I'm Baaack...I Think

So yeah...I haven't posted for nearly two weeks. Definite fail...although failing at blogging seems to be a regular occurrence for me now.

I think, *knocks on wood* that I'm out of the medical woods. I feel better, and bunches of my problems appear to be vanishing. It's funny. I've had this since I was a kid, but only now am I truly learning about its funky intricacies. It appears I have to learn everything by breaking it. But whatever, now I appear to be feeling better, and normal life appears to be within my grasp. This makes me the happy.

Before I forget, the sixth assistance dog blog carnival is up, has been for a couple weeks. Yeah, I fail. Now I have to go read everybody's stuff. Hmmm I'll be busy.

I must be getting close to normal. I'm scrutinizing random oldies songs. the other day, I heard Barbara Mason Yes I'm ready. I wasn't paying attention, and then I heard "I'm ready to learn to fall in love with you." Learn? Excuse me? Learn? If you have to *learn*, you're not falling in love. I don't know what it is you're doing, but it's not that. It sounds like some kind of sick and twisted arranged marriage song. And is it me, or does she sound drunk out of her mind in that song? It sounds like she's had to get totally plastered just to work up the courage to kiss this dude...I wish I could make JAWS slur its words and say "I'm ready...to learn...chugga lugga glugga.

Then I heard Hey Baby They're Playing Our Song and one line stood out to me. "It's the one with the pretty melody." Yeah, that narrows it down. I mean, come on. There's only *one* song with a pretty melody. The rest of those melodies are all discordant and sound like fingernails on a chalkboard. Well...maybe that would fit *now*, but not so much back when this song was made, which according to Wikipedia, was 1967. What a totally stupid line! But then again, oy...there were quite a few in that song.

This also got me thinking about how Please Mister Please won't make any sense to kids anymore. It'll join rotary phones and broken records and all those things that make them stare at us like we're talking a foreign language.

I have two more observations to add to my pile of silly wrestling-related observations. So far we established that I like the way Lilian says John Cina and JBL's old mooing song was the best. Well, now I have more, and I might as well make fun of myself for them.

Steve was watching some old NWA shows with Gordon Solie and Bob Caudle. I walked in, sat down, and didn't say anything for a minute. Then I couldn't contain myself. I had to ask. I knew who Gordon Solie was, but that other guy sounded...just like Johnny Cash! I asked him, and after he finished laughing his ass off at me, said no. That was Bob Caudle. Come on. Can't you just hear this voice saying "My Name Is Sue! How Do You Do! And Now You're Gonna Die!" No? I'm the only one? Ok then.

And one day, Steve was watching some wrestling and John Laurinaitis came on. I listened for a minute and then said "Whenever he talks, he sounds just like Bill MacKendry!" I don't know how to spell Bill's name, because he's only famous at W. Ross, the school for the blind, but I hope someone reading this, besides Steve, both loves wrestling and knows good old Billie. It would be even more awesome if they happened to have a clip of Bill we could put up. Last night, John Laurinaitis said something about Oksanna, and all I could think was "Tanja?..." Again, that'll only make sense to the people who went to W. Ross at the time when Billie was there. But I seriously can't hear this guy talk without hearing Billie's voice behind him yelling "I want a girl!" Am I alone in this?

And speaking of that old school, remember back when I said it was getting sued? Our buddy Shane found the W. Ross lawsuit in all its glory. Yikes. I'm glad I didn't go there during that era. I haven't a doubt in my mind that stuff like that went down...but when I was there, nothing that attrocious ever happened that I know of, except I think there was still the...um...sexual stuff happening between boys. I never knew about it until after when I would hear things. I do have to chuckle that the term "Braille Jail" made it into a legal filing.

The one thing I can't figure out was the repeated references to things being run by the bell and the whistle and being made to line up. Um, regular schools did that too. You had the recess bell, the lunch bell, the bell for each class, the bell at the end of the day. And yeah, we had to line up. That's how they can keep track of everybody. There must be some context I'm missing. I definitely want to hear how this plays out.

There's this commercial that comes on that makes me laugh whenever I hear it, but I have no idea what it's for. All it says is "I just told my boss I'm in bed with a nasty clown. I meant cold! How the hell do you turn off autocorrect?" I get the sense it's for Telus, but how? Do they have easy to access tech support people? guides on all their phones? What? Other people can't seem to get the message either, as google can't give me a definite answer. But everybody's laughing. Anybody know what the commercial's for? Edit: According to this, it's some kind of free Telus learning centre. here, laugh at it yourself.

The other day, I had something odd happen to me when I was out walking. A girl walked up to me and kept saying I'm gonna get one of those soon! I hope I hope hope so!" At first I assumed she was just talking on her cellphone, but something told me no, she's talking to me. She's talking to me and she's talking about a guide dog. So I asked her what school she was applying to, and she said "The CINB." I think she meant CNIB, so I had to tell her the CNIB doesn't have a guide dog school. She then said "I have workers looking into it." At this point my heart sank. I really think a person making this kind of an investment needs to be the primary person doing the research and looking into it. I asked her to come walk with me so we could talk, but she said she was going elsewhere, so I lost the opportunity to maybe talk to her a little bit. But I hope I see her again, and maybe have a better chance next time. I've never had the opportunity to really offer my experience as something to learn from besides what I write up here. I hope to be able to give to someone else what I got from that other handler so many years ago. But something tells me this person might not have been ready for it. Who knows though?

