[nagdu] which side are you on?

Mon May 27 17:18:36 UTC 2013

Lyn,

I'm glad someone else had fun with that image. /lol/

The reason everything with horses is done with the horse on the right is 
because of the sword. So I guess it's all about the weapons!

Keeping the dog on the left to keep the dominant hand (for the 
majority!) free actually makes more sense. It's also safer, I think, 
since folks drive on the right-hand side of the road. No big deal with 
sidewalks and all that modern infrastructure. But trying to figure out 
how to walk most safely beside the road where there are no sidewalks has 
been giving me fits for years. The rule of thumb is to walk on the side 
facing oncoming traffic. But since I do things backwards, that puts my 
dog closest to the cars, which I don't like at all. Also, they are less 
likely to see her when they see me. The way she tracks makes it more 
likely, too, that she will bring us closer to traffic than when we are 
on the left with cars coming up behind us. I can listen behind me, but 
the poor dog is forever craning her neck to look back at what's coming.

So that's another good reason for keeping the dog on the left, even 
though by now most of us can take sidewalks for granted. /smile/

Tami

On 05/25/2013 10:46 AM, L Gwizdak wrote:
> Buddy,
> I've heard that dogs are trained to walk on our left is because most
> people are right-handed.
>
> Guns! LOL!  I got an image of blind folks toting guns and spouting
> second amemdment rights! LOL!  This would be the case for police dog
> handlers who must be able to grab his gun when needed.
>
> Lyn and Landon
> "Asking who's the man and who's the woman in an LGBT relationship is
> like asking which chopstick is the fork" - Unknown
> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Buddy Brannan" <buddy at brannan.name>
> To: "NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users"
> <nagdu at nfbnet.org>
> Sent: Friday, May 24, 2013 7:34 PM
> Subject: Re: [nagdu] which side are you on?
>
>
> The gun thing I seem to recall someone telling me once…that hunters have
> their dogs working on the left so they can hold their guns in their
> right hands. Or something like that. Who knows? Now, i think it's done
> because that's how it's always been done.
> --
> Buddy Brannan, KB5ELV - Erie, PA
> Phone: (814) 860-3194 or 888-75-BUDDY
>
>
>
> On May 24, 2013, at 8:50 PM, Tami Jarvis <tami at poodlemutt.com> wrote:
>
>> Buddy,
>>
>> Hm... I like your explanation of why left working dogs like to track
>> left and vice versa. It is consistent with what Mitzi tells me when I
>> ask her to track left. /smile/
>>
>> I have heard various reasons for the tradition of keeping the dog to
>> the left, but the gun is new. /lol/ One reason I have heard is that it
>> leaves the right hand free for shaking hands. Having the guide dog
>> harness and leash in the right hand does make that trickier, although
>> for a leftie the shaking of right hands is not natural to begin with.
>> /lol/
>>
>> Tami
>>
>> On 05/24/2013 04:48 PM, Buddy Brannan wrote:
>>> i,
>>>
>>> Why yes, yes, I have had people try to micromanage where my dog
>>> walks, and it's terribly annoying. All the explanations in the world
>>> don't help, and while your friend needs to get a grip, he won't
>>> understand this need.
>>>
>>> While my current dog has a right tendency, I believe this is somewhat
>>> unusual. My first two dogs, both from different schools from each
>>> other, had very definite left tendencies and would walk on the left
>>> side of the walkway. Since our dogs work on the left (a matter of
>>> tradition as I understand it, no actual technical reason for it,
>>> except something to do with holding a gun in your right hand), my
>>> suspicion is that the dog will generally find it easier, less work,
>>> and less for him to have to pay attention to and account for if he
>>> walks on the left rather than the right. Think of it from his point
>>> of view. If he's got you on his right, he has to move over less often
>>> to avoid things he'd naturally avoid anyway. In other words, let's
>>> say he's walking and he sees an obstacle. He would naturally walk
>>> around it giving himself enough clearance. If he knows he also has to
>>> clear you, it's much easier for him to do this if he can do so by
>>> only taking his own body width into account. So, he'll
>> go around the obstacle, putting it on his left, with still enough room
>> on the path for you, and not having to go further out of his way to
>> clear the obstacle and do a stellar job and earn that "atta good boy"
>> from you. Contrast that with walking on the right. OK, the dog sees an
>> obstacle and has to clear it. Going around it to the right, putting
>> the obstacle on the left, will push you off the path. But going around
>> the obstacle to the left, putting it on the right, and also having to
>> account for your body width, means he has to judge that width more
