[nagdu] where I don't take the dog was Lots of Questions

[Julie J.]

I am going to the state fair this weekend.  the temps are supposed to be 
in the 90's.  We are going to a tractor pull and then a concert.  Monty 
has been to the state fair before, but he's staying home this year.  
It'll be too hot, too loud and too uncomfortable for him to lay on 
bleachers for hours and hours.  I'm not exactly sure how I'm going to 
remain semi comfortable on those bleachers all afternoon and evening.

I do not take my guides to funerals.  This has nothing to do with the 
place of the event, the other people or the dog.  It is because I only 
attend funerals of people who I was very close to and I'm in no frame of 
mind to be working a guide dog.  I typically go sighted guide with a 
cane just in case.

I have not taken any of my guides on a vacation.  I consider this on a 
case by case basis.  I recently traveled to Alaska.  Monty stayed home 
because we scheduled a lot of day trips that would have not been 
appropriate for him and I couldn't figure out what I'd do with him.  We 
went clam digging which is extremely and I mean extremely wet, cold and 
dirty work.  We went kayaking.  there was no place in the boat for him.  
We also went fishing on a small boat.  It ended up that he could have 
probably fit and been comfortable on that boat, but I didn't know that 
before I arrived. Ditto with the bed and breakfast, it turned out that 
the owner would have been fine with Monty there, but she was not 
required  to accept service dogs because she lives on the premises and 
only rents a very small number of rooms.

I rarely take my guide into friends homes or cars.  The exception is if 
he is specifically invited or if I am attending some work related 
function with a coworker.

Other places I don't take Monty: car races, fireworks displays and  
llama farms.

I generally run through the following before taking Monty:
1. Is he legally allowed in this place?  If no is he invited or will he 
be accepted without impoliteness?
2.  Will his coming along make my life easier, more convenient or 
improve my options?
3.  Will he be comfortable in this place?

Of course I don't actually go through those questions verbatim each 
time, but a lot more so in the beginning when I was still getting the 
hang of things.  And sometimes my choice to take him isn't based on the 
place at all.  I just left him home yesterday when my husband and I ran 
to the bank.  Monty had already been on a long walk in the morning and 
then a regular day at my office.  It was very hot and he was tired.  I 
felt like he needed a break.

I've noticed that my list of places and circumstances has changed over 
the years and with the different personalities of my dogs.  What works 
for Monty may be entirely different from my next dog or if Monty was 
someone else guide what works for that team combination would likely 
also be different.

JMHO
Julie