And I think that about wraps it up. I have other ideas for individual posts, but we'll see what happens. I'm so unpredictable these days.

No! Person, down! Good Person!

The other day I came to a realization that I just had to right down.

Ok, everybody who has a dog knows this. If they've been working to train a dog, and the dog's getting the message that a certain behaviour, like counter surfing or picking stuff up off the floor or chewing on stuff that isn't toys, isn't so good. But they'll still try. I always joke that they say "Maybe today it wont' be bad. Maybe today they'll think it's great that I ate that piece of steak or chewed that shoe." When you catch them at it, they look all sad, as if to say "I know better, you told me I wasn't supposed to do that. I was just hopin', you know, a dog can dream, can't they?"

It's always floored me that people, even if they know better, will still try and pet a service dog. When they get told not to, they say "I know," and get all sad. But I think I've figured it out. People who know they shouldn't but do it anyway must feel especially connected to dogs. Why? Their behaviour is exactly like that puppy in training. "Maybe this one won't care. Maybe today it'll be ok. Maybe this one will thank me...oh I've been busted."

I'm not talking about the ones who don't know, or are confused. I'm talking about all the ones who say "I know I'm not supposed to pet you but..."

I don't know why I didn't think of it sooner! As much as it still bugs me, I think now I might have to chuckle to myself next time it happens, as I picture this person as a dog. Maybe one will be a St. Bernard. Maybe one will be a poodle. Please, next time you see me, don't make me imagine you as a dog! If you know better, do the right thing. Always ask to pet a service animal, ok?

Step Right Up To The Latest Carnival!

Well, here it is. The Assistance Dog Blog Carnival is up. It got delayed due to some pretty hard personal stuff she had to deal with, but it's up. So go hop about, learn some stuff and meet some new people.

The Carnival Is Back!

Back a bit ago, I wrote a post for the second Assistance Dog Blog Carnival. Now, the carnival is live. So you can read about every kind of decision imaginable to do with having a service dog. There's a lot of reading, so hop around, make some new friends, all that great stuff. Most importantly, learn some new things. Have Fun!

Decision Time

I really don't know where time is going. It seems like I just wrote a post for the Assistance Dog Blog Carnival. Now it's time to write another one. Well, It's due on the 17th, but ya know. Close enough.

This topic is decisions. I looked at that blog topic and thought what in the holy hell can I write about decisions? I already basically talked about what helped me make the decision to get a guide dog, so what more could I talk about in this department? Then, it hit me! I could talk about how, contrary to popular belief, getting a guide dog is a decision.

This probably sounds really kinda elementary to everybody with an assistance dog, but I can't count how many people in the general public think that, for a blind person, getting a guide dog is some kind of rite of passage. I've talked about it in this post and a little bit here, but I can't emphasize enough that having a guide dog is not something that is thrust upon you once you reach a certain age, and those who don't choose a guide dog are not inferior. To have or not to have a guide dog is a decision, a big one.

Let me put it another way. Wouldn't it sound pretty ridiculous if someone said, "And when are they going to send you to college?" Nobody would say that, because everybody knows that choosing to go for postsecondary education is your decision. You have to decide if that's what you want to do, then what program you want to take and what school you want to attend that has that program. Then you have to apply and see if you get accepted, and where.

It's the same with getting a guide dog, minus the what program you want to take bit. First, you have to decide if the guide dog lifestyle is right for you. When you get a dog, your life changes in lots of little ways. They're definitely something to get used to. Plus, taking care of this living being is your responsibility now. Do you want that? It's kinda like getting married and having a kid all at once. And it's work. If the dog develops a behaviour you don't like, it's you who has to deal with it and teach the dog that it's not acceptable.

Lots of people decide that they don't want a guide dog. They recognize the enhanced mobility aspect of having a guide dog, but they're just not a dog person. This is important, since your guide dog is a dog first.

Steve, my boyfriend, is one of these. He sees what Trix did for my pace and ability to navigate spaces, and he sometimes thinks that would be cool to have. But he just can't do picking up dog crap. Since you have to do this at least twice a day, it's kind of a deal-breaker. Plus, he has an ankle that randomly gives out, and he doesn't think he could handle having an animal exerting the slight pull that happens with holding onto a harness. I tell him that if he wanted to go this way, they could probably find him a great match, but I understand what he's saying and respect that.

...Which brings me to another point. It seems that some guide dog-handlers have this holier than thou attitude towards those who choose not to get a dog, and I just don't get that. Just because *they* didn't like the cane doesn't mean everybody feels that way. Choosing to walk with a white cane makes someone no less independent than somebody with a guide dog. After all, don't we spend forever pounding it into Joe Public's head that we're the leader of a team? How can we now decide that the dog makes our independence? Sure, for us personally, we may feel that way, but somebody with a cane may feel he's doing just fine and doesn't need a dog.

