[nagdu] guide dog responsibilities

Melissa Green graduate56 at juno.com
Thu Dec 3 02:29:04 UTC 2009


Those are good things to consider.
Rebecca thanks for sharing.
You made some really good points.

Sincerely,
Melissa Green
Without Christ I am nothing,  Without me Christ is still God.  It's because 
of Christ I am able to stand!!!
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----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Pickrell, Rebecca M (IS)" <REBECCA.PICKRELL at ngc.com>
To: "NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users" 
<nagdu at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Tuesday, December 01, 2009 7:39 AM
Subject: Re: [nagdu] guide dog responsibilities


> Hi Chris and list.
> I am currently not using a dog. I have a two and a half year old
> daughter, work full time, and at this time in my life, a guide dog is
> more then I want to manage.
> As others have said, you do need to schedule the dog into your day.
> Depending on your circumstances, this is not a problem. For me, it is
> more then I can manage because I need to get myself ready in the
> morning, get my daughter ready which may or may not involve changing her
> bedding, and also make sure my husband is ready for the day. My husband
> has trouble staying on task, especially in the morning so I have to make
> sure he's done whatever needs to be done. If my daughter is cranky or
> more playful then usual, this adds more time to the schedule.
> At night, it's much the same, though we have a bit more time to take
> things easy.
> For me, I think some of the difficulty is that I engage in tasks that I
> can't stop. If my daughter needs an emergency bath, or just takes longer
> in the tub, I can't leave her alone to take the dog out. The same
> applies for when she's eating, I am not comfortable leaving her alone in
> case she were to choke or need me for something. Plus, I enjoy sitting
> with her while she eats.
> We went through a period of time when she had outgrown the playpen but
> had the attention span of a gnat, combined with the same mobility you
> and I have. I felt that leaving her alone was not safe, and my gut
> feeling proved to be correct when she randomly got hold of a nail. We
> had just moved into the house, I have no idea how the nail got on the
> floor, and I'm very lucky I was with her and not doing something with
> the dog so I could take the nail away. Nails are prime choking size for
> little ones to swallow.
> Finally, I've found that taking a dog out for a walk is fine if you have
> the time. The problem is, I don't. I do on the weekends, I don't at
> night. I need to get my daughter to bed, and then you can't leave a
> child alone, so even though she might be sleeping peacefully, I still
> need to be in the house with her. My husband could be home, though for
> the first year and a half, he wasn't due to his work schedule.  Also, my
> daughter's sleep time is my time to rest, sleep and our chance to have
> couple time now that he's working a normal schedule. I found that both
> routine as well as nonroutine vet visits were difficult to fit into my
> schedule once I had my daughter, especially when she had what seemed
> like an ear infection a week. My daughter being a human took precedence
> over the dog, yet not taking care of the dog is also not a viable
> option. Shortly after I decided to retire my dog, my dog got a skin
> rash. My mom told me about it and I was thinking "Glad it's your
> problem, that's one less doctor's visit I have to make, one less
> condition hI have to monitor". This was when my daughter was new at
> daycare and it seemed like we were living at the peditritian's office as
> well as monitoring her health, giving antibiotics, calming a fussy kid,
> stuff like that, stuff that can wear you out too.
> You need to think about your activities and figure out if they are
> activities you can change and if you want to change them.
> You also need to figure out if you have the energy and inclination to
> provide a dog with discipline and with excersize and with affection.
> Right now, I do not. All that energy is going into my toddler and
> affectionwise into my husband and friends.
>
> As for who gets respect, I don't know. I'd be curious to know why you
> think people who use dogs get more respect. Me, I've found it to be
> about even. When I used a dog, I felt as you do that dog users get more
> respect, now I am not so sure, and think that it has more to do with
> your body language and how you feel. I do feel that I am a more
> confident cane traveler now then I was before I got my first dog, and I
> am at a loss to explain it.
> My best advice is to think about your life, think about your activities
> and how you'd feel about interrupting your schedule to fit a dog in.
> Will it drive you bonkers if the dog needs to go out and you've just
