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Service Dog Schooner is Going to High School!

July 18, 2014

Raising service dogs is good work if you can get it.

I mean, it’s tough work for sure — house training, teaching good manners, public outings that go awry, the list goes on. But I wouldn’t keep doing it if it weren’t loaded with good stuff, too.

One of the best things is seeing the dog I raised working with his new partner. (I originally typed “my dog,” but had to change it. It’s a little difficult to make that mental shift sometimes. He’s not really mine, of course, and I know that, but I quite often let myself forget that, just for a little while.) He’s all Tabitha’s — and she’ll be all his. It’s impossible not to fall head over heels for that boy, I can vouch for that. What a great team they’ll be!

Anyway, I’m all kinds of excited for Schooner.

He’s going to be a senior in high school this year!

Can you imagine that dog in a high school?! It makes me giggle just thinking about it. He’ll love it. They’ll love him. It’ll be one big lovefest.

I’m not saying the entire road will be easy. There will be moments for both Schooner and his new partner, Tabitha, that’ll make them both think “What am I doing?!” Fortunately, those moments pass quickly and are crowded out by the “How did I ever get along without you?” thoughts.

It’s quite a gift to have the opportunity to watch the partnership take place and I’m grateful to Tabitha and her family for allowing me be a little part of this.

Go on, Schoons, rule the school, my friend!

P.S. I want to see your high school graduation picture!

Schooner! An Update on the Great Dane Service Dog (in training)

June 9, 2014

It’s a lot of work to be a service dog.

Schooner is back at his service dog organization and was featured in their latest mailing. Of course, I’m partial to the big ox, but I think the mailing provides an accurate look into what a service dog does, who needs a service dog, and the work that goes into training a dog to work in service to a person. Written by the Executive Director. (The picture isn’t the one depicting her experience in the story below, rather it’s a puppy picture of Schooner and I about nine months ago in our local grocery.)

What is the expression? “Don’t try this at home?”

Part of training a service dog means taking them places they might go in their working life. The grocery store is an obvious choice. But Whole Foods on the Friday before Easter is a perfect example of not thinking ahead.

The store was unusually crowded and I had elected to bring Schooner who is unusually large, currently weighing in at 147 pounds and still growing. Schooner is a Great Dane learning to be a balance dog and his primary task is to walk with care so that his intended recipient, who has a form of Muscular Dystrophy, can use him for stability.

As we entered the store, Schooner’s nose was not on the ground, so I was lulled into a false sense of security. Rather, it was in the air, sniffing the displays of food samples right at the mouth- and eye-level of a dog that stands thirty four inches tall. When it came to his “leave it” cue, amnesia set in. What was that block of cheese doing on display in the pasta section anyway?

In the meat department, I noticed a tick on Schooner’s leg just as he noticed the display of fish on ice. Without thinking (my modus operandi for the day) I pulled the tick off. Now what was I supposed to do with it? While holding Schooner with one hand and the tick in the other, I assured all the guys who came out from behind the meat counter that no, Schooner was not going to ingest all their fish, and yes, he eats a lot.

People are attracted to Schooner’s size and several people asked to pet him. Although I said, “Of course,” I struggled to keep his focus on his work. It’s a simple fact that people will reach out and touch him so he needs to learn to ignore them and other distractions. It’s like walking the Pope or the Dalai Lama for all the attention he attracts and all the hands that reach out.

Schooner and I will soon return to Whole foods because the truth is we have to master the place. That’s what it means to train a service dog — it’s not just about learning to open doors or retrieve items, it’s about keeping it together no matter where you are. So we will go back again and again until Schooner can walk like a gentleman, remember his cues, act like there’s not an enormous display of meat, fish, or cheese — even though there is — and when all the guys in the mean department come out to say hello, he won’t drag me over so he can lick their aprons.

Schooner’s partner will be completing high school next year and then will go off to college where she will undoubtedly be in places as distracting and crowded as Whole Foods. Schooner must be able to negotiate crowds, deal with things he has never seen before, and remain steady. She has had multiple surgeries to keep her legs from turning in so she can continue to walk as long as possible. She fights hard to do everything a young person enjoys. Schooner’s job is to ease her struggle so she can participate more fully, rather than declining to participate because she is tired, weak, or worries about falling down.

She is slightly built and Schooner will outweigh her by half, another reason he must be a calm partner. During a recent fire drill at her school, she was slow to exit and said her classmates pushed past her. She feels invisible…but not for long. Not with Schooner by her side.

Our service dogs make a tremendous difference in providing independence to a person with a disability. It takes a great deal of time to educate and train each dog. Simply put, we need your help so we can train more dogs and help more people.

I hope to be there, with Schooner as my escort. I hope to see you there!

Service Dog Training: Full Circle – Caysun Graduates

April 9, 2014

It’s why we raise and train service dogs.

Aside from the day we receive the pup, the best day in a puppy raiser’s life is Graduation Day.

Sweet Baby Caysun graduated as a diabetic alert dog (DAD) last week and it was a fabulous time.

