[nagdu] Lines in the sand?

Tue Jun 9 15:13:23 UTC 2009

I hold myself to a *much* lower standard the other handlers. Marsha is
the maximum threshold for acceptability, I am the minimum, because in
every system, you have a maximum threshold of performance as well as
minimum. I set low expectations and then continue to fail to meet them. 
I'm kidding of course. 
What does bother me about this post though is the tone. All of us I
think want to do our best with the tools and information we have. Going
back to Tami's post, we all define "controling a situation" very
differently. 
The below post came off to me as a little holier then though, and while
Marsha may indeed have set and be maintaining the gold standard, the
attitude of "my standards are higher then yours" won't encourage anybody
to do better. 
It's something all of us who are "in the know" must guard against. 

-----Original Message-----
From: nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
Behalf Of Marsha
Sent: Monday, June 08, 2009 6:09 AM
To: 'NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users'
Subject: Re: [nagdu] Lines in the sand?

I do hold myself to a much higher standard than other handlers. But that
goes with out saying for the entire part of my life. LOL

I do agree on the behavors with the dogs in public. No barking, good
social matters and those sorts of things.

JMO
Marsha

-----Original Message-----
From: nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
Behalf Of Jenine Stanley
Sent: Sunday, June 07, 2009 12:29 PM
To: 'NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users'
Subject: [nagdu] Lines in the sand?

Dan makes some good points about us maybe being too judgmental. I'd
counter that with my own personal attitude that I'm not so much being
openly judgmental as trying to set and maintain high standards, but that
only really goes for myself and my dog. 

So, I'll pose this question to everyone, again appreciating the
intelligent discussion here. 

What behavior in a dog who is part of a working team would you deem
unacceptable? What offenses might cause you as a business owner to ask
someone to remove his or her dog? 

I think for me, it's about control. If someone is really trying to
control a dog with undesirable behaviors like barking or scavenging, I'm
much more likely to be lenient, but if the person seems oblivious or is
clearly ignoring the behaviors, it tends to get a bit old. 

One of my big buttons is dogs who are allowed to roam around places of
business. One lady I know has a very bad habit of, once comfortable in a
place, i.e., after walking in the door, of turning her dog loose to roam
around while she looks at things or talks to people. When she used to
visit my office at my last job, I had to ask that the dog stay on leash
with her as he made a beeline for my trash can. The next time I saw him,
he was wearing a basket muzzle and again allowed to roam freely because
with said muzzle he couldn't get into things. <sigh> 

The one thing I am pretty annoyed by in terms of the public's reaction
to us is the whole grooming issue. People don't generally know what a
well groomed dog is and all sorts of accusations come up about dogs not
being groomed well, smelling, being dirty and shedding. 

I'll admit to being a neat freak when it comes to my dogs and a grooming
fanatic. That doesn't mean everyone else is and it doesn't mean that
every dog who isn't ready for the West Minster show ring is filthy and
unkempt. 

I've seen a number of guide dogs who could use maybe a good brush or
bath or who could have some skin  issues looked into by their vet, sure,
but saying they rose to the level of denial of access is a bit much. 

I've also heard of one denial case that really brings the grooming point
home. Someone years ago, before the ADA even, was told to leave a fast
food place because her dog was dirty and offensive. She'd just come in
from a pouring rain storm. Everyone else coming in behind her was just
as wet. She fought the denial and won under state law. 

My point? There are some things I think we as handlers can hold each
other to in terms of acceptable public behavior and there are some
things perceived as unacceptable by others that we as handlers can band
together to support and explain. My retort anymore is "Would you rather
have my dog or some of the kids I've seen in here?" 

 Jenine Stanley
jeninems at wowway.com

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