> gotten back in bed after soothing a fussy toddler who woke up coughing,
> something I did last night? Do you have someone who can give baths
> safely and well, so you can spend time brushing the dog? Even if you do,
> will you miss not giving these baths? When you go out sans child, will
> you feel like the dog is another child that you must care for even
> though they guide you, and will that mindset take away from your
> enjoyment of time to yourself? What will you do with your dog while
> you're trying to get a screaming and kicking kid into or out of a
> carseat?
> Know too that wile I realize my daughter's current toddler phase will
> soon be over, a dog will never be able to take care of themselves. They
> will never be able to go make themselves a sandwich wile you explain to
> a worried preschooler why an airplane flying low won't hit the house, or
> celebrate that yes, her book has "a firetruck, Mommy, see the
> firetruck!".These two things happened with my daughter just recently.
> She is becoming less and less physically depending, and getting more and
> more emotionally curious, and often when she asks a question, she wants
> and needs an answer right now. I also have to figure out what exactly
> her question is, and that can be tricky at times. With the airplane she
> said something like "It's dark now, airplane fly in the sky, airplane
> see house, Mommy"?
> I'd be curious and it may help Chris to hear from other people who are
> deciding on dogs and what is influencing their choice to go ahead, or to
> wait.
> I'd also be curious to hear from people who worked dogs consecutively
> during different phases of life, and how and why you did it, as well as
> if you found it to be a bennifit or a loss.
> Chris, you are wise to ask if a dog is right for you.
> Know too that you can always change your mind. Very few decitions we
> make can are set for life.
> -----Original Message-----
> From: nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
> Behalf Of Sharonda Greenlaw
> Sent: Monday, November 30, 2009 5:29 PM
> To: NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users
> Subject: Re: [nagdu] guide dog responsibilities
>
> It's Sharonda. And though I don't have a dog right now, I am so totally
> enthused about this conversation. I haven't had a dog since June 14 and
> have
> gone back and forth about whether I should or shouldn't get another dog.
>
> I have however filled out my application at Guide Dogs of the Desert and
> am
> awaiting their decision.
>
> I really enjoy having a dog. Like the others have said, the interaction
> and
> bonding are marvelous. And once you are bonded with a dog, they know you
> so
> very well.
>
> My mobility greatly increases when I have a dog--I find ways to become
> active and exercise both the dog and I. I have more confidence in my
> travels--though I've been told I am a very good traveler.
>
> Chris, I think you are very smart for reviewing your options first. And
> this
> list is a great place to get support and answers.
>
> Once again, thanks to all. This thread has truly made me smile.
>
> Sharonda
>
> On 11/30/09, Julie J <julielj at windstream.net> wrote:
>>
>> Chris,
>>
>> I've just started working with my new dog full time in the past few
> weeks.
>> I used a cane most of the time for the two previous years and a guide
> dog
>> before that.  I owner train so my experience is a bit different.
>>
>> I am a very good cane traveler.  I choose to use a guide dog because
> that
>> is what I prefer and because it is physically more comfortable for me.
> I
>> definitely think the cane is a totally respectable mobility tool.
>>
>> You asked about respect in regard to using a cane or guide dog.  I
> don't
>> know that people have any different level of respect since I started
> using a
>> guide dog again.   I really think people are generally intimidated by
> me.  I
>> have found that people feel more comfortable approaching me or talking
> with
>> me since I have a dog again.  I rarely get overly helpful people with
> either
>> cane or dog.  It's always been that way for me.  It's also a very rare
>> occasion when someone grabs me or tries to physically maneuver me.  I
> have a
>> very large lab/Boxer cross and I get loads of comments about how
> beautiful
>> he is, but not too many people pet him without asking.
>>
>> The short answer is that I don't think the level of respect has
> changed,
>> but the likelihood that people will want to talk has gone up a fair
> amount.
>>
>> HTH
>> Julie
>>
>>
>>
>>
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>>
>
>
>
> -- 
> Sharonda Greenlaw
> President (Phoenix Chapter)
> National Federation of the Blind
> -------------
> Come, read and take a journey with me at
> www.WorldOfShariG.blogspot.com
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