[nagdu] Critical blind people

The Pawpower Pack pawpower4me at gmail.com
Sun Aug 1 00:10:45 UTC 2010


Hi Dan,

This is a big issue for me personally, the fact that there are really  
so few programs which will work with Deafblind or blind people who are  
hard of hearing.  The two most well known-- Leader and GEB both have  
ownership policies which I, personally, find unacceptable.  I really  
like TSE but because I need my class instruction in American Sign  
Language, they won't accept me, as is the case with most other  
programs.  I've heard that GDF does work with many different blind  
people who have other disabilities as well.

As for the find cue, I start close to the object in a familiar space,  
and work backward.  So I start a foot from the elevator, give the  
forward cue and when the dog brings me forward a step into the  
elevator, I click and treat.  I gradually increase the distance from  
the elevator, but with each new one, I start close up again until I  
think my dog has generalized the concept.  I do the same with inside/ 
outside.  I do use words with my dogs in these cases.  I know I've  
talked before about getting a fluent behavior before adding a cue, but  
I also tend to name things as we go.  So before my dog is even guiding  
in harness I'm saying inside and outside when we go in or out and I'm  
saying elevator, escalator, bench etc. when we encounter them.
It just takes a lot of repetition and high value reinforcement.

I also find for me, personally, as I experience more hearing loss, my  
social habits change.  Big groups of blind people such as state  
blindness groups have made it clear that they won't provide  
interpretation or captioning at meetings and I can't really force them  
to since groups like nfb are nonprofit and voluntary.  I don't  
participate as much as I would like because I just can't.  Also the  
blind community can be very auto-centric.  Radio shows, audio books,  
listening to this or that and sometimes I don't feel like I can  
contribute much.  I find myself socializing in small groups of hearing  
people be they blind or sighted, and also with many Deaf or Deafblind  
people in American Sign Language which I find far less stressful than  
English, smile.

Rox and the Herbal HenchHounds
Bristol (retired), Mill'E SD. and Laveau Guide Dog, CGC.
"It has always been the prerogative of children and half-wits to point  
out that the emperor has no clothes. But the half-wit remains a half- 
wit, and the emperor remains an emperor."-- Neil Gaiman
http://www.pawpowercreations.com/retreat.html
pawpower4me at gmail.com
AIM: Brissysgirl




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