[nagdu] dog adaptability and expectations

[Martha Harris]

Hi Everyone,
I have been working with my lab Dee since November of last year, and in May, I will have her for six months. I am going to BLIND Inc. where she will be crated for 7-8 hours per day. However, I will walk as often as I can to the center, which is 1.3 miles or so each way, plus work in the evenings and on weekends. Many guide dog users say I will "ruin the dog," and it is not good to make a dog change routine so drastically because it takes six months to a year to become solid. However, I think learning the discovery method will help us be a more solid team because I will be able to travel with confidence to familiar and unfamiliar places. Is it expectations preached by the guide dog schools because they don't believe blind people can handle sudden change? Is it that some guide dog users have less confidence in themselves and don't believe change is good for them or their dogs, or am I way off base thinking like this?

Martha