[nagdu] Missing guide dog found struck by car
Tamara Smith-Kinney
tamara.8024 at comcast.net
Wed May 27 17:44:33 UTC 2009
Well, again, I don't recommend it for everyone, I know it's a bit risky. I
grew up with ranch dogs, so working a dog off leash is just habit and
natural to me. My decision to allow Mitzi more freedom than is normally
considered prudent has a lot to do with her breed instincts, as well. The
poodle way seems to be to go out ahead, then come back, or to run around in
a wide circle, then come back. Sort of like a yo-yo or a paddle ball; it's
like there's an invisible string or rubber band that brings the poodle back
at a set distance. So even from the beginning, I've been able to allow her
to run in the park in our old neighborhood that was only paritally enclosed.
All of the other neighborhood dogs that came there to play off leash had
good enough manners that they would stay inside the fence and not go bolting
outside the gate, so she also had good examples around her and learned
boundaries from them. She did scare the wits out of me a time or two, but
there was not a lot of traffic in the area and it was a school zone, so that
somewhat limited the risk. We will not discuss the time she got away from
the dog walk and ran home -- across a busy street. Heart attack city! But
she was fine, even though she was all tangled up in the retractable leash
she was wearing. After that, the dog walker only took her to fully enclosed
parks.
Okay, now that I've given some caveat and some of my reasons for deciding to
live dangerously with my sweet precious, I'll talk a little about off leash
obedience.
Basically, the dog obeys certain commands when not on leash and at a
distance from the handler. There's a competition level, and the tasks can
be quite complex. It often involves hand gestures as well as spoken
commands.
The most important task is recall! When you call the dog, it needs to come,
every time. I used food reinforcement, even downright bribery, to set that
behavior, and I still give food reinforcements at least 99 percent of the
time, even though she's been reliable in that for quite a while. I also
used food reinforcements heavily in the matter of heeling, which was a real
weakness for her. For negative reinforcement, of course, I simply put her
back on leash, thus limiting her cherished freedom and cramping her style.
/smile/ If she's been especially snotty, I will put her in a tight heel on
leash, and she really hates that. So she's motivated to be good, stay in
bounds, etc. "In bounds" is a command I came up with by default, but it
works. The clicker comes in really handy for reinforcing that one or any
commands carried out at a distance. I also taught her not to bother other
people and dogs when we meet them (though in our woodland walk, I do my best
to time it so that we're not going to meet a lot of either. She knows "out
of the way" for when a bike or skater is coming up and she needs to get off
the path. I actually taught her that one so that she would pay attention to
what was around her on leash and in harness when she was a flighty young
thing. "Pay attention" is another of our ad hoc commands.
There's also "leave it," "drop it," and the like to keep her from getting
into what she shouldn't. And I keep a bell on her collar to jingle with the
tags, so I know where she is and have some idea of her movements. I expose
her to new situations on leash, of course, and take care where I do my
training to limit the risks to her. If I can hear traffic, I put her back
on leash and am very strict when we're crossing a road. If she starts to
step forward, or if I step forward and realize there's a car coming after
all, I show fear when backing up to reinforce the idea cars are dangerous.
Just in case one of those fluke situations puts her in a position to be
loose near traffic. I don't know that that will save her, but it improves
the odds.
I don't' know if that's a very cogent explanation. You can start training
off-leash in the house, just as part of obedience practice, and you can
extend it into the yard if you have one. If you can find an enclosed dog
off leash area with a few distractions but not to many dangers (ha!), that's
also a good place to practice. I've discovered that my quirky curly one is
stronger in her on-leash and in-harness obedience when I've worked with her
at times when she has the freedom to rebel. I guess that makes it her
choice, which is okay. If I'm making her do that, it's an imposition.
/smile/
Honestly, I wound't even attempt most of that with a program dog, simply
because that dog would have been raised to be under control at all times.
Mitzi spent her first 7 months on an acreage with other dogs who all had the
run of the place, so she learned about the great outdoors and the dangers
from them and from puppy experience, just like the dogs I grew up with. She
also learned good pack etiquette, so I've had a lot of freedom to have her
around other off-leash dogs because she knows how to play and socialize
safely. I do pick the area and make it a point to know the other dogs, of
course! And their owners. And I establish pack dominance with them, so I
have a moderate contol over their behavior just in case.
But a dog raised to be under control at all times, to be obedience to the
handler's decisions instead of going out and making its own choices and
mistakes would not be a good canditate for woodland romping because it would
not know the dangers or how to think for itself in that situation. So I
would really limit the freedom of that type of dog a lot more than I do
Mitzi's. It's sort of like the difference between riding a ranch horse at a
wild gallop over rocks and streams and hills and fallen trees vs. trying the
same thing with a more genteely raised stable horse. The ranch horse has
been galloping madly about the rough countryside with its herd since it was
born, so you can just have all the exhilaration of staying on the horse
while it flies fleetly over the terrain. If you're on a stable raised horse
and it bolts out in the open country, get it under control immediately or
just get off mid-flight. The horse is less likely to break a leg without
you, and you do not want it to take you down with it. Guide dogs and other
city raised dogs fall under the same principle, I think. They have the yen
to run wild, run free and chase birds and squirrels... They just don't know
how to do it safely.
Tami Smith-Kinney
-----Original Message-----
From: nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf
Of Nicole B. Torcolini
Sent: Sunday, May 24, 2009 12:09 PM
To: NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users
Subject: Re: [nagdu] Missing guide dog found struck by car
Can you explain exactly what you mean by off leash training and what it
entitles?
