New video Featuring Tanner and Me

I thought you, my dear readers, would this video featuring Tanner and I.
 

Two years of Transition

Dear loyal readers and visitors,
After two years of what seems like one endless transition Tanner and I finally feel like we have energy to share our stories and knowledge gained together. In the last two years Tanner and I have:

• Became a team
• Lived for a month in a hotel before our new apartment became available
• Began working for our amateur Summit Assistance Dogs
• Discovered new apartment really wasn't ground floor accessible and tried to make it work including having friends try to build a ramp
• Moved in with friends for two months while we look for a new place 
• Found and moved in to a new minimally accessible apartment where we lived along with some dogs in training and eventually our best friend again for a year and a half
• Decided with said best friend to find and purchase a house. Which took looking at around 40 houses, putting in seven offers, and a little over six months.

So, again, we apologize for being gone so long, but hope you can understand.

Tanner and I made the newspaper

This article about Tanner and I in the Whidbey News Times today! We are about a month into our partnership.

Upcoming series on Retirement

Shilo retired on August 17th after five years, 10 months and 2 days of partnership with me. Making the decision to retire a service dog is never easy even if there is an undeniable reason such as failing health driving the human partner to the decision. I am working on a series of post about Shilo's retirement to help people understand this all too little discussed inevitable phase of life with service dogs which will include topics:

1. Timeline to Retirement
2. Signs a Service Dog Needs to Retire
3. Preparing for Your Dog's Retirement
4. Celebrating your Partnership
5. To Re-Partner or Not? Deciding whether a Service Dog is still right for you.

Also in the series will be stories from Shilo's retirement:

• Shilo's Last Trip- Vegas Baby!
• Shilo's Retirement Party
• Shilo's Last Day Working
• Shilo's Retired Life

Five Years Together and The Process Begins Again

October marked Shilo's and my fifth anniversary as a team. As many of my loyal readers may remember Shilo was taken into training as an adult dog estimated at 2 years old, so that made her three-ish at placement. I believe in retiring my dogs before some age-related health concern makes it an urgent necessity on both parts;  therefore, at the end of September I emailed Summit to begin the process of a successor placement.  Many of you may be asking yourself why I am going through a school when I am capable of training a dog myself to meet my needs in a service dog. The answer is simple.
1.Finding a suitable potential candidate is a crap shoot in the best of times even when one knows what they are looking for and what they need.
2. Anything can happen during the training and maturation process to turn a once promising candidate into a washout; leaving the person needing a service back at the beginning maybe a little richer in experience but more poor in time, emotional fortitude, energy, and money.
3. A service dog partner must look at the successor process as it will fit into their life as a multiple year process. The age old where do you want to be in 3 years question. Do you want to be just starting a full time working partnership or do you want to have been in a well established partnership for a year or more?
With my life including full time work with adult with developmental disabilities, dating, family, advocacy, and more I know I can have nothing less than a finished, mature service dog who is ready to join my life full time right out of the gate.

My Favorite Harness is Back!

My absolute favorite multi-functional service dog harness is back on the market! I bought this harness for my first service dog, Bastien, used it until he retired then transferred it to Shilo and used it until it literally died from use. I was saddened to discover the woman who made each harness by hand had passed away and the harness it seemed would not be made anymore. I decided to see if I could find someone to fix or re-create my harness to no avail. Non of the fixes or remakes would as well as the original. The Freedom Design harness is designed with service dog partners using wheelchairs in mind, but I have seen this versatile harness used for partners needing guiding, and light counter balance as well. I cannot say enough good things about this harness! If you are looking for a haness that is:

• Multi-funtional
• designed for use by people with extremely limited hand function
• designed to allow the dog freedom of movement
• designed to allow for a flexible and angle variable connection between dog and partner ( this is how I was able to have a wheelchair pulling dog who did not have to lean sideways to pull from along side the wheelchair)
• attractive
• light weight
• machine washable
• durable (at least I hope it still) I had mine for 12 years before it died.
• Reasonably priced at $85

This post is peppered with pictures of both my dogs in the same Freedom Design harness (that's right, the one I bough and used for 12 years)! Before you ask, none is paying me for this post. I just like to sing the praises of a quality product when I find one!

