[nagdu] Considering A Dog

[Sarah]

I'm coshited for you to get your new pup! I still have 5 more 
days to go.

 ----- Original Message -----
From: Marsha Drenth <marsha.drenth at gmail.com
To: "NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog 
Users" <nagdu at nfbnet.org
Date sent: Thu, 20 Sep 2012 19:43:56 -0400
Subject: Re: [nagdu] Considering A Dog

Hi cody,

I'm Marsha, 3 days away from getting my new pup.  I recently 
retired a GSD from TSE due to health and stress issues.  I am 
completely devasted about this, but that is for another time and 
place.  I am a full time student at Temple University in 
Philadelphia.  I live in the burb of Philly with my hubby.  I am 
also hearing impaired and blind.  Oh and my first pup was from 
GDB.

I'm the moderator around here, so if you need anything please let 
me know.

Until next time,

Marsha drenth
Sent with my IPhone
http://adventureswith2feet4paws.blogspot.com

On Sep 20, 2012, at 1:00 AM, Kody Keplinger 
<kodytheduff at gmail.com> wrote:

 Hi all!

 I found this list yesterday and have been browsing the archives 
for info.
 After some serious thought, I have decided to look into getting 
a guide
 dog.  I do have some concerns that I know others have brought up 
in the
 past (I do have remaining vision, and I know it may impair my 
trust of the
 dog at first, but I believe I can overcome this, especially 
since my
 retained vision is only useful outdoors during the day.)  After 
asking
 around about different schools and commands, I know I want to 
apply to
 schools that teach "find" commands (ex.  "find a chair" or "find 
the
 stairs") as these are very difficult things for me in unfamiliar 
indoor
 settings.  I also want a school that trains dogs for 
trains/subways since I
 live in NYC and that's an important part of my daily life.

 I have a pretty strong breed preference to either a German 
Shepherd or a
 Boxer.  I LOVE labs, but they've been family pets my whole life, 
and my gut
 is telling me that, for my first guide dog, and one I'll work 
with as a
 partner, I want to step away from labs if at all possible.  My 
first choice
 of school was Fidelco, but I read today some of the controversy 
from last
 year.  I like their program because a.) they focus on german 
shepherds and
 b.) I like the idea of starting, from day one, in my 
neighborhood.  I know
 some programs take you to NYC as sort of a final "challenge" - 
but as NYC
 is my home, I'd rather it not be my big challenge, I'd rather it 
be my
 regular, if that makes sense at all.  Is the controversy over 
Fidelco and
 ownership still brewing? Has anyone worked with them lately?

 Looking at other schools, can any of you give me some info on 
which ones
 teach the "find" commands as well as provide german shepherds 
and/or boxers
 (and that allow you to specify a preference)? Also, any info on 
the wait
 times for these programs (from turning in the application, to 
acceptance,
 to attending the school) would be incredibly 
helpful/appreciated.  (I found
 the old surveys on GDUI, but they were from 2008 and I wasn't 
sure how
 up-to-date they were.)

 Thanks for any info you can give, guys! I'm so glad I found this 
listserv
 already.  The archives have already given me so much direction.

 Best,
 Kody
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