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.

Example of the of the Rigors of public access work

Shiloh surround by people and lying down calmly

Shiloh being pet by children

Shiloh being pet and surrounded while calmly holding a down

All work and No Play- Work Life Balance in Teams

Members of the public often have the idea that service dogs never get to "just be dogs". This assumption couldn't be farther from the truth, especially if a team plans to function for many years to come.The balance between working together and playing together is one that begins to be established as soon as you and your SD (or potential SD when owner training) enter into each others' lives beginning with the definition of play  for each.

 Common Dog Definitions of Play

1. Play is mutual. I want to play with you!
2. Favorite dog games include Tag, Chase, Keep Away, Sharable toys, Hide and Seek.
3. Play is enjoyable for both of us, if you are not having fun it lessens my fun.

Common Human Definitions of Play

1. Playing with your dog means toys and other dogs.
2. Play is fetch and tug.

The real definition of play of course is any activity that gets both you and your SD smiling, laughing, enjoying each others company, and leaves you both feeling recharged and connected. Teams that play together everyday strengthen their bond, lessen the effects of a stressful world, maintain training, gain insights into each others personalities, improve team members health both physically and mentally. I seem to get partnered with dogs whose sense of play requires me to "lighten up" and be able to take a well timed joke. --Yes, dogs can be practical jokers, especially those clever enough to be service dogs.-- Both Bastien and Shilo's sense of humor spanned the spectrum from out right goofiness to well time jokes including hiding right behind me, to the ever popular squeal inducing goose and sneak slurp.

Learn More About the Importance of Play for People and Dogs

1. Play and kids- http://udel.edu/~roberta/play/
2. Play, Creativity, and Lifelong Learning: WHY PLAY MATTERS FOR BOTH KIDS AND ADULTS-http://www.helpguide.org/life/creative_play_fun_games.htm 
3. Autism and Play (Book) http://books.google.com/books?id=ujE6lxdMG5IC&printsec=frontcover&dq=play+autism&source=bll&ots=574regUp8o&sig=V45TmR1psFmAAHoMHOcEpiZ3bp0&hl=en&ei=QO69TLl8kPazA_LmoMQM&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=15&sqi=2&ved=0CG4Q6AEwDg#v=onepage&q&f=false 
4. Dog Play & Exercise: Tips on what type of exercise/ play and how much is appropriate-http://hssv.convio.net/site/DocServer/dog_playandexercise.pdf?docID=1117 
5. Play with your Dog by Pat Miller http://www.dogwise.com/itemdetails.cfm?ID=dtb1011 
6. Play Together - Soft Cover Book-HAPPY AND HEALTHY PLAY BETWEEN PEOPLE AND DOGS: Play is fun and frolicsome, but it is powerful stuff! Learn how to use it to enhance your relationship with your dog. http://www.patriciamcconnell.com/product/play-together-stay-together

7. Dog Games You Can Play if You are Physically Impaired-http://www.whole-dog-journal.com/issues/16_6/features/dog-games-physically-impared_20758-1.html

    

Whole Dog Jounal- Dog Care When You're Down

The latest article from  the Whole Dog Journal, Dog Care When You're Down, gives its readers a glimpse into living with dogs when a person is sick, injure or recovering from some sort of medical procedure. As the population ages and people must figure out how to care for their furry companions with less physical capacity I am sure we will see more of these articles. Don't miss my article,

Dealing with Low Energy,Illness, or High Pain Days, which deals with setting up supports and plans for those of us living with chronic issues to ensure our dogs are well cared for.

Multilingual Dog Relief Area Request Card

I thought I would share this multi-lingual card I created for a co-worker to use to better communicate with those providing her gate assistance at airports. It features four different images that are used indicate relief areas at the top with the phrase "Please take me to the dog relief area" in English, Spanish, French, Japanese, and Hindi.
Cut of the extra at the top, fold in half, and laminate! Voila!