>> precisely. And what if you clip it because he's too close? Earning
>> that "atta good boy" is a whole lot more intensive for him, certainly
>> more work, and like any good human, your dog is most likely to take
>> the path of least resistance.
>>>
>>> So, you might ask, why not just walk down the center then? Ideal,
>>> sure. You can then piss off both sides of the sidewalk. Only kidding.
>>> Again, that's not the path of least resistance for your dog. Walking
>>> on an edge means that your dog has something to follow. Not so
>>> walking down the middle. No edge = more work to keep a straight line.
>>>
>>> OK, now everyone tell me where I went wrong on this doggie brain
>>> analysis.
>>> --
>>> Buddy Brannan, KB5ELV - Erie, PA
>>> Phone: (814) 860-3194 or 888-75-BUDDY
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> On May 24, 2013, at 6:51 PM, "Daniel" <daniel.sweeney1 at comcast.net>
>>> wrote:
>>>
>>>> Hi all,
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> I have just spent a troubling afternoon with a couple of great
>>>> friends. We
>>>> were on a walk in Golden, Colorado, through town and along the river
>>>> trail.
>>>> My friend kept telling me to stay to the right on the path because
>>>> of all of
>>>> the foot and bike traffic on the trail. The trail is a wide, cement
>>>> trail,
>>>> approximately 10' wide. Cass always walks to the left  on any path. My
>>>> friend became increasingly upset with me because everyone had to
>>>> move around
>>>> me to avoid missing me and Cass. I tried to have Cass move to the
>>>> right, but
>>>> she insisted to continue to travel on the left side of the walk, as she
>>>> always does. It is true the path was very busy, but I told my friend
>>>> that
>>>> Cass would avoid anyone that was in her way. He became very irate,
>>>> telling
>>>> me I should walk with Cass on my right side instead of my left side.
>>>> I told
>>>> him that this was not an option, and that I knew what I was doing,
>>>> and just
>>>> chill out and let me and Cass do what we do. He said it was absurd
>>>> that any
>>>> dog would not be trained to walk on the right side of a path, and I
>>>> told him
>>>> that she was following the side of the walk.
>>>>
>>>> Does anyone come across any of the same remarks from people. Do your
>>>> dogs
>>>> travel on the right or left on a path with no curbs, or buildings to
>>>> line
>>>> either side.
>>>>
>>>> I must admit I do not remember having ever discussed this during
>>>> training
>>>> with Cass. I naturally assumed that Cass would follow along the left
>>>> side.
>>>> My friend said that everyone else had to move out of the way for me,
>>>> and
>>>> that it was not right that I took up the left side. Just because I
>>>> was blind
>>>> did not give me the right to make everyone else move out of the way
>>>> for me,
>>>> and that I had to be more considerate of them. Needless to say I was
>>>> just a
>>>> bit pissed off at this point.
>>>>
>>>> What do you think about this?
>>>>
>>>> I told him to forget about ever trying to get me to move my dog to
>>>> my right
>>>> hand, it was not going to happen. Other than that, I fell short of
>>>> giving
>>>> him a good reason for travelling on the left side of the walk.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Thanks,
>>>>
>>>> Daniel and Cass
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>> nagdu mailing list
>>>> nagdu at nfbnet.org
>>>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nagdu_nfbnet.org
>>>> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info
>>>> for nagdu:
>>>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nagdu_nfbnet.org/buddy%40brannan.name
>>>
>>>
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> nagdu mailing list
>>> nagdu at nfbnet.org
>>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nagdu_nfbnet.org
>>> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
>>> nagdu:
>>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nagdu_nfbnet.org/tami%40poodlemutt.com
>>>
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> nagdu mailing list
>> nagdu at nfbnet.org
>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nagdu_nfbnet.org
>> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
>> nagdu:
>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nagdu_nfbnet.org/buddy%40brannan.name
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> nagdu mailing list
> nagdu at nfbnet.org
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nagdu_nfbnet.org
> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
> nagdu:
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nagdu_nfbnet.org/leg1950%40cox.net
>
> _______________________________________________
> nagdu mailing list
> nagdu at nfbnet.org
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nagdu_nfbnet.org
> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
> nagdu:
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nagdu_nfbnet.org/tami%40poodlemutt.com
>