[nagdu] Do's and Don't's

[Hope Paulos]

I agree with you, Buddy. I think the person needs to know his/her dogs to 
determine which rules work best for the person. I don't allow Beignet on 
furniture nor in the bed with me. If she sneaks up on the couch she gets 
repremanded. As far as tie down, I don't put her on tie down at home very 
often. I always take her outside before I take a shower and/or leave the 
house if I'm going to leave her alone for a while. I don't ordinarily leave 
her home  for more than an hour at a time.

Hope and Beignet
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Buddy Brannan" <buddy at brannan.name>
To: "NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users" 
<nagdu at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Saturday, May 30, 2009 5:55 PM
Subject: Re: [nagdu] Do's and Don't's


>
> On May 30, 2009, at 5:39 PM, Nicole B. Torcolini wrote:
>
>>    Just out of curiosity, what do people think of the various do's  and 
>> don't's that some people use, like dogs on tie downs, dogs on  furniture, 
>> dogs in beds, etc?
>
> I think most of them make good sense, but everyone has to know his own 
> dog well enough to know when something may be appropriate. My take on 
> rules in general is that it's as important to know why a rule exists  as 
> it is to have the rule in the first place, so that you then know  when you 
> can (or even should) break a particular rule.
>
> For instance, putting dogs on a tie down or a crate when they're out  of 
> your immediate control is probably a good idea, if for no other  reason 
> than limiting the scope of trouble a dog can get into when  you're not 
> around. When I had Karl, I often didn't leave him on tie  down or in a 
> crate at night, because at night, he never got up or got  into trouble. 
> That is, for the first couple years. You see, I didn't  understand another 
> reason for that particular rule, until the morning  I did. While Karl 
> continued to stay out of trouble, on the morning in  question, I stepped 
> out of the shower, out the bathroom door, and into  a cold, squishy pile 
> of doggie diarrhea. After that, Karl (and later,  Chet) were confined to a 
> crate or tie down at night or when I left  them alone. Not because I 
> thought they'd get into mischief, although  that's always a possibility, 
> but because I didn't want to step into  any more nasty surprises.
>
> Many people let their dogs on their furniture. I do not. Occasionally 
> I'll hold Chet in my lap in a rocking chair or sofa, but generally 
> they're mine, and never on his prompting. Some people say their dogs  know 
> the difference between getting on the furniture at home and not  getting 
> on the furniture elsewhere; even that their dogs know they can  sleep in 
> the bed at home but not elsewhere. I'm not convinced that  dogs have that 
> level of discernment. AT least, neither of mine have  had. So, no 
> furniture, and no sleeping in the bed with me. Remember  when you're away 
> from home at a hotel, you're responsible for  extraordinary damage or what 
> not, and it's probably best if your dog  doesn't crash on the hotel beds, 
> if for no other than CYA reasons.
> _______________________________________________
> nagdu mailing list
> nagdu at nfbnet.org
> http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nagdu_nfbnet.org
> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for 
> nagdu:
> http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nagdu_nfbnet.org/hope.paulos%40maine.edu