[nagdu] My dream is gone

Linda Gwizdak linda.gwizdak at cox.net
Wed Jun 30 18:10:24 UTC 2010


Hi Rebecca,
These people are ones I know and know their situations.

The "too active" one is VERY independent and travels by herself alot for 
pleasure and work. She is working sucessfully with a guide dog from a 
different program.  An official from GDB saw this woman at a convention and 
asked her why she didn't attend GDB.  She told him that his school rejected 
her as "too active" and he went off scratching his head about why the school 
rejected her!  Like HUH??!  This woman is one of my best friends who I've 
known and worked with for the last 9 years.

The one with the supposed issues around directions and mobility was denied 
from what another school said about her 15 years ago. this person was 
diagnosed with bi-polar and is now on medication for that.  She does work 
around her dyslexia and gets herself around independently with her cane. 
But she does better with a dog.  She has had guide dogs and did very well 
with them.  She was dogless for several years - between dogs - due to 
lifestyle at the time and she is now ready for a dog again now that her life 
has changed. She was married to a sighted guy and was raising a son in a 
hard to get around area of our county.  She is now divorced, son grew up and 
moved away, and she moved back to my neighborhood.   She is a good handler 
and I've known her well for the last 18 years.

The one whose dog is unsafe - the Asian woman - I've spent time with her at 
some programs with our center and in the Paws that Heal outdoor program.  I 
had to meet her at one place where her husband dropped her off and bring her 
to the place we had the program.  Her husband makes all decisions - I've 
seen him in action - and she never goes out alone or works her dog alone. 
Some of these things she has told me.  She is an elderly Japanese woman who 
grew up in Japan and lives as she was brought up in her culture.  I'm not 
saying if this is good or bad - it is.   With her, her guide is more of a 
family pet.  I personally have observed her work with her dog.  I've been a 
guide dog user since the early 1970s and have been intimately around TONS of 
guide dogs and their handlers.

These things are my own observations of these folks and not a reflection on 
them as people. That Asian woman is a real sweet lady who is happy with her 
life and that's okay.

As for myself being rejected by GDB, their staff at the time listened to 
adverse gossip rather than facts and based their decisions on this gossip. 
If you want to know more details on this, I'll tell you them off list as I 
don't think it appropriate to share it on list in detail.  Lets just say 
that the people involved in the gossip are people who are jealouse of me at 
our center - mostly from a troublemaker who was regarded by many people at 
our center as a troublemaker.  We are all happy that this person no longer 
comes to our center as she moved away.

Why jealousy?  I am one of the few younger people who attend activities and 
have helped run our center who has lived and worked outside the blindness 
community. I have a "take charge" attitude and it served me well as 
president of our center.  the rest of the people my age who are jealous are 
people who'd rather sit and bitch about problems rather than solving them. 
I try to solve them.  I am well liked and respected by the seniors there. 
They, like me, did live sighted lives at one time!

So, I wasn't trying to be harsh on these people. I sometimes come across 
that way because I just call the shots as I see them with no frills.  So, 
sorry about that if I sounded harsh and judgemental.  My point is that GDB 
sems to deny people for alot of strange reasons.

As far as Gail and her quest for a guide, I support her efforts!  I was just 
concerned about her not getting out and I understand her reasons and her 
health issues.  I was just saying generally that if a person, for whatever 
reasons, cannot get out and work a dog, it might not be the right thing for 
them.  We all know that a guide dog has to work to stay sharp.  With Gail, I 
truely hope she finds a way to preserve her health and have a guide as well. 
With creativity, a way can be found for her.

So, Gail, glad you are still on the list and I support you in your getting a 
dog. (grin!)  So many on this list have creatively foound ways to work a 
guide in spite of their many health issues and I think you can too.

HTH,

Lyn and Landon
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Pickrell, Rebecca M (TASC)" <REBECCA.PICKRELL at tasc.com>
To: "NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users" 
<nagdu at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Wednesday, June 30, 2010 8:02 AM
Subject: Re: [nagdu] My dream is gone