So you've decided that you're ready for your life to change and you want a dog, and you know what a guide dog can do for you. Now, do you want to train your own, or do you want to go to a school? If you go the school route, which school do you want to go to? I hear the voice of Joe Public again. "What do you mean which school? There's the school, you go there, that's it. What is this which school business?"

Yes, in fact, there are many schools, and they're not all created equal. So you have to do your research and decide which one works for you. Are you willing to travel? Do you need in-home training? What about follow-up? What about help with big vet expenses?

Take me, for example. There's a school nearby, only about an hour away, but after doing some research, I found the consensus about its success rate wasn't good. Plus, I had heard rumblings that if you needed something, there was no guarantee that you would get follow-up. The school I finally decided on this time around had a very good reputation, good services and even help with vet care if you needed it. Plus, their literature was in lots of formats, and it made me feel good that I didn't need someone's help to fill out the guide dog application.

And yes, you have to apply, and the application looks kinda big. You fill out one part, and then you need a medical evaluation and some other forms filled out. Then, at least in the school I chose, they send someone out to see you travel so they know that you would be safe with a guide dog. They also assess your walking pace, stride, all that jazz. But most importantly, you get to ask them lots of questions, which is awesome for the newby handler to be.

Then you have to wait. You wait and wait and wait for word. You find out, if you applied to multiple schools, which ones accepted you. Time to make another decision. What school do you go with? If you haven't heard word from one school, do you hold out? Or, do you take the school that offered you a spot? This guide dog decision-making thing isn't easy, is it?

So you've come home with your guide dog. You've made a lot of decisions that have led to a big commitment. This dog, if all goes well, will be with you for the next 8 or so years of your life. That's huge. This is why I don't understand the general public's thought process that you just *get* a dog.

And then the day will come that your guide dog retires. You have to make another bunch of decisions. Do you want another dog? Or would you prefer to go back to the cane? And whether or not you get a new dog, do you keep the retired dog? If you choose to get another dog, can you, and where you're living, handle two dogs? What will you do to make sure your retired dog is happy and satisfied, even if s/he isn't working anymore as a guide dog? Do you figure out what is involved to get your retired dog certified as a therapy dog and then send him/her into hospitals?

Or, do you place your dog with a family member or friend? Who do you think would have time to meet your dog's needs? Can you handle letting go of being responsible for your dog's care? The decisions don't get any easier.

This post has turned into a monster. And this happens after I think I don't have anything to say. But my point is to hopefully teach somebody that choosing to live life with a service dog is not something to take lightly. Make smart decisions, for they will influence the next several years of your life.

Attacking A Search Queery

I saw the following search on our blog, and I felt it needed a post of its own.

04 Jan, Tue, 16:52:48
Google:
will service dogs attack

Hmmm. Why are you asking this question. Were you attacked by a service dog? Do you want your service dog to be protective? What is the reason for the question.

The thing is they *shouldn't*. They are trained and bred to be gentle. We don't need to be boarding a bus with a potentially vicious beast. They have to coexist with the general public, so they have to be good citizens.

But, a dog is still a dog, and shouldn't doesn't mean won't ever. If it happens, though, a good handler has to ask themselves a whole pile of questions about whether that dog's career should continue.

If you want your service dog to be aggressive, that's the wrong attitude. It's a service dog, not a guard dog, and the service it provides isn't protecting you. If your service dog habitually is aggressive, it will make it harder for my service dog and I to frequent the same place. I thought I had linked to this article, but it appears I didn't. Although a bit out of date since a service animal has been narrowed to dogs only, the aggressive behaviours mentioned in here are reasons why a service dog should never ever be trained to attack. Not only are you potentially endangering other innocent individuals, but you're endangering all of our rights to be able to bring our service dogs in public.

And all that from a few words in a search queery, and the person who wrote it probably won't be back.

Go To The Carnival!

Woohoo! the Assistance Dog blog carnivalis alive! So, go read stuff, hop around, check out other blogs, stuff like that.

Once I've done voting, I'm going to have a lot of reading to do.

Service Animal Has Been Defined

A while back I mentioned that the US Department of Justice was updating its definition of service animal. Well, after lots of deliberation and consideration, they have settled on a definition. I saw this a couple of days ago, but Jill sent it to me again, and nudged me into blogging about it. Sorry that link isn't the best one, but you will find the definition under the heading that reads "§ 35.136 Service animals"

There was a lot of room for things to go very badly, but I think they did a pretty good job. There are three things that make me jump for joy about this wording.

First, all that matters is that the dog is trained to do specific tasks. It doesn't matter who trained it. This means that self-trained service dogs won't be excluded just because they weren't trained by a school. But on the other hand, the issue of the dog being under control and not causing problems is addressed, so woohoo!

Second, emotional support animals are not covered! Yes! Yes! Yes! This means that dogs who only serve to make the person *feel* better don't have the right to go everywhere with them. Often these pooches have no socialization or training whatsoever, and turn out to be a danger to people and legitimate service animals alike.