Service Dogs in College Residence Halls or Domitories

This article comes from a question from a reader. Service dogs are meant  to allow for greater independence; college being the first time a lot of young adult with disabilities are away from home and familiar  supports is a common time for people to want a service dog. Preparing for, caring for, and living with service dog in a dorm/residence hall situation is no easy task; while some of the considerations may be the same as for any multiple dwelling scenario (i.e. apartments, condominiums, hotels) this living situation also holds some particular challenges and considerations.
Similarities to an apartment/condo:

• You are requesting a reasonable accommodation and therefore may be asked to go through a specific process where in you provide documentation that a service dog is needed to mitigate your  disability allowing you equal access to the facilities and services of the dwelling. sometimes this can be a headache and some what complicated so give yourself plenty of time to complete the process.
• You may be require to show proof that your service dog is in compliance with local animal control regulations for example licensed and vaccinated.
• You may need to sign that you have read, understand, and agree to comply with pet policies regarding maintaining control of you dog (keeping them on leash), where your animal may eliminate and clean up responsibilities, your responsibility for any damage to the property or other people caused by your dog, you will not knowing harbor a dangerous animal (an animal with a bite history is considered dangerous in most places).

• Violating the pet policies can be grounds for eviction

 Differences From an Apartment/Condo: 

• There are many spaces that are shared such as bathrooms and lounges that may present special challenges as far whether your dog is on duty, off duty, or some middle ground.
• You are living with people who for the most are out on their own for the first time and sometimes setting boundaries and rules can be a challenge, especially when all you want to do is to fit in.
• You are living under the campus animal policies 24/7 and violating them may be grounds for eviction even if you feel like you are "at home" and should be able to  do what you would "at home" because you are on campus property 
• The sometimes erratic schedules and behavior of college students could hard for a service dog to adjust to

Say What? Maintaince Training for Service Dogs

Anniversaries and follow-up visits have a way of showing you how far you have come along with anything you may have let side;however, inadvertently.   We received high praise from Wendy at Summit for how well our public access manners and tasks have been maintained, though, I admitted that the emergency phone retrieve has gotten dropped since we no longer have a land line. I really must work on getting the cue back in use with my cell phone since it is my life and safety on the line. As  teams move through life it is common for things to slip or for things to get dropped because handlers and dogs begin to engage in anticipatory learning where in they put together strings of actions/cues and will perform behaviors without waiting to be asked. Many human partners think this predictive behavior is wonderful, and in some instances it is. However, I have come the conclusion that these short cuts if allowed to develop freely and without thought to possible hazards are very dangerous to our canine partners.

Example1: You and your dog are riding the lift transport service and  your service dog cannot ride the lift with you, so they must wait in the van until you can collect them at the front door. The dog anticipating you to call them begins to come out the door before being called and before you are there to collect them. I will leave the horrid possibilities to your own imagination.

Example 2: Your service dog faithfully retrieves everything you drop and has done this for you so often that the dog comes running whenever it see or hears anything hit the floor in your vicinity.  While this may not seem like a big deal and even helpful, what if you drop something glass and it shatters or the lid goes flying off your med bottle since you where trying to get the lid on when you dropped it.

Now, anticipatory learning does have a place in a service dog partnership, but we humans must be careful about the behavior chains that develop and nip ones that could be dangerous to us and/or our canine partners in the bud before they become habits that are exceeding difficult to break. This is where maintenance training takes center stage. If you regularly practice all your dogs behaviors from basic obedience to elaborate chained behaviors such as tugging open a door or get help, you are much more likely to prevent these short cuts from developing in the first place. You will also want to correct your dog for "blowing" cues (as I and many others call it) straight off by sending them back to the start and having them do it correctly. For dogs having a no reward marker or a cue reminder can help them know when they are about to make a mistake and give them a chance to change their mind before making the mistake.

How do you know if a Behavior needs brushing up?

