog in 1984, there was no use
of food in the training. In fact they discouraged food given
except if it were placed in the dog's dish. Imagine the
difference now with treats given as part of the reward process
for every correct behavior on the part of the dog at this
facility. I came here specifically to learn this new and
different method of training and handling. Dogs who are not
raised with people do not interpret voice and petting as
rewarding in themselves. They need to learn what these mean and
develop a sense that they are good things. With food, however,
they do not need to learn that it is good. Food, then is a more
powerful reward than our kind words. also, the individual voice
of the owner is learned. When we get them, they do not
necessarily recognize our way of giving verbal praise. Luckily
for us, our dogs have been handled lots from their earliest days
and have learned that people are good to them. They have been
raised with families who have provided them a huge amount of
socialization and good-dog behavior that is an invaluable part of
who our dogs have become already.

In this training process, the basics are similar at any of the
schools, but the specifics can be quite different. That is, all
guides are trained to walk along a sidewalk, path, or street
edge. They are all trained to negotiate through openings large
enough to accommodate both of us or to stop to show us a
barricade. All stop at street corners; all wait for the cue of
the handler to enter a street; all are trained to stop at stairs
going up or down. To a greater or lesser degree, they are taught
how to find locations such as "inside." "Outside." "Door."
"Elevator." and as we develop our partnership through the years
together, we expand on these specific skills becoming a
well-melded team.

For now, though, for me, there are subtle differences in the two
schools as to how I hold the leash, how I use body gestures and
foot work, and even some of the words that my dog knows. My
trainer is ever-ready to cue me to best behavior with this dog
who has not learned to take shortcuts translated as less than
perfect cues. I need to learn to do things Mensa's way because
she knows only the basics right now. the more I can stick to the
basics of her training experience, the better we will work as a
team long term. This relearning is something that every student
returning for a successor dog experiences, but it is compounded
by changing schools. (lots of work for me)

Come back often. Now that I can post to this blog, I have lots
to say. I hope you will find it informative and interesting.