[nagdu] FIDELCO ownership rights and other things.

Thu Feb 3 18:59:05 UTC 2011

Brenda,
    I am not sure what you would like to know. The specifics are that 
Fidelco removed the dogs without cause and without explanation. Mr. Russman 
would only say that it was due to "safety reasons" but refused to give any 
further details. I agree that there is a great deal of vagueness. This is 
due to Fidelco's evasiveness. The only explanation they will offer is to 
"read section d of the agreement" that states Fidelco has the right to 
repossess the dog at their sole and absolute discretion. Pressing me for an 
explanation is unproductive, as I have none! Only Fidelco can give an 
explanation and they refuse to do so.

Fraternally yours,
Marion


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Brenda" <bjnite at windstream.net>
To: "NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog Users" 
<nagdu at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Thursday, February 03, 2011 1:26 PM
Subject: Re: [nagdu] FIDELCO ownership rights and other things.


> Could those individuals tell you or come on list themselves and say what 
> the situation is from their prospective?  There is a lot of vagueness 
> still.
> Brenda
>
> On 2/3/2011 12:36 PM, Marion Gwizdala wrote:
>> Dear All,
>> I will only say that we have attempted to get Fidelco's side of the story 
>> and, in spite of a signed release of information, Mr. Russman refused to 
>> talk to us about it. As this message so astutely stated, it makes us 
>> wonder what they are hiding. A great deal, we have come to find out, as 
>> more consumer come forward with similar stories. If it were an isolated 
>> incident, I would question the details. As a pattern evolves and we find 
>> credible information with physical evidence, it supports our action.
>>
>> Fraternally yours,
>> Marion Gwizdala
>>
>>
>> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Brenda" <bjnite at windstream.net>
>> To: "NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog Users" 
>> <nagdu at nfbnet.org>
>> Sent: Thursday, February 03, 2011 11:45 AM
>> Subject: Re: [nagdu] FIDELCO ownership rights and other things.
>>
>>
>>> Brian
>>> Well said.
>>> I have asked what the person who had her dog removed from Fidelco was 
>>> actually told with no response - makes me wonder.  I do not think the 
>>> whole story has been relayed about the incidents at Leader either.  I 
>>> find it amazing that a dog could be removed with little warning and no 
>>> cause - something is missing OR at least it would be nice to hear from 
>>> the school and the handler  (both sides of the story) so an informed 
>>> opinion could be made about a certain school.
>>>
>>> Maybe in the survey that is being prepared there could be an entry of 
>>> how many dogs have been repo'd by the school and the reason the school 
>>> gave for the forced return.
>>>
>>> Another survey question would be what is the reason for your ownership 
>>> policy?  Why do you require a handler to wait two years before awarding 
>>> ownership?
>>>
>>> Brenda
>>> Brenda
>>>
>>> On 2/3/2011 11:04 AM, Bryan Brown wrote:
>>>> Hi all,
>>>>
>>>>    The day after Marion posted       the message about the woman who 
>>>> had their dog
>>>> repossessed by FIDELCO for no reason... I received a call from a 
>>>> FIDELCO trainer. She was
>>>> calling to find out if she could meet with me for a follow up visit. I
>>>> scheduled a time to meet with her on the seventeenth of February, since 
>>>> I am
>>>> not in what you might say is FIDELCO's traditional service area this 
>>>> will be
>>>> the first follow up visit that I have had.  They have offered, but I 
>>>> haven't had any
>>>> problems that I thought needed a trainers help with so I declined. Any 
>>>> time
>>>> I have ever had an issue or question I just call out to FIDELCO and I 
>>>> get
>>>> put right through to someone who can help. I've never had to request 
>>>> follow
>>>> up, I guess I've been lucky and not had any issues as a working team
>>>> that I couldn't deal with myself. I'd be comfortable if FIDELCO called 
>>>> and
>>>> said hey we're five minutes from your house and we want to see your 
>>>> dog. That would be great, I don't have any reasons to be anything other 
>>>> than proud of my dog. They were however nice enough to give me more 
>>>> than two weeks notice and make sure that it worked with my schedule. 
>>>> I'm far from intimidated, in fact I'm
>>>> excited, I know that I have nothing to worry about, my dog is healthy, 
>>>> he is in great shape , we are a great working team and I'll be proud to 
>>>> show
>>>> off our teamwork to someone who knows how much it takes to develop that 
>>>> type
>>>> of relationship with a dog. My only concern is that the trainer might 
>>>> not be
>>>> able to stick around and have dinner with myself and my family.
>>>>
>>>> It's unfortunate that anyone would ever have their dog unjustly removed 
>>>> from
>>>> them and I'm not sure how that would benefit the program, imagine the 
>>>> implications if a person could prove those allegations, for instance in 
>>>> front of a jury? Why aren't the people who have supposedly had their 
>>>> dogs removed
>>>> making a public show of such an unjust action? I know if that happened 
>>>> to me
>>>> I'd be the first to call the sheriff, my vet, my attorney  and the 
>>>> media, I'd make a
>>>> huge stink of it, but I am confident that I have done nothing to bring 
>>>> such
>>>> action on myself. , maybe the parties in question are not quite so
>>>> confident? Is it possible that the inflammatory comments that Marion 
>>>> has made about FIDELCO and Mr. Russman are rooted in limited 
>>>> information and Mr. Russman's reservations to bow down to the big bad 
>>>> NFB?
>>>>
>>>> as far as I know... I own Tarik, do I think I have that right, "yes" at 
>>>> this
>>>> point after five years it would be cruel to remove him from me, I am as 
>>>> much
>>>> his life as he is mine. Do I think I deserved to own him upon 
>>>> graduation, my
>>>> answer is no. I feel as though having a dog is a wonderful privilege in 
>>>> the
>>>> case of a FIDELCO dog it's a 45,000 dollar privilege   and I am the
>>>> custodian of that privilege. It is my responsibility to hold up my end 
>>>> of
>>>> the bargain. I knew what it was when I got the dog and I was confident 
>>>> in my
>>>> ability to hold up my end of the bargain throughout his working life. 
>>>> That's
>>>> why I signed my name on the line.
>>>>
>>>> I think making negative comments about any given program in a public 
>>>> forum
>>>> without first hand experience is wrong and only serves to tarnish the
>>>> program. If people have complaints so be it, but unless the complaints 
>>>> are coming directly from the people making them, the information has 
>>>> probably been spun and is most certainly one sided.
>>>>
>>>> I'm not sure why  anyone  sees fit to vilify any guide dog program. all 
>>>> the people that work so hard to provide us with these wonderful animals 
>>>> aren't doing it for the money. I'm fairly sure that the puppy raisers 
>>>> aren't pulling down huge salaries, and that  the trainers surely aren't 
>>>> earning six figures, I see that they are doing it because they are 
>>>> genuinely good people, and that they either have a passion for helping, 
>>>> or dogs, or both!
>>>>
>>>> Why is it that I see such a militant attitude with so much of the NFB? 
>>>> I know it's a strong advocacy group, but I personally don't want to be 
>>>> advocated for by a group that comes across so negatively. We've become 
>>>> a society of victims,  everything is always somebody else's fault and 
>>>> there is always someone out to get you, I see it in strangers and 
>>>> people I know and love. People have to start standing up for themselves 
>>>> again and taking responsibility for their own actions.
>>>>
>>>>    Bryan
>>>> -----
>>>>
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