• You (or someone in your circle) can't remember the last time you used a particular cue
• The dog's response to a cue has become slow or sloppy
• The cue is essential for you/your dogs safety (i.e. come, emergency down, get help, waiting at open doors)
• The dog seems to have stopped paying attention to a given cue altogether (Tip: did you inadvertently change the cue. It happens all the time. It is really easy to change a cue in just a few repetitions of the pattern New Cue + Old Cue= Behavior for the dog to go "oh this =that" and the old cue is no longer needed. Unfortunately, it can take us humans a bit to figure out what is the cue the dog is now responding to)
• You need a particular cue to be reinforced so that you can build a new behavior with it.

Finding Time for Maintenance Training

People often claim they don't do something because they think that it needs a lot of time. The amount of time needed to maintain given depends on several factors: how often it is used and actively reinforced/rewarded, if the dog finds to behavior itself rewarding, and how complicated/difficult the behavior is, and the tendency of the dog in question to assume that a behavior that hasn't been used/reinforced in a certain period of time is just taking up memory needlessly. The more simple, easy to perform and frequently used behaviors can be easily maintained in a few short repetitions,the more complicated the behavior the more you may need to make a specific effort to practice it, especially if it is not something you need the dog to do on a regular basis (say at least a couple of times a week) like getting help or dialing 9-1-1 on speed dial.

• Before you give your dog anything or answer a request as for a behavior any behavior the dog knows or is working on will due
• While waiting in line, for the bus or whatever
• When your dog seems bored to you
• During your lunch, coffee or other breaks in the day
• When you need a distraction
• During the course of normal day, give cues as you go along to keep your dog engaged
• As a new section to your daily fitness routine. Spice it up for both you and your dog.

Assistance Dog United Campaign

While reading some information for my day job I stumbled across mention of the Assistance Dog United Campaign! This is complete news to me as I'm sure it will be to many of you. Below is a short description of campaign taken from their site ( the links and bold face font were my additions):

The Assistance Dog United Campaign (ADUC) is a health and human welfare organization which provides financial assistance to individuals who have the need for an assistance dog but have difficulty in raising the necessary funds and to people and programs whose purpose is to provide assistance dogs to people with disabilities. 

The ADUC Board of Directors raises funds for assistance dog placements, for grants to support industry research and development efforts and specific provider program development projects, and for scholarships for individuals attending the Bergin University of Canine Studies in pursuit of an Associate of Science degree in Assistance Dog Education. ADUC's funding for assistance dog placements is unique in that seventy percent of the donations are earmarked as vouchers.

News: Human Foods Poisonous to Pets

From Yahoo: Here is a handy list of the top common foods that are toxic to your pet along with tips on what to do if your pet happens to get a hold of any of these substances.
The list:

•  Avocado
• Onions, onion powder, chives and garlic
• Grapes and raisins
• Yeast dough
• Left-over bones
• Foods with a high salt or fat content
• Chocolate, coffee, alcohol
• Sugarless candies (products sweetened with xylitol)
• Macadamia nuts

Learn why these foods are dangerous          

Service Dog Handling Tip #1: Out of the Way

Knowing the place where your dog will be most out of the way is one of of the arts of top notch service dog handling.
Moving furniture should be of very last resort and you need to teach your dog curl up. A good way to teach this this to dog not natural curler is to a blanket and teach the dog that it must keep all it's parts on the blanket. You fold the blanket successively smaller over time, still asking the dog to all their appendages with in confines of the blanket.  Your dog should also be trained to go on cue to all the following placements:
-In front
-Left side
-Right Side
-Behind
Furthermore your dog should see your equipment as an extension of you and be more than happy to curl up tight against a wheelchair/scooter/Walker. Which means they have to trust that you will not move without fair warning.
Your dog needs also to be comfortable going under:
Tables, Chairs, Benches, your legs

Common Places a Service dog can be out of the way in a public:
-Under the table
-Under your chair
-Under your legs (usually means you have to scoot your chair back a bit)
-In a corner
-Next to your chair against a wall
-In between your and your table partners chair