Caring for an Elderly Dog - Age is Often Mistaken as a Symptom of a Treatable Illness - Whole Dog Journal Article

Aaron Epstein’s 14-year-old Australian Shepherd-mix, Sam, was losing weight and his appetite wasn’t the same. “I just thought he was getting old because in addition to not eating with the same vigor, he was slowing down a bit, wasn’t able to walk as far, and sleeping a little too much,” Epstein recalls. The once 45-pound dog had shed close to 15 pounds -30 percent of his body weight -before concerned friends could convince a reluctant Epstein to get Sam to the veterinarian for an exam and blood work, both long overdue.
Caring for an Elderly Dog - Age is Often Mistaken as a Symptom of a Treatable Illness - Whole Dog Journal Article

Taylor & Francis Online :: “Not just a dog”: an attachment perspective on relationships with assistance dogs - Attachment & Human Development - Volume 13, Issue 5

Taylor & Francis Online :: “Not just a dog”: an attachment perspective on relationships with assistance dogs - Attachment & Human Development - Volume 13, Issue 5

 We explored individuals' relationships with an assistance dog from an attachment-theory perspective. We used both inductive and deductive thematic methods to analyze semi-structured interviews with 25 participants who had lost an assistance dog to retirement or death. Analyses revealed attachment processes of safe haven, secure base, and separation anxiety. Although attachment dynamics were an important feature of these relationships, caregiving was equally important. When confronted with the loss of their dog, almost all participants experienced intense grief. Most grief responses were consistent with the loss of a caregiving relationship. Findings suggest that grief is a natural response to the loss of a beloved companion who fulfilled fundamental needs for attachment and caregiving.

Today is Our 3rd Anniversary!

Today is Shilo's and my third anniversary! That's right, it has been three years since Shilo and I came into each others' lives, and what a three years it has been! Shilo continues to amaze me everyday with her sweet demeanor, creativity and willingness to work. Since being placed Shilo has learned to:

• Work next to a power chair and manual chair
• Wheelchair pull
• work light switches, cabinets, and doors in the order I pass them
• Work odd hours
• Work random and sometimes long hours
• Show off her skills in demonstrations- she's a shepherd mix so this was a challenge

From T-Mobile Pictures

Change is good, but exhausting!

First, let me apologized for being away so long. Life in the brick and mortar world has been running on all cylinders with or without me! These last few months have brought my little pack change after change. Cammy, my roommate's guide dog, retired to Texas to live with her parents. By all accounts she is very happy in her retirement and has everyone wrapped around her paws. We, then, welcomed Blaise who was then a seven month old Golden retriever in to the house. He is now a year old and picking up his training like a fish to water! My roommate is working through Oregon Assistance Dogs to train Blaise to be her next guide, and right now he shows every sign of becoming a great partner for her. Next we welcomed Cash, a then 13 month old black Labrador who was already tipping the scales at 70lbs as a foster from Oregon Assistance Dogs. Cash came along in training very quickly, but he is a bit anxious and public work of a service dog proved to be too much for him, so he is being career changed. He is a very sweet, smart dog who was to go, go, go... Maybe he would do better with higher activity work. S&R, drug dog who knows. Next, we, my roommate and I, were asked to serve on Oregon Assistance Dog's Board.
Lastly, I decided to start grad school in Portland. I drive up and back one night a week for a three hour class. Tired yet? I sure am, but change is good... Gotta go to class now!

Shiloh Comes Through When it Really Counts!

This morning I woke up with severe pain in my neck and right shoulder(again). At first I wasn't even sure I could get out out of bed, but with a little persistence I managed to make it out of bed. As I tried to transfer into my chair my shoulder gave way and I ended up on the floor! I tried a few times to get up, but quickly realized my right shoulder was not going to weight bare at all, so even using Shiloh to brace a bit was out.I tried Plan B yell, for my roommate Leslie, no dice, since she sleeps like the dead.
Time for plan C, get Shiloh to roust my still sleeping roommate from her bed. My roommates and I have been working on getting Shiloh to find them by name and Shiloh loves my roommate's room, so time to put it to the test. I asked Shiloh "Where's Leslie? Go Get Leslie!" She went to my roommate's door and found it closed ( I could see her and the door from where I was on the floor), so I cue her to touch the door with her paw again and again. She would come back every few times, and I would send her back again. After, a few minutes Shiloh finally succeeded in waking my roommate's Guide Dog, Cammy, who I heard come over to the door and sniff. Shiloh continued to paw the door, while Cammy (deciding that it was time to be up) went over and stuck her nose in Leslie's face, finally waking her! She then heard Shiloh pawing away at the door. Disoriented, and still half asleep, I see her come out of the room saying "What the hell?!" Now I tell her I need help I can't get off the floor! She being the wonderful friend and good roommate comes in immediately to fish me off the floor.
Even if my roommate had not been there and I would have had to wait for someone to come help me, or until I felt it might be safe to attempt to get myself of the the floor having Shiloh there, knowing the that I was not alone she could get the phone and show the people who came to my calls where I was kept me from slipping in to that fear that I could be here on the floor until God knows when! Not falling into that fear left me able to more logically process the situation and stay calm. Shiloh is my constant companion and between the two of us we can figure out a lot of really difficult predicaments! Even it the best thing to do is wait, I am not so vulnerable with Shiloh around she will patiently wait with me.

