[nagdu] conventions and dogs

[cheryl echevarria]

Well I am taking Maxx with me, I am traveling by myself, and then I am doing the tour of the Kennedy Space Center with the group from Convention, Nelson is not coming with me, and so I will be taking Maxx, if nelson was coming I might not bring Maxx all depends.

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  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Julie J.<mailto:julielj at neb.rr.com> 
  To: NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users<mailto:nagdu at nfbnet.org> 
  Sent: Friday, June 17, 2011 10:49 AM
  Subject: [nagdu] conventions and dogs


  Hello all!

  I was thinking with only a few short weeks to convention time that it would 
  be good to discuss whether or not to take your guide along.   also if you 
  have taken your guide to conventions in the past please share any hints that 
  you have found helpful.

  I took Belle to Dallas in 2006.  In 2008 I was between dogs.  Last year I 
  opted to leave Monty at home.  This year I am going to the ACB convention in 
  Reno and I will be leaving Monty here.

  I have several reasons for choosing to leave Monty.  Here are a few.
  When we travel he is always in work mode regardless of actually being in 
  harness or not.  I don't see this as a problem for trips of a few days, but 
  I worry about the accumulated stress of no down time over longer stretches. 
  He will not chew on bones or play with toys for more than a minute or two. 
  When given the opportunity to run in a enclosed area, he chooses to stay by 
  me or watch what is going on around us. He is slowly getting better with 
  this, but it is most definitely a work in progress.  He is a very serious 
  guide.

  When I'm on vacation or at a convention, I want to do what I want to do when 
  I want to do it.  Maybe this is selfish, but I'm being honest.  If I want to 
  go to a concert, go tubing down a river, sleep in late, have drinks with 
  friends at 2 in the morning or whatever I don't want to have to worry about 
  running the dog ragged or finding someone to dog sit.  I want to have a good 
  time knowing that my dog is also having a good time.  I enjoy my vacation 
  and I know Monty enjoys his time at the dog sitters home.  He gets to romp 
  with other dogs, dig in the sandbox, splash in the wading pool and other 
  doggie things he doesn't get to do that often.

  My last reason has to do with being an owner trainer in a small town. 
  Because of where I live there are some things that Monty has never 
  encountered or been trained to navigate.  He has never even seen an 
  escalator let alone knows how to work one.   He has never experienced crowds 
  of more than 200-300 people.  the town I live in only has 7,000 people. 
  Sure I could take him to a larger city and teach him these skills, but I 
  have decided that is not the best option for us.  It would be like taking 
  someone who has lived in a small rural community or on a farm and plunking 
  them down in the middle of New York City.  there is going to be some culture 
  shock.  Monty is my small town dog.  I don't think he would be at his best 
  in a big city environment.

  As always, these are just my thoughts and opinions.  It's what works for me 
  today.  Tomorrow I may change my mind. *smile*

  Julie


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