Finally your dog should be comfortable with people stepping over them.
Overtime an experienced dog will naturally gravitate to the most out of the way placements, because they do not want to get stepped on!And all working dogs do get stepped on from time to time. A solid dog will take these rare incidents in stride. The most common situations a dog may get stepped on despite the best efforts to be out of path:
-The bus/subway/train
-Movies/theater house (can you say dark)
-Bars (generally not a great place for your dog)

Video: Susquehanna Service Dogs: Enjoy the Journey

This great video from Susquehanna Service Dogs out of Pennsylvania shows the life of a service dog candidate from puppyhood to team training. For it was kind like a Where's Waldo of identifying the different stages and training exercises.Here I caught:

• Whelping box with litter mates
• First semi-solid food (yumm)
• Intro to a kneeling bus
• Interacting and being patient with a small child
• Greeting older dog
• Wearing strange items like jingle bell collars and antlers
• 101 things to do with a box (clicker game)
• Parachute tunnel
• Novel surface gauntlet-look at that puppy's tail waggin' with excitement
• Visit-with head gently in lap
• Down-stay while being stepped over
• Down-stay at a distance-look that happy engaged face
• Wait until released to eat watch the drool string!
• Tug open a door
• Distance recall
• Leash retrieval
• Heeling next to a power chair (note bungee leash to make sure does not get caught in the drive wheels)
• Heeling next to a manual chair
• Providing light forward momentum using a handle and body harness
• Stopping on  stairs
• going under something

An action packed  three and half minute video... Did see anything I missed?

Reflections on the purpose of a Leash for a Service Dog Team

Leashes are a fact of life for the majority of dogs in this day and age where wide open spaces void of the dangers of cars, dogs who don't speak canine, and people so crowded they often can't find the space the would like to avoid the things they dislike or fear.
Leashes are meant to place finite limits of what a dog can get too, the fact that they can't go alone, how fast they can get there, and provide the ability to catch a dog when needed. When I got my first service dog candidate I, like a lot of people, that my leash was something akin to power steering...I was a neophyte dog trainer, I didn't know better. In other words, I had a leash the dog had to go where I went and do what I wanted. If I told my dog to do something and it did not the leash, and my use of it could make them do what I wanted(as long as the leash stayed connected and the dog did not decide to over power me). As I went along along and gained more experience working with dogs, I learned just how incorrect this attitude towards leashes was and have worked to improve my training abilities and other methods of communicating with my dogs. A leash is a safety device and simply a connection to your dog; however, it is dangerous for it to be the only thing connecting your dog to you. Service dogs must be on leash in most places while working in public, since service dogs are not exempt from animal control laws. Leashes can and do break along with getting yanked free and dropped. Service dog handlers must be confident that if that leash drops or breaks that they will not lose the help that their service dog provides, simply because they are now free.
Basic Skills a Service Candidate Needs (readers please add any you feel I missed):

• Stop on cue
• Solid off leash recall (see: Really Reliable Recall)
• Solid Heel
• Drop/down on cue both close to you and in place
  
• Sit on cue both close to you and in place
• Wait before crossing any open door or threshold until released (My release words are either Break or Free since they do not occur as often in everyday conversation as words like Okay; therefore they are less likely to lose meaning over time)

Intermediate Skills:

• Retrieve dropped leash to handler ( I used this behavior with great success as an incompatible behavior for my first SD Bastien to prevent the freedom run. As a very novice trainer I screwed up the recall and discovered along the way the concept of incompatible behaviors and was saved! This concept I really understood and was able to use to fix many of my training gaffs. 

Leashes are a very personal pieces of equipment and should be comfortable to use for both dog and handler. When choosing a leash think of how it will be used and who is using it.

