[nabs-l] Over Night College Visit

[Greg Aikens]

Lots of others have given good and not so good advice on this, so I'll keep it short.  Bring your dog with you, if for no other reason that you need to have practice getting your dog to settle in new situations.  I'm not sure when your college visit is, but you could give yourself practice in new environments in the meantime.  That's a phase that all new teams have to go through and its better to address it head on than avoiding situations where it might be a problem.  The fact that you are concerned shows that you are a conscientious handler.  I don't think you have anything to worry about.

You should contact the program and let them know you have a dog out of courtesy for the person you will stay with.  They are inviting you into their "home" and it would be thoughtful to let them know in case they are allergic or have an extreme fear of dogs.  That way you can avoid any awkward, uncomfortable drama.  

Best of luck on the visit.  It will be a great opportunity for you to learn about college life at that school and good practice for advocating for yourself. 

Best,
Greg


 

On Nov 10, 2013, at 10:44 AM, lizzy <lizzym0827 at gmail.com> wrote:

> Hi All,
> I usually just read the outstanding advice given on this list, but now I am in need of some help.  I am currently a senior in high school going not for my first college visit, but to my first over night visit and it is at my number one choice school.  To all of the guide dog users, I've had my lab for about three and a half months now but I'm still undecided about if it would be fair and easier to take her with me on this trip.  My reasons are that I don't know the campus and so she would probably be doing a lot of following (which I know everyone has their own opinions about).  I've taught her things using the cane but it has usually been pretty simple (a specific doorway, bus stop etc) so I'm not sure if it'll work for this or not (since I'll be all over campus).  Also, her behavior is slightly unpredictable (typically she is very excited around new people and she is very sniffy in new places which interferes with her work and doesn't make her look like a trained dog).  I will be sitting in on a class, doing an interview, meeting with the department chair and rooming with a current student and I'm afraid she might offend someone who doesn't like dogs or vice versa someone may see me give a correction and be upset by it.  I haven't requested any accommodations because I don't really think I'll need any since I'll be there for less than twenty-four hours.  But is there anything I'm forgetting? Should I tell them ahead of time about the dog (if I decide to take her)? Any tips you all could give would be greatly appreciated.
> Thanks,
> Lizzy
> 
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