[nagdu] new guide dog.

Tamara Smith-Kinney tamara.8024 at comcast.net
Sun Feb 6 01:43:48 UTC 2011 

Oh!  Now that you mention that, my memory serves the same thing.  D'oh!

Tami Smith-Kinney

-----Original Message-----
From: nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf
Of Nicole B. Torcolini at Home
Sent: Saturday, February 05, 2011 5:39 PM
To: NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users
Subject: Re: [nagdu] new guide dog.

Tami,

    If my memory serves, I seem to recall hearing that Fidelco only trains 
German Shepherds. Correct me if I am wrong.

Nicole

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Tamara Smith-Kinney" <tamara.8024 at comcast.net>
To: "'NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users'" 
<nagdu at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Saturday, February 05, 2011 5:29 PM
Subject: Re: [nagdu] new guide dog.


> Alex,
>
> I got my poodle from a breeder in Grants Pass, Oregon.  Mitzi was six 
> months
> old when I first heard of her, nearly 7 mnths when she arrived at my home.
> /smile/  I was planning at the time for her to be a companion pet first 
> and
> foremost, as I was recovering from PTSD from an assault.  I chose a 
> smallish
> standard poodle -- she's about 50 lbs -- because I also needed to walk a 
> lot
> for physical therapy to recover from the injuries.  And, I was really,
> really hoping I would get a good guide dog prospect while I was at it. 
> My
> hopes were fulfilled!  I had always planned -- in a kinda sorta way -- to
> train my own guide dog at some point, just not my first one.  Still, I'm
> glad I did, and she has turned out really great -- in a poodly way --
> despite my utter cluelessness about what it was I was training her for.
> /smile/  I got lots of good suggestions and tips and how tos about guide 
> dog
> use from this list and more about the training parts from the 
> owner-trainers
> I met here.
>
> Some guide dog programs have gotten good poodle lines going over the past
> several years, but they're still pretty hard to get apparently, unless you
> qualify by having allergies or needing a hypoallergenic dog for some 
> reason.
> So we only just got another poodle guide here, so I can finally hear 
> someone
> else say, "Well, he's a poodle, remember," and such.  /lol/
>
> Do you know what kind of dog you will be getting yet?  What was your first
> dog?
>
> For my guide dog harnesses and such, I order from Pawpower Creations. 
> Since
> you will get all of that from Fidelco, I don't have anything else useful 
> to
> offer.  A lot of people know where to get some really cool stuff, though, 
> so
> you should be getting plenty of places to look.  /smile/
>
> Tami Smith-Kinney
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf
> Of alex
> Sent: Saturday, February 05, 2011 4:48 PM
> To: NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users
> Subject: Re: [nagdu] new guide dog.
>
> thank you Tami,
> may I ask where did you get your poodle from?
> On 2011-02-05, at 7:40 PM, Tamara Smith-Kinney wrote:
>
>> Well said, Marsha!
>>
>> Alex, congratulations!
>>
>> It is true, we have been discussing some possibly questionable behavior 
>> by
>> Fidelco towards some consumers.  We also have happy Fidelco graduates,
> like
>> Hope, some of them repeat graduates and at least who is, if I recall
>> correctly, in the process of retiring a current Fidelco dog and returning
>> there for a replacement.  We're not here to make your decisions for you 
>> or
>> to go around slamming guide dog programs, but the information that there
> are
>> questions might be useful to you if you wish to know more.
>>
>> Don't worry.  If you were headed for certain doom, we would just go ahead
>> and tell you. /grin/  We would, of course, respectfully leave the choice
> of
>> whether to walk off the cliff entirely up to you.  It would at least be 
>> an
>> informed choice! /lol/
>>
>> As for reading the archives...  It's probably not my place to say this,
> but
>> it's been pretty hectic on this list lately, and the dust is still
> settling
>> after some problems caused by a troller -- if that term is even in use
>> anymore.  That's somebody who joins a discussion to cause trouble and 
>> tick
>> people off and stuff, then gets kicked out of the group and comes back
> under
>> a different name, and so on.  The moderators and others in leadership 
>> have
>> gotten this troller permanently out of hair, but recent archives are no
>> doubt pretty messy and not representative of us as a group.  /smile/
>>
>> Anyway, welcome and best wishes.  I am looking to hear more from you as
> you
>> go.  As for me,  I am still on my first guide, an owner-trained poodle
> named
>> Mitzi.  She has just turned the corner from 4-1/2 to almost 5, and I am
>> enjoying the experience of being an experienced (by my own lights) guide
> dog