• Does the person prefer a lighter or heavier leash.
• Is there a material preference? Cotton, Leather, Nylon, climbing rope, etc.
• What Leash size and type is appropriate for the size and type of dog attached to it?
• General Length for public access work is 6' or less. As a manual chair user I tend to prefer 4'-5' max as any longer and the slack tends to get run over unintentionally from time to time.

 

News: Milk-Bone Sponsors Documentary on Service Dogs

Pet treats brand Milk-Bone wants to show the world “through a dog’s eyes” in a documentary airing on the Public Broadcasting Service’s network of TV stations this spring.

“Through a Dog’s Eyes,” as the documentary is called, shows what happens when service dog recipients are matched with their canine companions for the first time. Read More
The Show will air April 21st on Public Television stations

News: La Vergne welcomes 'classmate'

Sixth-graders at La Vergne Middle learned how to interact with their newest classmate Tuesday afternoon.
This new student is a little different from the other middle schoolers. Salsa won't have to take tests, do homework or read any books. Instead, her only job is to follow student Destiny O'Brien around and to warn those around her when she is about to have a seizure.
The golden retriever is considered Rutherford County Schools' first service dog. Read More

Service Dog Stuff: Tips for Lightening your Load while Working a Service Dog

Let's see.... Leash, poop baggies, vest/harness, towel/blanket, water bowl, chew toy, food/teats (maybe), door pull, wallet, coat.... is that everything?  Service dogs come with a lot of stuff and use a lot of tools that the handler must have with them in order to ensure their service dog can complete all the tasks their handler needs. Over the years I have picked up a few tricks to lighten my and my service dog's load when out working, and I would like to share them with you (I hope my readers partnered with service dogs will share their tips as well).

Watering a Service While Out
There are a number of ways to accomplish meeting your service dogs thirst; the most common being a Collapsible Water Bowl, however, I find these types of bowls awkward to handle, hard to dry completely, and eventually mold growing. Here are some ways I have found that work to water my service dog while working that do not require either of us to carry more than we would have (and that work for my fine motor limitations).
1.Ice cubes. Ice cubes are a great way to quench a service dog's thirst and bond with your dog (since most dogs love ice cubes!). I usually ask for a small cup of ice from the restaurant, coffee stand or whatever. I have never had anyone refuse my request. Note I only do this at places I am patronizing.It's kind of bad form to do otherwise.
2.Teach your service dog to drink from a water bottle. This can be easily accomplished by using a sport top.You dribble the water out slowly while your service dog licks (like a hamster bottle). You can use the same water bottle with the lid still on or if you don't want to drink from the same lid as your dog remove it and enjoy a cool drink yourself.
3. Float your dog's food. This a way of being sure they get a certain amount of water. It's also handy when traveling with your dog to combine food and water this way as you can speed up the process and only need one bowl.

Cleaning up After your Service Dog
Most handlers (including me) buy some form of those little plastic blue/black poo baggies. I have an Outward Hound poo bag dispenser velcroed to my wheelchair. However, it is possible to run out. Plastic grocery bags and plastic sandwich  bags make just as good poo bags.


Keeping Your Service Dog Comfortable (and Clean)
I know many handlers who lug about bath mats and other types of dog blankets to keep their service dogs comfortable and clean on long down stays on dirty floors. I, for one, find it much easier to have my service dog help me off with my coat and then let them lay on it. This practice allow them to be comfortable, clean and dry, without requiring us to lug around something extra. Plus, it's soothing for the dog because it smells like you!