And third, this will spell the end of every animal under the sun being claimed to be a service animal. No more service birds, ferrets, snakes, full-sized horses, or monkeys. That whole anything can be performing a service thing was a dangerous, dangerous road. A service animal is a dog. It's a dog and that's it.

...

Except, kinda, maybe if it's a miniature horse. This part is the only part of the legislation that confuses the hell out of me. It says a service animal is a dog, but then there's a whole section on miniature horses. I guess businesses have no reason to kick out a dog based on it being a dog, but they can boot a miniature horse if they don't think their place can accommodate the animal. I guess, sorta, I think.

I understand why they did that, but I would hate to be the handler of a miniature horse. I would feel like blind people felt at the beginning when guide dogs weren't widely-used. Everywhere you'd go, you'd have to wonder whether your miniature horse would get asked to leave. I think personally, I would find it so high-stress that I would contemplate getting a dog after my horse retired just to get the full benefits of the ADA.

There are two small parts of the law that minimally concern me. The first is the stipulation that the dog must be with the handler by harness, leash or tether unless having it be tethered or leashed is not possible for the person or does not allow the dog to do its work. Hmm. Can we define that a little better, so people couldn't use that stipulation to just not bother to leash their service animal? I know that some dogs are really good about responding to voice or hand signals, but if they decide that na, I'd like to go say hello to that guide dog over there, the person needs a backup plan. Otherwise, all they end up doing is helplessly going "No! Stop! Stop! No!" And we all know how well that works out with pets.

The other part that concerns me isn't so much the law itself, but the way some idiots may try to use it. It says that a service animal can get hoofed for being aggressive or for not being housebroken. For the most part, I'm happy that provision is there. People can't bring their pets in places, say they're service animals, and then the business has no recourse if the animal behaves badly. But what if for some crazy reason a legitimate service animal has an accident? Trix has never had an accident in a business, but that doesn't mean she won't have one some day. Babs had one accident in a business, but I still would have said she was housebroken. She was on antibiotics, I was inexperienced and didn't give her a chance to relieve...so she made a deposit in the lobby of a bank. So, even if I clean it up and apologize, can I be banned from that business because they deem my dog to not be housebroken? But I guess any law can be twisted to be used out of context, so I can't really blame the law for this one.

Over all, I'd say they did a pretty good job. I hope this definition influences other definitions so that things get tightened up and other places don't have to go through nearly as much trial and error.

Thoughts?

Guide Cats for the Blind

I got this link today, and had a good chuckle. You know how people joke about what would happen if you tried to train a cat to guide? Well, here's what would. I don't think anyone would be signing up for one of these.

Here are the words in case there are no captions on the video. I've gotten to thinking a lot about captioning and videos, more about that in another post. But in the meantime, here are the words. No, I didn't write them down myself, I got lucky this time.

The word 'futile' springs to mind;
Mission Impossible; yes, that's
The attempt to harness for mankind
The intelligence of cats.

You've made a basic error;
Now let me expound;
This master/servant thing's OK
But no, not that way round;

We don't do the faithful subject;
We don't do the daily grind;
You should never have attempted it;
Guide cats for the blind.

Give kitty so much trust
And we'll abuse the privilege;
You think you're going out?
You're opening the fridge.

You think I'm trying to help you?
I'm not serving man but mammon;
You think you've gained a faithful friend;
You've lost a plate of salmon.

I might lead you down the High Street;
I'll be back when I have dined;
We get very, very hungry being
Guide cats for the blind

It can't be very pleasant -
Of this I've little doubt -
To have your head stuck in a cat flap,
Whether facing in or out.

You could be here a day or two
One half out in the rain;
I've got to go; I've things to do;
Maybe I'll pass this way again.

A dog would go for help;
Cats are not that way inclined.
Cats have better things to do than being
Guide cats for the blind.

Of some matters I am ignorant,
But this I know for certain;
The best place for a blind man
Is not halfway up a curtain.

And why should he they have to be
Up on a roof at 4am?
It's the perfect place for me
But what's in it for him?

It was where I had to go
And he just tags along behind
I don't know why; only a fool would follow
Guide cats for the blind.

I once met a man called Pavlov;
From time to time, he rang a bell;
Simple toys make humans happy
But I have to say that, well,

I found it a disturbance, and
Poor chap, I think he knew it,
And soon he only rang his bell
When I wanted him to do it.

Did you ask for our assistance?
If you did, well we've declined;
Here we are, an oxymoron;
Guide cats for the blind.

Good News For Barbie, Not So Much For Carl

Well, I have an update on the dogs that stayed by their master's side when she died and weren't found for two weeks, and it is bittersweet. Barbie has found a home. Carl, unfortunately, couldn't handle all that had happened to the poor boy, suffered a stroke and had to be put down. Poor thing. That would be hard on a dog.

I'm glad Barbie has found a new home. I hope she is loved just as much there.

Give Two Wonderful Dogs A Home

There is an update to this story. Barbie has found a home, and unfortunately, Carl is no longer with us.

I received an email from Megan, you know, Megan with Pasta. I've mentioned her and Pasta before. She told me about a truly sad story, and I figured it wouldn't hurt to spread the word. I never know who reads this blog. So here's the story.