Anniversary: Celebrating One Year as a Team

Today Shiloh and I are celebrating one year as a partnered service dog team! We have come a long way in that year. I must admit this year has been one wrought with change, learning, fun, change, and frustration on both ends from time to time.

It really has taken Shiloh and I this entire time to really develop a shared languages and a set of share experiences that we can use to communicate with and understand one and other.
"I met this sweet girl for the first time while I was attending the Puget Sound Assistance Dog Club's Second Annual Conference. Sue was presenting a seminar of temperament testing and service dog candidate select and had chosen to bring along this little shepherd mix as an example of all the things they look for in a service dog candidate. From the minute I saw her I was impressed with this dog's calm, quiet, sweet, yet attentive nature. I even volunteered to be a part of the demonstration, just so I could have a chance to interact with her one on one. She never once showed me anything but what a lovely, soft girl she was." Read more from this post http://servicedogsawayoflife.blogspot.com/2008/07/new-dog-news.html.

"Our relationship is still very new and a shepherd's loyalties run deep. If Sue has been working with her or leaves and comes back Shiloh still only has eyes for Sue at this point, but there is a glimmer of a relationship already. She is happy to see me, works willingly, and after a bit of time can focus completely on me." Read more from this post http://servicedogsawayoflife.blogspot.com/2008/09/round-oneteam-training.html

"Almost once a day I ask her to do something with a leftover cue from my first service dog, Bastien. She looks at me like "I have no idea what you want" and sometimes takes a guess." Read more from this post http://servicedogsawayoflife.blogspot.com/2008/11/shilo-and-melissa-our-first-month.html.


You can read more about:

• The process of getting a service dog and my process with Shiloh here: http://servicedogsawayoflife.blogspot.com/search/label/Summit

• My life with Shiloh here: http://servicedogsawayoflife.blogspot.com/search/label/Shilo and here http://servicedogsawayoflife.blogspot.com/search/label/Shiloh.

Finally, I wish to thank everyone who made Shiloh and I possible:
-The Staff and Volunteers of Summit Assistance Dogs
-Shiloh's Trainer Sue Meinzinger (known affectionately around here as Aunty Sue)
-My cousin April for her $100 Donation
-My longtime friend Wayne Terry for his donation of a Large Dog Crate ($100 value)
-Shelley Maynard,Owner of Pewter Rabbit Antiques for her $25 Donation
-Kathleen Ison for her $10 donation
-Olivia Emilia and Rob Harden for their $50 donation
-My longtime friend Anne Hensley for her $50 donation in memeroy of her first SD Andrew
-My longtime friends Pam and Loc Reader for their $100 donation
-My former co-workers at Pierce County Deparment of Emergency Management for their $155 donation.
-My Aunt and Uncle, Steven and Marie McDonald for their $100
-My college internship supervisor Mr. Jim Stevenson and family for their $100
-My Unce Dale McDonald for his $300 donation
-My Grandmother Mary Ellen for her $200
-My parents for their $600 donation to Summit and their love and support through out the entire process
-My best friends Leslie Weilbacher and Katie Berger for all their love, support and perspective!

Anniversary: Team Training Starts

Today is October 11, 2009. A year ago, today, I awoke to begin seven days of training with a dog I hoped would become my next service dog. It was even more uncertain than these trips  usually areas the week before I had lost my job of four years. I needed to spend a week bonding and working with a new dog and I didn't even have financial stability. Stressful would be an extreme understatement. I felt I had to go, after all, who knew when they would have a dog they felt would be suitable for me again. So, despite all this uncertainty I packed my bags and head to the first day  of my team training with Shiloh. I had teats,my clicker, my laptop, my camera, and my leash. Come what may I had decided to put myself into the process full out. Read about this day:

