[nagdu] moving to a new city: suggestions?

[Vivianna]

Hi All.
Well, my whole take on this situation is completely different from what i have seen here so far.  i have a dog in order to use her for mobility.  when i brought her home from the school, i did not go around with my cane first while heeling her around.  i just put the harness on and worked her right away.
when i moved last march, i did not go around with my cane and learn my new neighborhood.  i put on her harness, put BlindSquare in my ear and, off i went.
when i travel to new cities, i do not go around heeling my dog until she gets used to things, no way, i use her as the guide she is.
now, with all that said.  if you are not comfortable just hitting the city right away, harness up and go around the block.  don’t heel, work that dog.  that’s what they love, their job. 
get the BlindSquare app and use it to simulate your new location and familiarize yourself with the streets around. 
then, put the earbuds in and go for it.
that’s the beauty of the combination of a dog and technology.
my dogs have all loved to do new things.  
if you feel like it, you could put a folding cane in your bag just in case you want to check something out but, IMO, that’s not necessary with a good working dog at your side.
also, if you need to learn things like, light rail stations, campuses, etc. i would call around and get an O and M instructor to come out and show you those places.
here, all of the light rail stations are different.
i also had an O and M instructor come over and drive around my neighborhood with me so that we could cover a lot of distance and she could tell me about the layout of the streets.  This was so that i can take long walks in different directions.  when i moved last march, i went out walking the very next day after my move.  it was great!  i had no idea where i was going or what i might run into but, with GPS, you can always find your way home.  i ended up in a parking lot and on a street with no sidewalk but, i also ended up back home. lol.
i could not have done this without BlindSquare.  things are so different now.  
When i got all my previous dogs, i did not have this luxury.

Vivianna

On Jan 15, 2015, at 10:48 PM, Lori Dent via nagdu <nagdu at nfbnet.org> wrote:

> Hi Aleeha,
> 
> First of all, what big city are you moving to in Ohio?You have gotten some good suggestions from others. I also live in Ohio  in the Northeast  part of the state in  Kent, Ohio  which is a college town in the city.
> 
> Anyways, is there anyway for you to get some time to go to that city you will be moving to with a friend and get fimilular  with thesurrounding area in which you will be living  by walking around with a friend using your cane. Then once you get a little fimilular  with the surrounding area  to where you feel more relaxed and more sure of things then you could take your guide and heal him while walking the route with your cane a few times or so to let your guide  get used to the surrounding area  and be a little more comfortable  when out walking in a new area in the city.
> 
> Then once your dog feels relaxed and a little more sure of himself and the new surrounding area then you can try taking him out on a short walk  and work him in harness.
> 
> I sure hope the move and the new change won't be to aweful stressful for your dog. It's going to be an adjustment for the both of you but I'm sure things will work out in the end . Good luck and keep us posted. Take care.
> 
> Lori and the Gipper 
> 
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