>> handler with a mature, experienced dog.  Relative to this time last year,
>> and we just won't talk about the year before that...  Or the year before
>> that ...  /lol/  We have had a fun adventure together, but I am glad to 
>> be
>> able to just sit back and enjoy the ride for awhile.  /smile/
>> Owner-trainer, if that is a new term to you, means that I trained the dog
> I
>> own.  Some people use the term self-trained dog instead of owner-trained
>> dog...  But not if they've actually done it.  /grin/  As we 
>> owner-trainers
>> like to remind people, the dogs don't train themselves!  /grin/
>>
>> Who retains legal ownership of the guide dog upon graduation at this time
>> varies from program to program.  It is true that at this time Fidelco 
>> does
>> retain legal ownership of the guide after you graduation from their
> training
>> and return home.  I apologize that I can't remember specifics.  Some
>> programs retain legal ownership for a specific period of time, some for
> the
>> life of the dog (could be wrong there, but I think there is or has been
>> one), others something in between.  Only two programs currently grant
> legal
>> ownership of the dog upon graduation from the program.
>>
>> Since I trained my own dog, I suppose I don't need to clarify my
> preference
>> on that score.  /smile/  Others feel differently and make their choices
>> based on other factors.
>>
>> Changes in the overall system are another matter we all discuss, debate,
>> argue, discuss...  /smile/  We're an opinionated lot here, but we do our
>> best to respect others, except for when somebody gets excited about
>> something and slips up there.  /smile/
>>
>> Tami Smith-Kinney
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On 
>> Behalf
>> Of Marsha Drenth
>> Sent: Saturday, February 05, 2011 12:05 PM
>> To: 'NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users'
>> Subject: Re: [nagdu] new guide dog.
>>
>> Alex,
>>
>> If you feel as a person who is about to get a guide from a program, and
> you
>> have done all your homework, or in other words, you have made an informed
>> choice. And that is what is best for you then, that is what you need to
> do.
>> Yes there have been issues with Fidelco as of recently. But what is true
> for
>> the other people have issues with, may not be the same for you. Just like
>> some those on this list do not like GDB or TSE or Southeastern, it is 
>> your
>> choice. No one on this list can not say that you should not get a dog 
>> from
>> any program, but the ONLY point I will agree with Peter on is, that you
>> should read the archives of the list. So you know what the issues of
> Fidelco
>> have been. Again this is informed choice. But if you have already seen 
>> the
>> list messages concerning Fidelco, and know what your getting into, and
> that
>> is what you want, and what you think is right to do, then go for it. This
> is
>> the same for those who do not like GDB, TSE or whatever school. We all
> have
>> our opinions, and others should respect that.
>>
>> Marsha
>> Co-Moderator
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On 
>> Behalf
>> Of alex
>> Sent: Saturday, February 05, 2011 1:43 PM
>> To: NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users
>> Subject: Re: [nagdu] new guide dog.
>>
>> Peter are you saying that I should not get a guide dog from Fidelco?
>> On 2011-02-05, at 1:01 PM, Peter Donahue wrote:
>>
>>> Hello everyone,
>>>
>>>   You might also wish to read archives of this list concerning Fidelco's
>>> ownership policy before following through with your plans to get a dog
>> from
>>> them. One way to stop the kind of behavior we've seen from our guide dog
>>> programs is if people stopped seeking their services and use programs
> that
>>
>>> treat the blind in a more respectable fashion. Please consider this as a
>>> general comment not an attack against anyone. Thank you.
>>>
>>> Peter Donahue
>>>
>>>
>>> ----- Original Message ----- 
>>> From: "Hope Paulos" <hope.paulos at gmail.com>
>>> To: "NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users"
>>> <nagdu at nfbnet.org>
>>> Sent: Saturday, February 05, 2011 11:19 AM
>>> Subject: Re: [nagdu] new guide dog.
>>>
>>>
>>> What type of supplies are you looking for? Fidelco provides all the
>>> equipment needed-- harness, leash, brush, comb,  stationing mat,
>> sterilized
>>> bone,  etc.
>>> Hope and Beignet from Fidelcos
>>> ----- Original Message ----- 
>>> From: "alex" <AAAtlantic at aol.com>
>>> To: <NAGDU at nfbnet.org>
>>> Sent: Saturday, February 05, 2011 11:43 AM
>>> Subject: [nagdu] new guide dog.
>>>
>>>
>>>> hello all,
>>>> I am going to get my second guide dog but this time from fidelco
>> sometimes
>>>> in march.  I am looking for websites that sales guide dog supplies.
>>>> thank you all
>>>> Alexander Atlantic
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>>>
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