If you or someone you know lives in Southern California, specifically Los Angeles County, more specifically the city of Lancaster, please read this touching story of two great dogs and see if you can help. It seems that a wheelchair bound quadroplegic woman passed away in her home in Lancaster, CA. She had two dogs, Carl, her service dog, and Barbie, a pet, who stood loyally by her side for two weeks, as nobody knew she had died. They had no food the entire two weeks' time but somehow survived the ordeal. Carl is an 8-year-old Australian Shepherd and Barbie is a 7-year-old Cocker Spanniel mix. After being found, the dogs were taken to the LA County animal shelter in Lancaster. They are being held there until May 29th to give relatives a chance to claim them. But, none of the woman's family wants or can take them. The woman's neece is asking that if anyone is interested in adopting them, for them to contact her at _robynmeister(at)hotmail(dot)com (I wrote out the @ and . to prevent potential spamming.) Her name is Robyn Moormeister-Carter, and she can arrange a meeting with her father at the animal shelter in Lancaster to transfer ownership of the dogs before the 29th. After this, animal control gets the dogs and they could be put down if homes are not found.

If you live in the Lancaster area and are interested or if you know someone who is, please consider adopting these loyal companions and/or passing this information along. I hate the idea of any healthy dog being put to sleep, but especially when one of these dogs is a service dog. They've been through so much with watching their person pass away and being without food for two weeks and now are in cages. Its just really sad.

Please consider passing this along to anyone in Southern California who may be interested so these doggies find a new home.

Megan was nice enough to give me some pictures. So here they are.


Just look at those pooches. Somebody's got to want to scoop 'em up and take 'em home.

I know I'm nowhere near southern California, but I never know who reads...so there's the info. Let's find these wonderful dogs a new home, preferrably a home for both of them together!

By the way, here's Megan's
blog. I pop over from time to time.

My Latest Freaky Trixie Dream

I had a really freaky dream last night so figured I'd write it down.

I dreamed I came into a store with Trixie, and someone else's service dog attacked Trix. In the confusion, nobody could figure out which dog was the aggressor, and both of us were saying it wasn't our dog. So, for some reason, they kicked both dogs out of the store while we shopped. I don't know how we accomplished this, but we're in dream land, so whatever.

Someone must have thought our dogs were just random loose dogs, and called the Humane society. When we came out, neither of our dogs could be found. Someone told us what happened, and I flipped my lid. There I was, caneless, with no way to get to the Humane Society to rescue my dog. I tried to call the Humane Society, but I kept getting automated lines telling me how to donate. I couldn't remember the address, and even if I could remember it, I felt I had no way to get there. I was begging people to drive me there, and everyone refused. I started to panic that they would euthenize my dog if I didn't either get a hold of them or get there...and started to hyperventillate...and then I woke up.

What the hell was that? Seriously, what the hell was that? I guess, every now and then, I'm due to have a Trixie abandonment dream.

"My Sister's Keeper" Is A Keeper

A little while ago, my mom told me I should read "My Sister's Keeper" by Jodi Picoult. The next day, what do I see but that very book. I figured it was a sign and read it...and it definitely was a good book.

Remember back when I wrote about saviour siblings? This book is all about that, from the perspective of just such a kid.

Imagine this scenario. There is a family that seems to have it all. They're a mom, a dad, and two kids. Then, the little girl gets a horrible form of cancer, and needs very special cells that no living member of the family can provide. The mom figures out that if they see a geneticist and build just such a baby, they could use the umbillical cord blood to save their little girl...and so, their third child is born.

But because cancer is a bitch, soon the sick little girl needs more cells, cells that the third child can provide. For years, the third child always has to be available to donate cells, tissues, and when she is 13 years old, she is asked for a kidney, and it's just too much. She decides to sue her parents for the right to her own body.

This is another one of those books that is written so well that the family seems very real. After I finished reading it, I would catch myself wondering how a given character was doing, and then slap myself. Yup, I'm an idiot. It's a book. But the characters felt so real, and were so truly complicated that I cried in spots and they felt like actual people with independent thought. Somehow, Picoult mastered the art of making you truly grasp where each character was coming from. Sometimes you hated them for their opinion, sometimes you loved them for it, but by the end, you got it.

I thought it was interesting that she threw in a character with a service dog. What made it even cooler was that she picked someone with an invisible disability, so you got to see how much harassment people with invisible disabilities get who have service animals. I don't blame people for asking questions, but some people can just be, well, jerks about it. I love the constant refrain of "You don't look blind." that Campbell Alexander gets wherever he goes with his dog. But, um, she could have done a wee touch more research about service animals before having characters feed the pooch plates of pasta and coke. If there's anything that screams "pet," it's feeding the thing scraps. And...coke? Are you mad? Who in their right mind feeds an animal coke?

