[nagdu] Weewee Pad

[Tracy Carcione]

Hi Elizabeth.
That's an interesting idea.  I'm not sure I'd trust Ben's aim, though.
He's a man-dog, and he likes to make his mark above ground-level, on a
pole or tree or curb.  I can just see him standing on the pad and peeing
on the toilet.
But, if the pad theory could be made to work in practice, it would be a
great thing.  I'll have to keep it in mind.

20 minutes, and you got the dog out and made your flight!  Wow!
Tracy


> I learned a few years ago, with my last guide dog, that one can get
> "training pads" from pet stores to put down for in-door relieving by dogs
> on
> long flights with no relieving area at hand.  These, apparently, are used
> also by show-dog handlers for their contestants, and by puppy owners who
> want to prevent indoor  accidents while house-training their pets.  I'd
> think too, that they'd be great for sick dogs too ill to get outside.
>
> These pads, about the thickness of a feminine napkin, are about 18" square
> and scented with pheromones to attract dogs to their use.  The idea is
> that
> one puts enough of these pads down to make a comfortable relieving area
> and
> trains the dog to relieve upon them.  Then solid waste can be removed from
> them as from an outdoor surface, and the pads can be trashed as one would
> a
> disposable diaper.
>
> That way, an  urgently needy dog on a short overlay could "go" in the
> privacy of a large bathroom stall and not be forced to endure the trek
> outside and back through security.
>
> So far, so good.
>
> Then I tried it for real, with my 10-year-old guide, a coast-to-coast
> flight, and an aging canine bladder.  I bought a package of training pads
> from Petco, did a couple of test runs at home, where Wilson said,
> essentially, "Who do you think you're kidding?", then concluded that the
> call of nature would override his squeamishness once the eleventh hour
> arrived.
>
> The flight took place, from Seattle to Atlanta with a 20-minute stop in
> D.C., Wilson was about to burst, he balked at the pads altogether, and I
> had
> to hand him to Security to take to the tarmac off the jetway and race him
> back inside so we could get onto the plane and finish our flight.
>
> That was the only time in 30 years that I've ever let anyone at the
> airport
> take my dog to relieve.  The demands of mercy forced my hand.  I should
> have
> been persistent and methodical in getting Wilson ready to use pads before
> my
> trip.
>
> I think the pad idea is a good one in theory.  But I'd want my dog to be
> trained to use them from puppyhood, if possible, and to understand that
> it's
> OK to go indoors in special cases.  Maybe the giant bathroom stalls for
> wheelchairs at church, say, at some quiet time, might be a good place to
> train a young working guide to get used to such pads.  Then the bathroom
> stall at the airport and ready pads for urgent need could be a welcome
> boon
> for the traveler-in-harness.
>
> Then men and women could use these at the airport, and not have to pull
> out
> something intimate in a public place.
>
> What do you think?
>
> Elizabeth
>
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> 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/carcione%40access.net
>