----- Original Message -----
From: "Tamara Smith-Kinney" <tamara.8024 at comcast.net>
To: "'NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users'"
<nagdu at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Sunday, May 24, 2009 11:21 AM
Subject: Re: [nagdu] Missing guide dog found struck by car
Linda,
Good point about the different experiences between a pet dog and a guide
dog. Because of the physical problems I'm finally on the verge of
recovering from, I made the decision early to give Mitzi extensive off-leash
time and training, to improve our odds if she does get loose. Which she has
a couple of times, but I was able to recall her. It's an unorthodox
decision, given the value of her training and her importance to me, but I
felt it was the best choice for us. Also, I ate lots of Tums during her
youth. /smile/
It wouldn't be practical for guide dog schools to do that with their dogs as
a matter of practice, or for the majority of guide dog handlers to practice
it, either. Now that I'm able to reliable hold onto my girl, believe me I
do, except for when I mean to be working on off-leash stuff. I plan to add
hiking and camping into my lifestyle as I get my health back and can have a
lifestyle, so that training will come in handy, I think. Also, Tums.
/smile/
I'm sorry about your friend's dog. I can't imagine, and it can happen so
easily with just one forgetful moment. I'm glad you did not lose your dog
when that happened!
Tami Smith-Kinney
-----Original Message-----
From: nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf
Of Linda Gwizdak
Sent: Saturday, May 23, 2009 2:38 PM
To: NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users
Subject: Re: [nagdu] Missing guide dog found struck by car
What a shame about the guide dog getting hit by a car. did the dog die or
was he really hurt and Todd had to pay thousands of dollars in vet bills?
There's a woman here who had a guide dog get let out of the house. The dog
saw the woman's daughter across the street and he ran across the street but
never made it across. The dog was struck by a car and killed.
Shortly after I came home with a brand new guide dog, my roommate opened the
front door to get the mail. She didn't tell me she had the door open and out
ran my dog! She ran up and down the sidewalk and, thank God, didn't cross
the busy street we lived on. I had to tackle her as she ran by and injured
my knees - now full of arthritis!
Both of these things happened by carelessness of people in leaving the doors
or gates open. Yes, our dogs are highly trained to avoid cars. But,they
think that the cars are only dangerous when the dog is guiding us in
harness - they learn to respect cars when they are guiding the instructor.
The dogs don't generalize and realize that the cars are just as dangerous if
the dog is loose and running in the street. Our dogs are just as vulernable
as a pet dog - actually more - because some pet dogs have been hit or bumped
by a car and they learned this valuable lesson. Our dogs do not get the
chance to learn this lesson because they are never off leash outside unless
in a secure fenced in area.
It sounds like Todd was just careless and didn't think about any cats
scaring the dog and - boom - the accident.
Lets all remember to think about our surroundings when we decide to release
our dogs.
Regards,
Linda and Landon
----- Original Message -----
From: "Ginger Kutsch" <gingerKutsch at yahoo.com>
To: "'NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users'"
<nagdu at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Saturday, May 23, 2009 5:18 AM
Subject: [nagdu] Missing guide dog found struck by car
> http://www.wthr.com/Global/story.asp?S=10412802
> <http://www.wthr.com/Global/story.asp?S=10412802&nav=menu188_2>
> &nav=menu188_2
> Missing guide dog found struck by car
> Jennie Runevitch/Eyewitness News
>
> Indianapolis - A man who lost his very independence this week is
> now in need of a new companion.
>
> Todd Wills is missing his best friend, but his 85-pound black lab
> was more than a pet.
>
> "I just can't imagine not being with him. I'm already feeling
> lost," Wills said. "It's like I've lost my sight all over again."
>
>
> Bruin was Todd's link to life. The highly-trained, highly
> expensive guide dog had served as Todd's eyes for three years.
>
> "Hopefully other people will understand the difference between a
> pet and a guide dog. I mean, he's still kind of a pet, but he's a
> part of me and I'm missing a chunk of me," Wills said.
>
> Bruin disappeared early Thursday morning after getting spooked by
> a cat at his home on Broadway Street.
>
> "We were coming in the door and I stopped at the screen door to
> let him off his harness and leash so he could run in and a cat
> charged him. I stepped out immediately started calling him
> and...nothing," Wills said.
>
> Late Thursday, Wills got the news he'd feared. A police officer
> came to his door and said they found Bruin near the corner of
> 40th and College. The guide dog had been hit by a car.
>
> "They matched the collar up and he wasn't in good shape.
> Apparently, whoever hit him didn't feel it was important enough
> to stop," Wills said.
>
> Todd's companion, his source of independence, was gone, and their
> important bond was broken.
>
> "It just doesn't feel right to walk around without him. I find
> myself, you know, crying over Bruin all day and then I'm thinking
> that I need to get another guide dog so I can continue my
> independence," Wills said.
>
> But guide dogs can cost tens of thousands of dollars and require
> extensive training. While most of the cost is underwritten by
> donations, Todd says he will still have to pay several thousand
> dollars out-of-pocket, which is difficult since he's on
> disability and in school.
> "That makes it a challenge to put all this together," Wills
> said.
>
> For now, Todd is coping with loss and in need of another guide
> through life.
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Ginger Bennett Kutsch
> Morristown, NJ
>
>
>
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