The one thing I could have done without was the stupid romance between the woman who was assigned as the child's advocate and the child's attorney. That was just sixteen zillion kinds of wrong. I'm sure it was meant to lighten the mood, but the whole time the two of them were having long walks on the beach and sunset sails, or fighting about how they handled things in the past, all I could think was "You guys are such shallow toolchests! We have a kid going beep beep beep in the hospital and another one who's pleading to not have her kidney taken from her, and you guys are locking eyes? This is so unethical and so enraging that it's not funny! I don't care I don't care I don't care!" It did nothing to advance the plot, except make me hate both the lawyer and the advocate chick. The lawyer came through and redeemed himself...I'm not sure if I was impressed with the advocate chick at all.

I seem to be the last person on the planet who read this book. Everybody I've mentioned it to says they've read it. Wow. Well, I'm glad I finally did. Thanks, mom, for getting me to find it.

The Disservice Chihuahua Case Is Dismissed

I saw this story, and, at the time, just went "ug!" I didn't have the energy to post it, who knows why. Well, I'm going to now.

Alex Allarie is the kind of person who makes me sick. He claims his chihuahua is a service animal, but he apparently let it sniff around food on a flexi. That is not the way a dog should be permitted to behave. The only reason our dogs are allowed in grocery stores and restaurants is because they are not allowed to get their shnozzes into where the food is. When I'm paying debit, I'm always mindful of where Trixie's nose is resting because there's always lots of chocolate bars and candy near there. I would not want to be accused of letting her sniff food that other people may buy later.

Well,I guess he got all mad, caused a scene, and was kicked out of the store. Keith and Leslie Rouble, the people who own the store, say the reason he got kicked out of the store was because of his yelling and swearing, not because of the dog, But he took them to Human Rights. The people who once owned the store have since gotten out of the business to get away from this guy.

Well, he lost. That's saying something. I think it takes a lot to lose a Human Rights case. It's too bad the couple got put through such hell because of him though. But I'm glad he lost, because this means that just because you claim to have a service animal doesn't mean you can just use that animal to get whatever you want.

I sincerely hope that couple doesn't think we're all that bad. Really, most of us are vigilant about our dogs and care about making sure our dogs don't cause trouble for others.

This guy could set us all back years if he keeps this shit up. He plans to appeal. Good luck with that.

Can They Train A Dog To Help People With Conscience Damage?

This just makes me angry. I saw this a couple of days ago, but I was either running out the door or too tired to try and post about it.

This whole thing started when a Hamilton woman wanted to find a trainer to train her family dog to perform some kind of tasks for her son who was severely brain-damaged. She found Jacqueline Wilson, who turned out to be a con-artist. Wilson said she had 20 years of training experience, which she didn't. She took $6000 from the family, and helped them raise $9000 more from the community. Then she took their dog to train it, and didn't give it back at the specified time. They had to track the dog down with the help of the police. The poor thing not only hadn't been trained, but it hadn't been properly taken care of either.

Now, the woman filed a complaint, and it ended up going to provincial offenses Court. Wilson didn't bother to come to that hearing, but was convicted anyway, and sentenced to 15 days in jail, 24 months probation and $10000 restitution. The police tracked her down 12 days later, and threw her in the big house.

How low could she possibly go? Not only did she screw over a family who was obviously in need, and exploit a generous community, but she neglected their dog too. That poor beast. Who knows if it had become aggressive because of the neglect.

And why the hell isn't she required to pay back the whole $15000? She took 6 grand from the family and 9 grand from the community. She should be required to pay back every red cent.

I feel for the family. They were likely looking for hope, and she seized the opportunity and took them for all they had. I mean, who knows if their family pooch *could* be trained to perform tasks and be socialized to the public. How old was the dog? What kind of temperament did it have? Was it already exposed to a lot of stimuli so that going everywhere would not be a problem? I think of that disservice dog I met last year, and wonder if it was a family pet that the person had trained, and *thought* it was ready to go out in public and function as it should. People think that any dog can be trained to do anything. They don't know how many dogs at school get career changed. They just hear about lots of dogs with jobs and think they all can do it. And that's probably what this family thought. If Wilson was a decent trainer, she should have warned them that this dog may not be able to do what they want, and taken the dog's age into account and all that stuff. But we already know Wilson was not a good trainer.

And please don't think I'm blaming the family with my next little passage, but how much research did they do into this trainer? Did they find other clients? What had she managed to train their dogs to do? If you're going to place your dog in the hands of someone who is going to do a pretty sophisticated task, and pay them a significant amount of dough, make sure they're up to the challenge.

Also, what did the family know about service animals? What did they know about what they're required to do, what behaviours were unacceptable? How did they want the dog to help their son? Is what they wanted even in the realm of possibilities? So many people go into getting a guide dog or any assistance dog with rose-coloured glasses on. They feel the possibilities are infinite. There's a lot of possibilities, but it's all about the team. The person, the dog, the environment. If one of those is off, it's not gonna work.

I'm not saying this to necessarily criticize the family. I feel for them. But I'm saying this to open other people's eyes so that maybe, scumbags like Jacqueline Wilson can't take them for all they're worth too.