Have Leash, Have Ever ready Door Pull 
I use a six foot cotton web leash that I tie a handle in the middle. I use this as a door pull one of two ways:
1. Tie the leash to the handle and have the dog pull on the excess length.
2. Hook one of the handle to the doorknob and have the dog pull

From Bastien working

Tell Tail Signs of the Culture and Concern Over How a Service Dog and Handler Should Behave

It is the day to day things and the little interactions that at once make me proud to be a half of a working service dog team; while also worry about our future. Shiloh and I will celebrate our one year anniversary in a little more than a month and we have come a long way in that time. I needed to send a package FedEx today for my second job, so Shiloh and I boarded the bus. Shiloh is very uncomfortable riding the lifts and it is not absolutely necessary that she does so, so in the interest of both safety and keeping her happy about working I send her up first when boarding. She waits for me at the top of the stairs and then we go to the wheelchair spot and settle in. When de-boarding she waits on the bus, until I call her after getting off the lift. I always tell the drivers how we board and de-board so they will feel confident that me and my service dog have a plan. Today we had a driver we have had before and she remarked how well behaved Shiloh is and it's too bad not all the "service dogs" are that way. She said two of them got in a fight once. I said it's sad because it makes it even harder for responsible handler and owner trainers. She agreed heartily.  
The second thing that happened today that gave me solace (instead of grimacing like the above) happened just ten minutes later as Shiloh and I were working to enter the Fed-Ex store. I knew these doors were the heavy glass type and so I brought along our special door hook (for most doors our leash works great as a door pull). I really wanted Shiloh to work the door, so when a woman came along and offered to help I said Nno thank you, I would like my dog to do it, but you can go ahead of us if you like." The woman said she wasn't in a hurry and let Shiloh and I work the door. I really appreciated her patience as this door was HUGE and HEAVY, it took Shiloh and I working together to get it open. She allowed us our independence and space. As we went it the door I thanked her for allowing my dog to work. This made me feel great!
The third thing that happened today once again gave me cause to worry. Shiloh and I were walking back to the bus depot I passed a local antique mall with a sign on the door that read "Service Dogs Only" Great right? Yes until you read the second line of the sign that read "Must be on leash." Why would a service dog not be on leash, service dog handlers must comply with leash laws same as everyone else.
The final vignettes from today happened on the bus on the way home. I got on the bus and there was another woman in a wheelchair who wanted to know what Shiloh does for me and as soon as I mentioned picking up dropped things and counter retrieves her interest was piqued. She then wanted to know what it was like having a service dog. I did not sugar coat it in the least I gave her the great parts as well as the harder parts to consider. We had been on the bus ten minutes by now and another women who had been standing right in front of us turned and blurted out "I didn't know there was a dog there!" She had been standing within six inches of Shiloh the whole time! I casually said, "That's right a good service dog can be all but invisible sometimes."

HOT: Tips on working a Service Dog in HOT Weather

So last week it got up to 106F where I live, which is unusual living in the North West U.S., so I thought I would share a few things I have learned over the years about keeping a service dog happy, healthy and able to work if need be in the heat. (though I'm sure those living in hotter climates will share additional tips)
1. Exercise in the cooler hours, if at all possible conduct your business in these hours.
2. Know the signs of Dehydration
a. To prevent dehydration in my dogs I will:

• Float their food with water
• Add electrolyte solution to water bowl and water bottles
• Offer water frequently though out the day
• Never shave my double coated dogs, since the coat cools as well as warms.
  

3. Be ware of hot ground/pavement. Dogs feet can and will burn. I have trained my service dogs to tolerate booties. The only brand I have found that I am capable of putting on my dogs are Muttluks, since they pull on like socks I don't need to be able to stand over my dog will they are standing to get them on.
4. Plan to hide in the air conditioning. Air Conditioning is far from common in private homes here. My favorite places to hide include movie houses, book stores, libraries, malls, and coffee shops.

Examples of How Shiloh Increases the Work Flow

Today I saw two great of examples of how Shiloh not only helps me, but allows others to continue their work when before Shiloh they would have had to stop what they were doing to help me (conversely, I would have also had to wait for someone to help me) causing both me and the person helping to slow down their work/activities.

Example One:
I was running down stairs to get the mail from another office. They had a child there who kept running in the hall, so they closed the doors to keep him in. Since the doors are glass the staff started to get up to open the door for me;however, it only took a second for the staff to see Shiloh was doing it and she could keep working with the client she had in front of her.