The graduation ceremony included a “Puppy Parade” in which all the dogs in training are paraded onto the stage with their puppy raisers. It was a glorious day for us because we had four dogs at the ceremony.

Caysun was graduating.

Lovely little Asti Spumante (Monti):

The oh-so-silly Schooner:

And the handsome man, Levi:

It was a fabulous reunion with the three dogs who’ve gone onto final training. There were wags and smiles from everyone (and everydog) involved.

Because three of the dogs were in the Puppy Parade, I claimed Schooner straight away.

My husband walked with Levi, and a volunteer handled Monti. (If I could’ve figured a way to hang onto all three and take them all up on stage together, I would’ve done it!)

It’s no secret that I’m a real softie and tears fall down my face at the drop of a hat.

I admit, when Schooner and I walked down the aisle and up onto the stage, I was fighting back the tears. The pride I felt walking with that dog was bursting at the seams and I couldn’t contain my pride and admiration of the dogs and the people involved in the entire process. It was a great moment.

When it was time for the graduating teams to take the stage, each puppy raiser preceded the team to introduce ourselves, tell a quick story about our pup that was graduating, and then introduce our pup with their new partner. At my first graduation a decade ago, I cried so hard on stage that my husband had to take over until I was able to pull myself together. This year, he stayed in the audience with Schooner and Levi — smart guy. He wasn’t taking a chance that I’d put him on the spot again.

I proudly spoke of Caysun and the fun we’d had together and was able to introduce her with her new partner — all without shedding one tear. I needed a tissue however, when Caysun’s partner spoke of the many positive changes Caysun has brought to her life. Hearing of the independence Caysun has provided her, the companionship, the love, the freedom… it was magical. And every recipient shared a story of the difference the dogs were making in their lives.

It’s what we puppy raisers live for, I’m telling you true.

I go back to these memories of graduation every time I turn in another puppy.

I know I’ll need to draw on the memories of these moments — remembering the overwhelming pride and happiness at seeing the dogs so happy with their people, seeing the amazing joy and independence the dogs bring…it’s the salve that soothes the sting of letting our puppies go…

Reunited with Schooner

February 26, 2014

Reunited with Great Dane, Schooner.

“Service Dog Fridays” are long days for Levi and I, with six hours of driving, three hours of training, and they’re exhausting.

Last Friday, however, I was out of bed before the alarm. This long trek wasn’t really a trek at all — I was three hours from seeing Schooner, the big Great Dane I’d turned in a month earlier.

It had been a long month, full of mixed feelings and transitions.

I didn’t miss the trail of slime and slobber he left wherever he went. I didn’t miss his bed-hogging ways or his snoring. But man, did I miss his silly, sweet, goofy self. I missed his singing, his groaning, his laid-backness. I missed him a bunch.

Thankfully, I had a new service pup in-training, Levi, to occupy my time and to fill my days with ridiculously cute moments that lifted me out of the doldrums from missing Schoons.

It was all I could do to walk calmly into the training center, focusing on Levi and his people-greeting skills, and not running directly to Schooner. I could hear him singing his “woo-woos” and my insides felt like they were vibrating from the excitement of seeing him again.

The reunion was splendid.

Everything a girl could hope for. I may have cried. He was as excited as I was, as you can see from the video. I was so very happy to see him, but I was also a little sad because seeing him again reminded me of just how much I missed him…

I’m counting the days until I can see him again.

Talk to me: have you been reunited with a dog you fostered? What was the reunion like? Please share in the comments below, I’d love to hear your story.

Dog Nail Trims: The Beginning

January 25, 2014

How many of you love trimming your dog’s nails?

How many of you have a dog who loves having his nails trimmed?

Probably not many, no matter which question. Many dog owners are scared to trim their dog’s nails, but it’s something that must be done for both the comfort and the health of your dog. And no one enjoys having their leg ripped with their dog’s paw as he playfully jumps on them.

Many dogs exhibit discomfort as soon as you pick up their paw. If you want your dog to enjoy having his nails trimmed, you’re going to have to start with getting him comfortable with just having his paws handled. So that’s where we start.

Below the video are the steps I’m using with Schooner to help him get more comfortable with simple paw touches.

Step 1: Get your supplies ready.

Start with really delicious treats. I’m using summer sausage and colby jack cheese for Schooner. Have a comfortable, cushy bed on the floor for your dog to relax onto.

Step 2: Touch a paw.

Touch your dog’s paw gently. As soon as you touch, click (mouth click or a “yip” like in the video) and immediately deliver the delicious goody.

Step 3: Allow the dog to control the pace of the session.

If your dog wants to get up and leave, let him. It’s his choice. If that happens, what he’s telling you is you were going too far, too quickly. Next training session, go slowly. Treat more frequently. Your goal is that the dog wants to stay in the training session with you because he’s enjoying it.

Step 4: Keep practicing!

Side note: Interestingly, Schooner showed sensitivity in this video to one of his front paws being touched. As I reviewed other video we shot that same day, he’s also showing sensitivity on that front leg. He’s since recovered from whatever injury he had, but the sensitivity of his paw wasn’t just related to my touching his paw, but even to him standing on that leg.

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