[nagdu] People problems on the bus

[Julie J]

Jeanette,

Mardi didn't get her guide from a program.

Mardi,

Do you have paratransit in your area?  That's not an ideal solution by any 
means, but it might be something to try.
Other ideas...can Shaman sit/stay and come on the bus after you?  Or (this 
one is crazy) could he ride on your lap so you can both board together? Do 
you have a friend who could be your training partner for a bit?  The both of 
you could ride the bus together.  the friend boarding first, working with 
Shaman on whatever it is you want him to do instead of being petted.

I don't think you will ever get the public to cooperate with the no petting 
thing.  I realize that's not fair or optimistic, but it's my honest opinion. 
I think the best you can do is to work with Shaman  to do something else 
when people pet.

HTH
Julie

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Jeanette Beal" <bealjk at gmail.com>
To: "NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users" 
<nagdu at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Tuesday, November 24, 2009 8:47 PM
Subject: Re: [nagdu] People problems on the bus


> Mardi,
>
> I am beyond-words upset for you.  I don't know of a good solution at  all 
> that doesn't involve carrying mace (illegal in most states and  just not a 
> good idea) or becoming that raving jerk that people fear.   Any advice I 
> could give depends heavily on where you live (region,  people, etc.) and 
> the attitudes of the transport people.  Clearly the  other passengers are 
> jerks and ignorant in the ways of service dogs  but where's the driver in 
> all this?  Can you enlist the driver's help  before you get on the bus to 
> help get you situated and harnessed in w/ o human interaction? How about 
> demanding the names of the people  around you who are interfering?  At 
> this point your safety and sanity  are completely at risk and thus a lie 
> (I'm going to report you to X  for risking my & my dog's life) by getting 
> their names and information  isn't out of line, I think.
>
> But really it comes down to how the hell are you coping?! Maybe the 
> school could come out and help you re-work the routes you take and in 
> doing so help you figure out how to handle the folks you interact  with? 
> A well-placed trainer can answer the folks who hate your  corrections. 
> Also since your dog's work is faltering it might not  hurt to have the 
> school out anyway.
>
> Is it possible for you to schedule that?
>
> Jeanette (and Drummer)
> On Nov 24, 2009, at 7:49 PM, Mardi Hadfield wrote:
>
>> Hi every one, I have been having a lot of problems with people on  the 
>> bus.
>> So many people have petted Shaman the he just goes right up to  people to 
>> be
>> petted. To day when I got on the bus,It was a short lift so the dog  goes 
>> up
>> first and waits for me to come up on the lift. Any way I have him on  a 
>> long
>> leash and the minute he gets on the bus, the hands reach out and pet
>> him.With the long leash, I have little control other that the fact the
>> Shaman is attatched to my hand.By the time I get up on the bus and  try 
>> to
>> get into the wheelchair bay Shaman is making the rounds to every one  to 
>> be
>> petted. No matter what I say to people, they just totally ignore me.  I 
>> had
>> to ride backwards in the bay because I could not turn my chair around
>> because the dog would not back up for me. I tried voice corrections  and 
>> then
>> resorted to leash corrections.People were yelling at me that I was  being
>> cruel to my dog.I am afraid I will run over Shaman's Foot again,  because 
>> he
>> is not paying attention to me. This problem is just getting worse. I 
>> hate to
>> go out any more because people won't leave my dog alone, and  correcting 
>> him
>> doesn't work and only gets criticism. Nala pretty much ignored  people 
>> that
>> petted her and did her job. She never had the distraction problems  that
>> Shaman seems to have. I have tried using a sign on the harness  handle 
>> but
>> people ignored it. Some people pet my dog just to annoy me as they  are 
>> the
>> same people that I have asked repeatedly to please not pet my dog.  Does 
>> any
>> one have any ideas?    Mardi and Shaman and Nala,retired.
>>
>> -- 
>> http://wolfsinger-lakota.blogspot.com/
>> http://wolfsinger2-thegoldendragon.blogspot.com
>> _______________________________________________
>> 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/bealjk%40gmail.com
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> 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/julielj%40windstream.net
>