[nagdu] Monty's graduation

[Marion & Martin]

Julie,
    Congratulations to Monte and you! I can imagine how exciting this is for 
the two of you, especially you!
    Having not worked a dog in more than a year and a half - and with so 
many around me getting new dogs - I am anxiously awaiting my new pup in 
January! I must admit I have mixed emotions, though,as I am hoping my Louiza 
will adapt well!

    Best wishes to Monte and you as you embark upon your new journeys 
together!

Peace!
Marion


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Julie J" <julielj at windstream.net>
To: "NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog Users" 
<nagdu at nfbnet.org>
Cc: <gdsdtrainingonly at yahoogroups.com>; <bviclickertraining at yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Friday, November 06, 2009 12:44 PM
Subject: [nagdu] Monty's graduation


> Hello all!
>
> I wanted to write to update everyone on our progress.  As most of you know 
> I have owner trained Monty.  Owner training is a gamble and I had no 
> guarantees of ending up with a working guide at the end of it.  it is what 
> I love though, and for now that is reason enough for me to owner train my 
> guides.
>
> I got Monty August 14 of last year.  I have worked with him almost every 
> day for the past 15 months on everything he would need to know to work as 
> a guide dog.   Most owner trainers, and programs for that matter, move a 
> lot faster through guide dog training than I do.   That is for several 
> reasons, my preference to go slowly, Monty's age, his slow maturation and 
> my new job taking up more of my time.
>
> On October 7 he started going to work with me.  I considered this past 
> month to be a parallel to what most of you experience when you go to a 
> guide program.  The dog is fully trained, but there is still a lot to be 
> worked out.  My experience with Monty has been similar, I think.
>
> He is working out splendidly!  I really couldn't be happier with his work. 
> He has settled in nicely to my work environment.  I work in the courthouse 
> in the criminal justice section, so sometimes things can be a tad out of 
> the ordinary. *smile*  He is learningwhere the various offices are that I 
> most often visit and is showing those to me reliably.  He is quiet and 
> well mannered, for the most part.  He still likes to visit with people who 
> come into my office but we are working on it and is most definitely not 
> out of control.
>
> His outdoor work is absolutely wonderful.  this morning he saved me from a 
> rather spectacular fall on the very slick brick street.  He slowed down 
> and pulled lightly after that and showed extra caution, but was not upset 
> or flustered by my lack of gracefulness.
>
> Although I have still not totally finished up his traffic training, he 
> shows more traffic awareness than any other dog I have ever had.  He is 
> very aware of traffic and acts accordingly even though his training in 
> this department isn't complete.  I think when I do finally finish up his 
> traffic training it will be more for my peace of mind than his education.
>
> He remembers every place we have ever been and points them all out to me. 
> He does this with a pause and a look back at me as if to ask, "Are we 
> going this way today?"  He's happy to follow whatever direction I give 
> him.   He's also showing aptitude at reversing routs although I haven't 
> explored the depth of his skill in this area.
>
> This weekend has a lot of things to celebrate.  I am going to graduate 
> Monty to full guide dog status.  There are a few things we still need to 
> work on, but he is doing all of the core behaviors a guide dog needs to be 
> able to do and he is doing them reliably.   This weekend is also 5 years 
> since I got Belle and 4 years since I started working with her as a fully 
> trained guide dog.   Also to my and my vet's best guess Monty is now two 
> years old.  So I'll dub the first weekend in November as his "official" 
> birthday.
>
> It has been too long since I've had a fully trained guide at my side.  The 
> past month has reminded me why the 14 before that were all worth it.   I 
> know most of you will probably think that is a crazy long amount of time 
> and work to have no guarantee of ending up with a working guide.  that's 
> okay, maybe you're right.  For me, though, it is the scenery on the road 
> less traveled that brings me joy.
>
> Thanks for reading!
> Julie
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