Team Training: Round Two Day One

Six Month Follow Up with Summit

Last weekend Wendy, one of Shiloh's rescuers and trainers during her time at Summit came to Eugene for our six month follow up visit. Wendy did not come alone; however, she brought Chaihuly, her 11 yr old collie mix, and Dixie, a member of Summit's D-Litter born the week Shiloh and I were team training. Six-months is some what of a milestone for Summit teams as we no longer need to submit monthly reports and we are really gelling as a team. It is now rare for Shiloh and I to regard one another with looks of other confusing and we have a treasure trove of shared experiences bonding us. Wendy wanted to see our apartment in case we were having trouble with task because of how things are set up and she could help problem solve the issue. We also visited our favorite dog park- Amazon Dog Park (thanks to Eugene Area Parks.com for the photo!) and let all three dogs play. Wendy asked a lot of question about how Shiloh and I were getting along and working while, of course, keeping a watchful trainer's eye on how Shiloh responded to me. Shiloh was impressed to see how quickly she responded to my call to come even in the hub bub of dog park at 5 on a Friday. We spent a lot of time talking about Shiloh's and my experiences getting to know each other and any quirks, or suggestion that I might have to help Summit Staff improve what the dogs know before they get placed with a person needing a service dog. Since each dog and person that Summit works with is a unique entity and subsequently and entirely unique team they are also curious to see how the things they train and teach work or don't work in the real world. Some suggestions Wendy and I talked about included:

• Working dogs in training after dark more, especially as they get closer to being placed. When I first got Shiloh she was very unsure about working at night. Upon seeing this I decide to find activities to do in the evening to help her be more comfortable. We, now, go out regularly in the evenings for movies, lectures and dinner with friends and Shiloh just sees it as a part of our lives.
• Adding variety to the type of Tugs used for doors. I use a variety of tugs depending on what best suit the situation at hand, but my favorite tug is my dog's own leash since I always have it with me. Shiloh was used to working only with pulls made from dog rope toys and monkey fists (like the one on the left). I had problems with this since I couldn't change the length for taller doors and it was another thing to carry. I leave pull on door we use regularly including work door. These pulls I often make out of the slip leads they use at groomers and vet for people who for get their leashes since they are cheaper and can be used everywhere without making it difficult for outs to use the door handle.
  

Shilo and Melissa: Our First Month

Shilo and I have now been together for one month. This month has been interesting to say the least and much different than anything I had expected, in large part due, to changes in my life. The week before I left to train with Shilo I was laid off from my job of four years. I went from know exactly what our life and daily schedule would be to having no idea what we would be doing when we got home. As it turns out, other that the having no pay check part, being unemployed has given us the time to adjust.



Shilo completed her training and is a very skilled girl. However, it can take many months of working together to truly get service dog and partner working in true tandem. These months require both sides to come armed with patience, forgiveness and willingness to meet the other where they are not where one wishes they would be. Shilo was trained to retrieve dropped items, push buttons, take clothes/shoes off, turn lights on/off, open/close doors, and more. However, she has to deal with a human who has had a dog before with whom there is a different set of vocabulary. Almost once a day I ask her to do something with a leftover cue from my first service dog, Bastien. She looks at me like "I have no idea what you want" and sometimes takes a guess. She is also in a completely new environment with all sort of interesting and sometimes scary things. The skateboards that are prevalent in this a college town, had her believing the world was coming to an end for a few days. Skate boards are not something she saw a lot of in the small town she was trained in and when you combine the weird noise, speed, and aggressive posture needed to ride them by humans what dog wouldn't be a little worried? I worked to change her opinion by giving her treats every time we saw a skate board and after a few days she thought nothing of skateboards.
There is also a need to transfer her training to our home environment. For example learning where we keep the emergency phone and bringing it to me anywhere in the house, using enough force to open/close our doors, and identifying the light switches. Summit is but a phone call or email away to assist with this process.

In the last month Shilo and I have been on many outings that will be apart of our life together and each one presents its own opportunity for us to learn about and work with each other. We have been grocery shopping, to the laundromat, out to eat, on job interviews, and to the dog park. We also send regular updates to Summit about or progress. We have to send a report each month during our six month probation period. Many programs have such a probation period to ensure the match is a good one and neither portion of the team (dog or human) shows an inability/unwillingness to meet the demands of the life of a service dog team. There is never a gaurantee when living beings are involved though through experience service dog programs do their best to ensure both dog and human have the training and support they need to function as a team for many years to come.

