[NAGDU] Following and Forward

[S L Johnson]

Julie:

I can feel for you.  I went through this with my last dog.  Tara was a great 
worker but after we had been together for about 18 months, she suddenly 
began to lose confidence.  She was great when following but would look for 
someone else to make her decisions.  She would not take me all the way to 
counters, elevator buttons, doors, seats etc...  She would stop a few feet 
back from what I wanted her to find and look at me as if I could see to help 
her decide if it were the right thing or not.  She got very hesitant, walked 
extremely slow without any pull on the harness.  After struggling for 
several months, I finally took her back to her guide dog school for some 
help.  The trainers immediately notice her lack of initiative and 
confidence.  The trainer and I kept giving Tara lots of praise and treats 
whenever she put some pull into the harness and made correct decisions on 
her own.  At the end of that week it was doubtful if Tara would continue 
working.  I was determined not to have to retire a dog that I had only had 
for two years so, I set out to solve the problem.   .  Once I got her back 
home, I did not allow her to follow at all.  Even when I was with family and 
friends, I insisted that they stay back and allow Tara to do her work 
without thinking that someone else would come to her rescue.  Tara had to 
learn that it was just her and I, not everyone else doing her job.  It took 
me several months of constant praise, treat rewards and lots of work but, I 
am happy to tell you that when her trainer came to see us six months later, 
he said he couldn't believe it was the same dog.  She was again working with 
eagerness and confidence.  I was able to use the follow command but I made 
sure to correct her if she missed a curb or bumped me into something.  The 
dog has to learn that even when following they must maintain their safe 
guiding.   When you are following friends make them aware that you will have 
to stop and correct for any unsafe guide work.  Make sure they don't pay 
attention to Bill as he is working.  This is particularly difficult with 
family and some good friends but, you have to be firm letting them ko that 
Bill's attention must remain on you.  Sometimes I think it is harder to 
correct the humans in our lives than it is our dogs.  With a lot of work, 
you and Bill will gradually work this out.  Tara went on to work four more 
years until she retired due to cataracts and hip dysplasia not work issues. 
She was still a very confident safe guide when she retired.  It takes a lot 
of dedication and work but sometimes these kinds of work issues can be 
solved.  Good luck to you with Bill.  I hope you can work it out.

Sandra an Eva

-----Original Message----- 
From: Julie McGinnity via NAGDU
Sent: Thursday, May 12, 2016 10:53 AM
To: NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users
Cc: Julie McGinnity
Subject: [NAGDU] Following and Forward

Hi all,

I'm wondering if any of you have dealt with this problem: my dog loves
to follow other people.  Now, I know some schools and trainers teach
the follow command, and some teams do very well with it.  For some
reason, Bill cannot handle it.  When he follows, he loses initiative,
does not guide, and won't even listen to my commands.  I have not been
able to turn follow into something productive because it is unsafe for
us.  I have run into things because he was following a friend and not
paying attention.

My solution?  I stay in front whenever I walk with a friend, trick him
so that if he starts following I give him a command and work with him
until he follows it rather than blindly (haha) traipses on after the
other person.  Now his issue has reached new levels because he has
recently begun slowing down to try and follow.  I have to encourage
him to speed up and stay ahead.

I would like suggestions so that I don't always have to walk ahead of
everyone.  Yes, I am faster than most people, but sometimes I just
won't be ahead of them.  That's life.  I would also like suggestions
for working on his initiative when we move forward.  I believe this is
related to his following issue, but Bill has been hesitating or
refusing to move forward at all.

Any ideas, suggestions, sympathetic understanding?  :)

Thanks guys!



-- 
Julie A. McGinnity
President, National Federation of the Blind Performing Arts Division,
Second Vice President, National Federation of the Blind of Missouri
"For we walk by faith, not by sight"
2 Cor. 7

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