So Long, Ed Eames. I Never Knew You, But Thank You

The other day, I heard that Ed Eames wasn't doing well and was probably not going to make it. Now, I've heard the news that he's gone, and I feel like such an idiot for not knowing exactly who he was. I had seen the name in connection with guide dog-related advocacy projects, and knew he was quite active. That's an understatement. He co-founded IAADP, which we have linked over on the side. That's no small feat! My god he must have worked his tail off to get all those sponsorships. All guide dog users owe a lot to him whether we know it or not. I only wish I had met him.

Here is the press release I received. It has all the necessary info if people feel the need to donate or send cards or whatever.

It is with great sadness that I report the death of my colleague and one of the assistance dog movement's greatest champions, Ed Eames, Ph.D., IAADP's (International Association of Assistance Dog Partners, www.iaadp.org) co-founder and President.

Ed's spouse Toni (also blind and partnered with her guide dog) has asked that in lieu of anything, contributions in Ed's honor to IAADP would be most appreciated. We have set up a special Memorial section with a few photo highlights to remember Ed by, as well as an opportunity to make a memorial donation at www.iaadp.org. We also invite you to leave a personal message that Toni would like to collect for a keepsake book for our organization. Alternatively, your gifts or cards can be mailed to: Toni Eames at 3376 N. Wishon, Fresno, CA 93704.

Ed had successful heart surgery two years ago. Very recently a blood borne infection sent him to the hospital. Recovery looked very positive until ten days ago, when several debilitating strokes occurred and quickly claimed his life. Ed was called to our Lord at dawn on Oct. 26.

IAADP was launched in 1993 at a historic meeting organized by Ed, Toni and Joan Froling in St. Louis, held in conjunction with the Assistance Dogs International Conference. Its overall mission has been to empower disabled persons with guide, hearing and service dogs to work together to foster the assistance dog movement through our global networking publication, "Partners Forum," many important advocacy and education campaigns, peer support projects, our website and conferences that enabled partners and programs to learn from each other. We have grown from a handful of advocates to more than 2500 Partner members over the last sixteen years, led by a volunteer board of assistance dog partners elected by the membership.

Ed was our friend and an extraordinary advocate. He forged relationships with corporations around the world and with his easy going "ask" brought untold benefits to us. Ed knew full-well that the majority of us teamed with guide, hearing and service dogs were on the lower income scale. His advocacy to garner support for our canines was only matched by his tireless advocacy for our access rights. Among other things, Ed and Toni also traveled throughout the USA each year and to other countries with their guide dogs, lecturing at veterinary schools and veterinary conferences about the special role that veterinarians play in maintaining the team, to educate them about IAADP, raise disability awareness and to ask veterinarians to consider free or discounted veterinary services for assistance dog teams.

There will be a memorial service for Ed in the near future. I'll provide further details about that as they become available.

Please join me in saying Good bye to my dear friend, Ed Eames. And to Toni, join me in support of the next chapter of her life. We can not fill the void left but we can walk with her.

Yours truly,
Kevin

Kevin Frankeberger, Ph.D., CFRE
Board Member, IAADP
www.iaadp.org

Some Thought Dribbles

Here are a few things I've been thinking about. I thought about putting some of them in my last monster thoughts post, but it was starting to take on a life of its own, so I figured I'd best save them for another time.

My friend told me a story about something they saw while out at Wal-Mart. My friend saw someone, I can't remember if it was a dude or a chick, come into Wal-mart with a yapping small dog in a crate. when the greeter said the dog couldn't come into the store, the person claimed it was a service dog, and then shoved past the greeter, running over his feet with their cart!

Ok, first of all, what's a dog going to do for you if it's in a box? Never mind that it's acting like a tool, how is it going to perform a service while in a crate?

And second, none of us have the right to shove past people and just barge into the store, running over the greeter. In days gone by, when things were still being fought for, people had to do that a lot more, but that was a different time. Even then, I doubt anyone would physically bowl folks over. If the person had a real service dog, they would have either called the police themselves or asked to speak to a manager or something. Crunching the greeter's feet with the cart just isn't acceptable. But this does make me ask a question. What if the greeter calls the police on person with yappy dog in the box, and because police have been educated that service animals are granted access, the police tell the greeter they can't be the judge of whether or not a dog is a legitimate service animal, so they have to let the dog in? Would that happen? Or would the police be able to ask questions like "why is the service animal in a box?"

I don't know why each case like this bugs me so much. Hopefully all this crap can get straightened out and, when the dust settles, there will be very few legitimate service dogs who get denied access when they shouldn't.

Remember when I was talking about my troubles with Meetup? Well, I think there might be some progress. they said I should talk to the manufacturers of my screen-reader, so I did. I then spoke to Meetup to ask if there was a way for them to give my screen-reader developers a dummy account so they could see the page that was giving me so much trouble. After much back and forth, to the point that I had to get snippy and ask that they please read my messages before responding, I think we're getting somewhere. They agreed to give a coupon to the good folks at Freedom Scientific. Now all I have to do is get the folks at Freedom Scientific to follow through. We will see.