Example Two:
I dropped something while talking to a co-worker. The co-worker and I were able to continue working while I asked Shiloh to retrieve the dropped item.

The above example may seem insignificant, but the time Shiloh saves myself and those around me by picking up where my capabilities leave off, instead of always having to find someone to help and waiting until they have time to help me.

Can you think of examples like those above where your service dog (or seen a service dog) has saved time and energy as well as allowed activities to continue uninterrupted?

Preventing and Curing Separation Anxiety in Service Dogs

Recently, I read an article Cocoa: don't leave home without him. I was horrified to read this little service dog's reaction to a practice run of being boarded with some family friends before the family went on vacation that they deemed not the best for Cocoa to join them. Cocoa was so traumatized at being left he escaped running more than ten miles over two days, "Cocoa's paws were all raw, his hair was matted and he hadn't eaten for days, but when Skyler and his special friend finally reunited it was as if this was a Hollywood movie! With film crews capturing every jumping, yelping, and "piddling" moment, tears of joy were shed." It is very fortunate that Cocoa was not more seriously injured or killed while lose.
All service dogs, no matter what their job need to be comfortable staying home alone, staying with family/friends, and being crated. There are times when having your service dog with you may not be the best choice for you or them, as well as times they can't be with you and it is up to us to make sure that our dogs can handle being with out us. Examples:

• You are having surgery
• You are in the hospital and so sick as to not be able to care for your dog yourself.
• You are going somewhere not safe for your service dog like a loud concert, a bar, a wild animal park, a private event.
• Your service dog is injured/sick and should not work.
• Your service dog needs to stay at the vet for procedures.
• Your service dog is going to be professionally groomed.
• You have worked your service dog particularly hard for a day, week, or month and decide they need rest.

Many service dog handlers unknowingly create separation anxiety in their service dogs by:

• Having the dog with them around the clock everyday of their lives together. Even medic-alert/seizure alert dogs need to be comfortable being alone.If the paramedics come to pick you up from your home, chances are pretty good the dog will be left behind.
• Allowing their dogs to see them anxious about leaving them. If you're anxious chances are pretty good your dog will be too.
• Believing they are the only one who could possibly care for their service dog. This is a self created problem. It doesn't take that much work to teach a few family members/friends your service dog's basic cues, schedule, and particular care needs. The work pays off in comfort and confidence for both your service dog and yourself should you ever have to be separated. This could be explained to child partners of dogs using human independence examples like why the learn to play alone, learning to sleep in one's own bed, learning to have fun and feel safe at a sleep over/ sleep away camp, or places you don't take your child because it is not safe for them. The child (if able) could be involved in teaching the surrogate doggy carers how to care for their dog, and choosing who/where the dog will stay.

I have no less than five people Shiloh is comfortable with and could stay with if there was a need. I also leave Shiloh behind and go out several times a month and ask her to spend time in her crate regularly. I don't want her injuring herself or getting lost just because I left.

For those of you living with dogs with separation anxiety or looking to prevent I found a couple resources:

• Dog Separation Anxiety - Causes, Signs and Training to Overcome Anxiety in Your Dog

• How to Cure Your Dog's Separation Anxiety:Structure and Exercise Are Key To Helping Your Dog Learn to Live Without You

Books:

1. Canine Separation Anxiety Workbook
2. I'll Be Home Soon- By Patricia McConnell, Ph.D (you'll notice her blog linked here and other books by her in my favorites list. I don't know Ms. McConnell but I find her work easy to understand and put into practice.)

Video: Good Dog U: Separation Anxiety (Animal Planet)

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News: New GPS device Helps Dog Guide Teams Navigate New Places

New Satellite Navigation Device design to work with dog Guide Teams. The GPS device allows the visually impaired user to voice input their destination, then attaches to the harness handle where it vibrates on the left or right for turns. It cost around $1,000. Read the rest of the article.