[nagdu] occupaws ownership policy

[Angie Matney]

Hi Allison,

Thanks for your post. I don't mean to minimize the concerns that prompt some schools to retain ownership, but there are ways to remove a dog from an abusive situation, whether it is a guide dog or a pet.

I personally am glad to have ownership of my dog because I know that at the end of the day, I can make important decisions about her future without consulting a third party. I don't mean to imply that I would never ask the school's advice. I just think that there are situations in which I, as the handler, know much more about the individual dog than the most well-intentioned staff of my school, who might not have interacted with her for some time.

Will you be able to place Gilbert when he retires? Most schools do allow the grad to do this, even if they retain ownership; but in some situations, the graduates' wishes are not respected. And, if the worst should happen, would your family have any say in what happens to Gilbert? It is comforting to me to know that if something happened to me, the people who are most prominent in Yani's recent memories would be able to make decisions concerning her future. I know of an instance in which a handler was killed when s/he was struck by a car. This person's family hoped tthat the guide dog could be reissued. They wanted to adopt the dog if it could not be reissued. As it happened, the dog was unable to work after the accident. But because it had been with the handler for less than the time provided for in the school's policy, the dog was offered to its raisers instead of the handler's family. This created an additional source of grief for the family.

I could cite other instances where handlers who did not own their dogs encountered problems when they and the school disagreed about what should happen. In all of the instances I'm thinking of, all parties agreed that the dogs were unable to continue working.

These are a few of the reasons why I am glad to own my dog.

Best,

Angie



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-original message-
Subject: [nagdu] occupaws ownership policy
From: Allison Nastoff <anastoff at wi.rr.com>
Date: 02/26/2009 12:07 AM

Hi List,
I have been reading your discussion about ownership policies at 
the various schools, but I have a different perspective.
I received my dog from Occupaws, and the policy at Occupaws is 
that they technically own the dog until he is retired.  My 
trainer said the reason for this policy was liability.  While it 
is rare, unfortunately some people do mistreat their dogs, or do 
not make wise judgements about when it is time to retire them, 
and the decision of Occupaws to maintain ownership of the dog is 
simply a precaution.  At first when I learned of this policy, I 
was disappointed.  But I soon realized that while Occupaws has 
legal ownership of him, in every other regard, he is my dog.  
Occupaws has contacted me every couple of months to make sure 
things are working out, but they have never interfered in any 
way.
Personally, I support this precautionary measure.  In the rare 
case that a dog is mistreated, it would not be fair to the dog, 
or to another handler who would appreciate this dog and take good 
care of him, if the school gave full ownership to a handler, and 
then was powerless to reclaim the dog from a handler if it came 
to the school's attention that there is a problem.
I realize that some of you will be furious with me for saying 
this, but it is my personal opinion.  The fact that I technically 
don't own my dog has not prevented me from bonding with him, or 
interfered with our work as a team.  I think that legal ownership 
is just a technicality, and that emotional ownership is what 
really matters.
Allison and Gilbert

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