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

Sat May 30 23:19:03 UTC 2009

Nothing wakes you up faster than swinging your legs over the side of
the bed in the middle of the night, and putting them down into a
substance that you are sure wasn't there when you went to bed several
hours before. Once you have that experience at 2 in the morning, well,
not even Folgers coffee works that fast, grin.

Wayne

On 5/30/09, Garry and Joy Relton <relton30857 at cox.net> wrote:
> Well, the bottom line is, that the rules are really whatever people set for
> themselves. However, having said that, I have rules in my house and with my
> dogs that I've found work pretty well.
>
> First, my dog has her bed which is next to mine and she sleeps in it. She
> has full run of the house during the day but I bring her in and have her lay
> on her bed at night. In that way I know when she gets up because I'm a light
> sleeper.
>
> Secondly, when I say that my dog guides  are allowed everywhere in the
> house, that means that they are generally sent out of the kitchen so that
> we're not tripping over them when we're working in there. They  are not
> allowed to beg or sit at the table while we do. Neither are my cats.
>
> Thirdly, my dogs are not allowed to jump up and get things off of counters,
> tables and the like and will be severely reprimanded if they try.
>
> Fourthly, my dogs are not allowed on the furniture. Not in my home, and not
> in the hotel. My cats do go onto the couch and I don't mind that, but I
> don't let them on the counters or tables while we are eating, serving food
> or preparing it.
>
> I have found that dogs, like children behave in public like they do in their
> homes. If they're allowed to bounce on the couch they will in someone else's
> home. I've had a few of those children in my home. That behavior wasn't
> welcome. I am fortunate that my dogs and my children have always behaved
> themselves very well in people's homes. If they're going to make a mistake,
> I'd rather it were in our home where they can be assured that they will be
> loved regardless of their mistakes.
>
> I have never kenneled any of my animals in cages during any time in my
> homes. If that works for people that's fine. I put the cats in carriers when
> I take them to the vets so that they are safe. The only time I've put a dog
> in a kennel was when I shipped my retiring dog home to my folks farm. It
> broke my heart.
>
> I don't mind cleaning up after animals if they have an accident when they
> are ill. It's not fun, but children do the same things and you just deal
> with it.
>
> I do put my dogs on tie-down in the office so that I don't have to look for
> them if I step out the office door for a second or get busy. I also hook
> them to table legs when I go up to sing at a place when we're doing karaoke
> because I don't want their ears to be hurt. Otherwise I step on their leash
> so that I know where they are at all times.
>
> So, that's my opinion, for what it's worth.
> -----Original Message-----
> From: nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf
> Of Buddy Brannan
> Sent: Saturday, May 30, 2009 5:55 PM
> To: NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users
> 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.
>
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-- 
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