Team Training: Round Two Day Six

Today Shilo and I went out just the two of us for the first time! I can't believe how much I have missed having options for how to interact with the world! Shilo and I went out to brunch and she impressed everyone with how quietly she rested under the table with her head on my feet. After brunch we went to the used bookstore where we hit the dog section and got a chance to work a counter retrieve. Next we hit this fabulous little candy shop where I stocked up on their great dark chocolate and Shilo had the opportunity to retrieve my bank card and open a door. Shilo's ability to do all these tasks increased the distance I was able to wheel by allowing me to use my energy elusively on that rather than straining to pull open heavy glass doors, maintain my shaky balance when reaching for things and allowing me to feel more secure because while she is retrieving things I am able to keep an eye on my surroundings. I am excited to continue to work with Shilo and see our partnership.

Team Training: Round Two Day Five

Thursday we took Shilo to the store in the morning and did, indeed, get a much better performance from her on all of the same skills. We then worked on our own in the afternoon. The transition has been very draining physically and emotionally on us all. Shilo and I napped for quite some time after our return from the Safeway outing. I decided after we had both rested not to go out on our own as I had planned with Sue. Instead, I worked all of our skills in and around the hotel. We worked on light switches, pushing drawers and things closed, retrieving items, holding and carry items, counter retrieves, and opening doors.

She impressed the hotel staff by taking the spare key from me and with it in her more doing a paws up on the counter and gently delivering the key with out so much as a tooth mark. She then took a bag of cookies from the staff, got down and handed them to me. My girl is coming along!

Team Training: Round Two Day Five

Today Shilo and I went to the local mall with trainer, Wendy, to take our Public Access Test. Yesterday Sue and I spoke about this and whether or not Wendy would include the task performance portion that Summit adds to the test. I was so impressed by what Shilo and I had already accomplished during our time together, I lobbied to have the task portion included. I am pleased to report we passed and Shilo handled to mall environment for two hours giving no signs of shutting down.

Team Training: Round Two Day Four

Yesterday afternoon Shilo, Sue and I took our training on the road to the local Safeway store. While they do train with the dogs in public this store is not a part of Sue's regular stomping grounds as she lives outside of Anacortes making the environment new for everyone. Well new and unfamiliar does bring out new and unfamiliar situations. Sue wanted to get some photos of Shilo and I working in public so she had also invited a volunteer, Jan, who is a puppy raiser and photographer for Summit. Shilo knows her training and wants to do her best, but the combination of being in a new environment and being torn between listening to her trainer or her new handler pushed her to the verge of a shutdown-- not doing anything at all. She began to exhibit sign of stress and displacement behaviors (her defaults are scratching, looking anywhere but to the trainer,and freezing). I quickly asked her for some simple behaviors that I could reward her for and redirect her from the stress of being unsure about picking up the keys that had fallen near the base of the freezer case. After a few quick sits and downs with reward I was able to redirect Shilo to the keys and she got them! We were then able to get her to perform some more difficult behaviors such as a counter retrieve, carrying an item for a distance while walking with me, and opening a freezer door. We were in the store for about a half an hour but it was clear Shilo had given all she had on this outing. I talked to Sue about going to the store in morning tomorrow as Shilo is definitely a morning girl.

Team Training: Round Two Day Three

Shilo and I are giving team training all we both have. The trainers at Summit are challenging us both with the expectation that we, as a team, will rise to every task put before us. Over the last two days we have succeed, stumbled, celebrated, learned, and been somewhat overwhelmed. Sue has been systematically introducing me to each of Shilo's cues followed by numerous opportunities for me to have her perform each one. While it's obvious Shilo and I have a connection, the process of acquiring the shared language and routines that will allow us to become a service dog team is complicated and slow. This eight day team training is just jump start of a process that we will be engaged in for the life of our partnership. Service dogs are sentient beings that give back what we as partners are willing and able to put in. I have to work hard to be realistic with my expectations of Shilo in check. These expectations cannot be low or high. I must meet her where she is and together we have to move forward. A couple of good examples have occurred over the last three days:

• Shilo is a shepherd mix (probably shepherd cattle dog, but being a stray and rescue, it's anyone's guess). She is also not a natural retriever. Retrieving (or the ability of a dog to take things in their mouth and not shred it) is at the base of many of the tasks service dogs do. She has gone from having no idea why she should pick things up for me to seeking opportunities to retrieve items for me.
• When I came the beginning of the week I came armed with two toys to help me bond with her through play. Again being a rescue, Shilo has always demonstrated little interest in toys. I introduced her to the stuffed terry cloth piggy by Boda and she immediately began playing with it and loves it. She loves to run around the training center playing with it and me.
• I mentioned before that Shilo is a soft dog. Today we were out training in a store and it was nearing the end of the day and the trainer and I both noticed Shilo was beginning to shut down. I quickly rewarded her for doing something simple correctly sand was able to get her to happily complete the task of pulling open the freezer door.