This brings me to a small tech support pet peeve I have. Lately, when you open a tech support issue with any company, you are given a ticket number, and "in order to expedite things," you are supposed to use this ticket number when sending any emails to do with said issue. So, why is it that when I do use the ticket number, half the time, I get responses that look like the support person hasn't read the whole history of the issue? isn't the reason for the ticket number so that the tech support folks can quickly track the history of an issue? If they're not going to track the history, why bother having these ticket numbers? Then tech support folks wonder why they get messages that say "Please read my message fully before responding." I know I sound like a bitch, but if we're supposed to be improving efficiency, let's improve it. I usually don't get mad until I've gone back and forth on an issue a few times. Then I wonder why I'm keeping this number at all, and I get a little mad. If there was no reference number, I would be more understanding. But there is a system in place. People, use it!

I complain a lot about people, but I'd like to thank a lady who I ran into the other day. It was that hot day when I saw those dogs in that hot car. Stupidly at the last stop, I hadn't gotten some water for Trixie. I had her dish, but I just hadn't asked for water. Suddenly, Trixie was asking for water. This side of the street was pretty residential. I could have crossed back over, but that parking lot was insane, so I didn't relish doing that. So, I got under a tree and waited for someone to pass so I could ask them if there was a little store nearby that I could nip into and get Trix some water. Soon enough, a lady came by on a bike. I asked her, and the news wasn't good. But she said she only lived five houses away, so she'd just run home and get some water. For that, I was eternally grateful.

It's funny. Whenever I do any of these little jobs testing a website, noone can understand what I do. It's like they ask me what I do and then get confused or tune out half-way through. It was especially bad the last time. People would sort of get that I made sure a website worked well with JAWS, but when they asked me what that website was, they were super confused. I would tell them it was more than just a website, it was the system used by lots of schools to handle their online course stuff. So the schools would make the courses, this company's system would make the courses' online stuff run. And then I'd get a blank look. I should just say I do computers or I do internet things. I think that might work.

I think that's about it for now. Hmmm. that came to a quick end.

Yikes

Every time I read this story, I feel sick.

Stephen M. Bottila went into a McDonald's with his service dog, a dog who detects his seizures. The manager let him eat there and the dog was sleeping under the table. Then, for some unknown reason, the manager called police to have him removed. What the hell? When they came, he said he wanted to file a complaint against the manager, but they said he had to leave the place first. He refused, and then they ended up tasing him. Now he's in jail and his dog is in the humane society!

What kind of crap is that? If the dog was causing some kind of a problem, I'd understand the police being called. But it was doing what it should have been. And if the dude started punching the officer, which was never mentioned, then I'd understand the tasing. But this just sounds ridiculous. I think the police in Madison need some serious retraining, and a few need to be fired. Maybe they'll end up in Philadelphia doing blind tests.

My First disservice Dog Encounter

I met my first disservice dog in person yesterday, you know, somebody's dog who they're saying is a service dog, but it's obvious that the dog sstill needs some serious tweaks in training.

I went to a public meeting about that roundabout they want to build in the middle of town, and in walked a woman and her dog. Trixie was already under the table. The first thing this other dog did was bark, and then lunge at Trixie. I asked the lady I was with if this was in fact a service animal and she said that it was. The person managed to drag the barking thing away while it continued to yap. Throughout the meeting, it would wake up and start barking. Then, as Trixie and I were trying to walk through the City Hall, the dog was walking in a far from orderly fashion, barking, and causing Trixie to spook some. the final straw was at the end. The dog crouched in the corner and growled at Trixie as we went by. I cannot say for sure, but it sounded like it was poised to pounce. I heard not one utterance from the handler while it was in pounce and growl mode. the only time I heard something was one occurrence of the handler saying "Stop barking!" after it had been barking all meeting. Hey lady, ever heard of teaching the dog the command quiet? Ever heard of a little thing called consistency? Yeah, that's a fine service animal ya have there. How about managing its behaviour? How about if it's not ready to be in public, don't bring it to a meeting, and if it is acting like an ass, explain that you're still training it and work on it, don't just skitter off?

It's crap like this that has the potential to cause so much damage to the rest of us who try to keep our dogs behaving well. these people who don't understand what a service dog should be have to know that part of a service dog's role is to coexist and be unobtrusive in public. The dog, once it is claimed to be a service dog, is not entitled to act like an ass. Further, behaviour like that could set us all back decades in the privileges legitimate service animals have earned.

I need to read up on the laws and find out if business owners here have the right to hoof any service animal who is threatening other people. I know some places in the states have that provision.

It angers me that noone wants to be brave enough to stand up for the rights of the rest of us. They're so afraid of lawsuits. Every time I wanted to talk to her, I was hustled away as if I was in the wrong. "keep the peace," they say. "Keep the peace." What if that service dog had bitten my dog? What if it was bigger and capable of doing more harm? What if it had succeeded in terrorizing Trixie all meeting and then trixie developed a fear of fellow service dogs and dogs in general? Does this woman want to be responsible for the early ends of careers of legitimate service dogs?

Arg. Every time I think about this, my blood pressure rises. Well at least I've written it down now.

Noah's Service Ark

This article is a really great summary of why the service animal mess is such a mess. Just to muddy the waters more, they should have included the case of Estelle Stam.