> Just to clarify a bit, you don't need to be the Lone Ranger once you get
> a dog. If you prefer to do things with other people most of the time,
> then a dogmay not be right for you.
> The dogs do tend to work best if they get some one-on-one time with you.
>
> Linda, I'd be curious to know why you think a school shouldn't have
> accepted the friend you mention in this post? Is it that she's never out
> by herself? How do you know that this is culture and her simply
> realizing a dog isn't right for her but thinking "If I give the dog
> back, I will have proven people right that a dog isn't the proper option
> or me and that means I've failed"?
> I'll tell you that giving a dog back based on lifestyle changes or
> personal realizations external to the dog is difficult because there
> does seem to be the attitude "What, you couldn't hack it" Or worse, "I
> never thought you were a good handler, this is no surprise". Also the
> judgement of dog is better then cane is not useful either.
> All I'm saying is that this friend of yours may have a lot of mental
> processes going on that none of us are aware of. I'd be curious to know
> why your judgement of her is so harsh.
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
> Behalf Of Linda Gwizdak
> Sent: Friday, June 25, 2010 4:59 PM
> To: NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users
> Subject: Re: [nagdu] My dream is gone
>
> Hey Gail,
> Don't give up!  GDB seems to reject lots of people for lots of strange
> reasons. I have a friend who got rejected from them for being "too
> active" -
> say what??? Another friend for not having a good sense of direction -
> she
> gets herself from point A to point B with her cane - duh!!  I was
> rejected
> because they chose to listen to lies from people with little credibility
>
> rather than see me for who I am or how I work my dogs - I'm on Dog
> Number 8!
>
> As others have been saying, try other programs like Guide Dog
> Foundation,
> Guide Dogs of America, Guide Dogs of the Desert, try that Leader
> program.
> Guide Dogs for the Blind isn't the only act in town.
>
> I can see the programs having reservbations aboout your inability to
> travel
> outdoors for much of the year.  Fact is, all the dogs need to work to
> stay
> in a safe, working order. However,a low key, mellow dog will be happy to
>
> have alot of down time but it still needs to work to keep it's skills.
> Case
> in point:  I know a woman here who has a dog from GDA.  The lady is
> Asian
> with an American Caucasian husband.  Her culture is to stay behind the
> husband, don't make a fuss, and not to be too independent.  How GDA ever
>
> accepted her is beyond my thinking.  I've been places with this woman
> and
> her dog and she isn't safe at all.  Her dog's skills are almost gone -
> the
> dog didn't leave GDA like that.  She has the dog with her but never
> works
> the dog by herself - and it shows.
>
> You'll have to demonstrate to a program that you will use the dog for
> what
> it has been trained for.  All are clear on that score - hey, they put
> alot
> of time and money into a dog and they want it to go to someone who needs
> and
> wants to work it for maximum independence.
>
> I think you can do this.  See if you can find a program that can home
> train
> you. How about travel during the early mornings and eveniongs when the
> sun
> goes down?  The humidity wouyld still be there but not as bad without
> the
> hot sun blasting down on you.  Can you walk well after the summer during
> the
> spring, fall, and winter? I think it can work if you can do this.  You
> can
> walk in malls during the summer months.   You might have to take a cab
> or
> paratransit to do that.
>
> You live in the midwest - forgot where you said?  I will tell you that
> it is
> cheaper to live there than here in California.  Southern California has
> the
> best weather - hot but dry with little rain during the winter months.
> No
> rain at all in the summer and fall except for the mountains and desert.
> But
> it is VERY expensive here!
>
> I come from New England where it gets hot and humid as well - maybe less
>
> than midwest or the South.
>
> Don't leave the list or do anything while you're upset - you usually
> make
> the wrong decision then! (grin!)  Folks on the list want to help you
> where
> we can.  Lots of people have other disabilities other than blindness and
> yet
> they have dogs so, don't give up yet! LOL!
>
> Regards,
>
> Lyn and Landon
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "Gail" <deerskin at oct.net>
> To: <nagdu at nfbnet.org>
> Sent: Thursday, June 24, 2010 8:31 PM
> Subject: [nagdu] My dream is gone
>
>
>>
>>
>> This, I'm sure, is no news to anyone here, but its the end of my dream
> for
>> me. I got a call from GDB today, and I was turned down on two counts.
> One,
>> because I dont have, and not likely to have, professional O&M
> training.
>> And
>> two, because my health-my breathing-wont allow me to do weeks of
> walking
>> blocks around and around our little town after getting a dog from
> them. In
>> our state, the weather is miserabley humid, and for someone with
> asthma,
>> there is only a short time in the spring when I am able to be outside
>> without feeling I am suffocating from humidity.
>>
>> I had chosen GDB as the school I hoped to go to, because California
>> weather
>> is dry, and I was sure I could build my stamina up to cope with the
>> training
>> which would be approxamatly the level I was at when my last dog
> retired
>> herself. But I will never be able to reach a level of stamina where I
>> would
>> be able to walk the 7 to 8 blocks here that GDB expects graduates to
> when
>> they get home. I can understand why they want this, that the bonding
> is
>> important...it just never crossed my mind that it would have to be
> done in
>> this way. I never had to with the dogs I trained myself-bonding and
> work
>> went on at home and away from home.
>>
>> To hear this was the death knell to my dream. There is no hope of my
> ever
>> getting a guide dog now...I'm sure that all the other schools have
> similar
>> reqirements, and since I would have to go to one in a dry climate, so
> I
>> could breathe well enough to go through training, even if there were a
>> school elsewhere, I would not be able to go.
>> I am utterly shattered, in tears all day, knowing now that the rest of
> my
>> life will be spent sitting here in the corner of our living room.
> Learning
>> that my life is only to be what I see on a computer screen.
>>
>> I wish to thank you all, for all your kindness, caring and good
> wishes.
>> But
>> it will be too painful to remain here, with no hope for release from
> this
>> prision of our house. So I think it best I leave.
>>
>>
>> God bless and keep you all close to His Heart, all of you wonderful
> people
>>
>> Gail
>>
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