[nagdu] Why I decided not to owner train.

[The Pawpower Pack]

I think there are some characteristics one must have in order to be successful at it. 
1. A great deal of self-honesty. Big brother program is not there to tell you to ritire the dog or carreer change it, if there are problems. You have to be able to be straight with yourself, and be as objective as possible, and if you can't be objective, or if you feel like you want a second opinion, you need to have the grace to find someone who will tell you straight. Even the most experienced trainer doesn't know everything, and will become kennel blind. 
2. Good mobility skills. If you don't know where you are, you can't teach a dog.  If you freak out when you get lost, if you can't cross a street straight, you'd better have some kind of plan for fixing that in yourself first. 
Which brings me to 3 
3. Planning, good owner trainers are planners. They think about where to take the dog, and what to do, then think about it more, then do the activity, then evaluate the success or failure or problems, while thinking about the next thing to do.  Your brain becomes a little bit like a rodent on crack at this point.  You also need to plan where the dog will go if it can't work.  
4. Dog smarts. 

I also think it's important for experienced owner trainers not to judge the newbies.  We all started out new, and  we only know one another via email.  We don't know the full situation about anyone, only how it comes across in writing.  Everyone has the right to make their own decisions, but I don't think it's right to read couple messages and make a judgement.  We have all made mistakes with our dogs, whomever trained them.  The only person who can decide to owner train or not is the person deciding, just like anything else in life.  


 Rox and the kitchen Bitches: 
Mill'E, Laveau, Soleil
Pawpower4me at gmail.com
Sent from my iPhone

> On Sep 21, 2014, at 9:11 AM, Brett Sample via nagdu <nagdu at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> 
> Right on Vivianna, You make excellent points. WE do need to point out all the issues because in the end wether a program dog or a owner trained dog it should be about what is going to work for each person to make their life and their Guides life the best possible. Sometimes that might not be what someone wants to hear but it is true. 
> 
> 
> Brett
>> On Sep 21, 2014, at 9:19 AM, Vivianna via nagdu <nagdu at nfbnet.org> wrote:
>> 
>> OK, it seems to me that some folks seem to think owner training a dog to be a guide is the ting to do and, that’s great.  i’m all for it.  and, then, it seems to me that some folks are under the false impression that ownertraining a dog to be a guide is just something that anybody can pull off successfully.
>> i have trained 3 of my own guides so, i speak from many years of experience.  this task is most definitely NOT for everybody.  
>> you can’t just go and pick out a cute puppy, or a cool breed of young dog and expect it to be guide dog material.  you need to have flawless mobility skills, and, yes, that means using a white cane.  you need to have expert dog handling and training skills. and, you need to have the time and patience to go along with all of this.
>> i want a dog that has the basics down already, i want a dog that has good house manners already.  i want a dog that knows what a harness is and how to pull into it already.  i want a dog that i can take home and mold further into the guide that i need.
>> what if that cute dog or puppy that you chose is not guide material?  what will you do with the dog?  or, will you, because you now have bonded to the dog, just force it to be a sort of half-baked guide?  do you think this will be good for you or the dog?  do you think that taking a beloved family pet and sort of halfway training it so you can bring it around with you is the right thing?
>> now, don’t get me wrong, the folks that i have seen post on here are not doing such a thing however, i have seen it happen.  and, not just once either.
>> if a school, or, several schools, have turned down your application then, what makes you think that you have the abilities to owner train a successful guide?
>> if, you never go anywhere independently, if you don’t go for walks, if you don’t have time, if you don’t know your city and neighborhood like the back of your hand, if you don’t have experience training dogs, if you don’t have the financial ability to care for a dog and take care of it’s medical bills, then do you really want to take on such a monumental challenge as owner training a dog that will be largely responsible for your safety?
>> just my thoughts on the subject.
>> 
>> Vivianna
>> 
>> 
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