[nagdu] schools

[Bob Hicks]

Hi Katie.  Amos is a black lab.  He is a great dog.  Yes, he finds things 
and is fairly accurate.  He can find our car in the mall parking lot if I 
get started some where near the right rowe! grin.  Pilot does not teach the 
"follow" command as Leader does.  Amos learned to follow in a couple or 
three trips to the mall with my wife.

The Pilot facility is fairly basic, but it is comfortable and sufficient for 
my needs.  There were 6 handlers in my class with 3 trainers.  We 
occasionally had a fourth trainer and her supervisor join us.  As a second 
timer and only there for 2 weeks, we all had the basic skills down pat, so I 
expect it was a good group for a new trainer to work with.  At Leader Dogs 
in 1979, my trainer was a first timer and so was I and it worked out fine. 
At Leader Dogs we were close to Detroit, but we never went downtown.  At 
Pilot dogs, you are in or on the outer edge of the big city and I think this 
made for a different level of comfort.  I am a small town guy and I don't 
dig big cities, so Broad Street in downtown Columbus was a bit 
overwhelming(8 lanes wide), but very good training.  I liked Leader and 
Pilot, but they are different!  Good people and trainers at both schools. 
Amos is considerably larger than Nicholas was and I like that.  Amos and I 
both need to loose wait!  grin, but Amos is just under 120 lbs and Nicholas 
was 65 lbs.  HTH

Sincerely yours,

Bob Hicks,
The Seeing Hand Association, Inc.
<bob at seeinghandassociation.com>
304-232-4810
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Katie Mawby" <katiem at iserv.net>
To: "NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users" 
<nagdu at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Saturday, February 28, 2009 1:35 PM
Subject: Re: [nagdu] schools


> Hi Rachel and Bob,
> As Pilot graduates, I'm hoping you can help me with some questions.
> My name is Katie, and I am retiring my Leader Dog and will be replacing 
> him this Spring.  I have applied to both Guiding Eyes and Pilot.
> Could you tell me about your experiences at Pilot?
> What breed of dogs do you have?  Did you get to select your dogs and the 
> desired breeds?  How long was your training and how many students in your 
> class/ratio to instructors?  Are your dogs able to target or find objects 
> such as elevators, doors, empty seats, etc?
> I appreciate any info you would like to share.
>
> Thank you,
> Katie
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "Rachel and Rhett" <serenityangel1983 at gmail.com>
> To: "NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users" 
> <nagdu at nfbnet.org>
> Sent: Friday, February 27, 2009 8:27 PM
> Subject: Re: [nagdu] schools
>
>
>> Hi, Bob.
>>
>> I'm not sure if we're the only Pilot graduates on the list. Have a good 
>> weekend.
>> Rachel and Rhett
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