[NAGDU] New equipment! YEEEEEHAAAAAAA!!!!!

Sun Nov 20 12:32:13 UTC 2016

Thanks for the awesome review Buddy!It means a lot to me to know that my 
products are what people want and they are making a difference in people's 
lives.

I've tried to answer all the questions I saw in all the responses, but if I 
forgot something please ask.  I didn't intend to leave anything out.

The school that has leather leashes in the same configuration as the Quick 
Convert style is Leader.   I've been using this style since Buddy explained 
it to me  about a year ago and it's my new favorite!  You wouldn't think 
such a small change would be all that much, but for me it's made my life 
simpler. You can order from Amazon here:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01LBN0E5U

I named the Sport Style Harness  because I wanted it to be like tennis 
shoes, meaning I wanted it to flex with the body, be extremely comfortable, 
padded and form fitted.  When I think of tennis shoes I think of sports and 
outdoor activities, so it became the Sport Style Guide Harness.  Also I'm 
not good at naming things, note my company name is On The Go and you see the 
pattern. *smile*

The current in stock Sport Harnesses are 1.5 inches wide, not 2.  I can make 
a harness in 1, 1.5 or 2 wide though.  I will need: height, weight, breed 
and girth measurement of the dog.  The girth is the circumference of the 
widest part of the rib cage, behind the front legs, about where the belly 
strap is going to be.  Usually with those measurements I can get the correct 
size.  If the measurements are different than what I'm used to seeing or if 
the dog is a breed I'm unfamiliar with or a mix I may need additional 
measurements, but that's pretty seldom.  I guarantee the fit, so if it's not 
to your liking, let me know and I'll exchange it or make alterations until 
it's right.   I do keep an assortment of sizes and colors of the Sport style 
harness in stock and ready to ship.  However I can make a custom harness for 
you, if you need an odd size, a different style or if you had your heart set 
on yellow or some color I don't have.  They are on sale right now, through 
December 15 for $127, then they will be back to their regular price of $147. 
This is ready to ship harnesses only.
You can go here for more info about the harnesses:
http://www.guide-and-service-dogs.com/products/sport-style-guide-dog-harness/

I make a bunch of other products and purchase some things wholesale.  Here's 
an overview:
relieving harnesses
hands free leashes
collar bells
door bells
multi dog leashes, used for walking multiple dogs at once
over the harness sweaters
first aid kits
tie downs
standard service dog leashes
all sorts of collars
pick up baggie roll holder
collapsible travel bowls, in larger size than usual
my book in large print or Kindle
A lot of these things are currently on sale, until December 15.  Go here to 
see prices:
http://www.guide-and-service-dogs.com/sales-and-specials/
Some things have been sold and I need to update the page.

If you're ready to order or have questions you can reach me by email at:
julielj at neb.rr.com
or by phone, facetime or instant message  at:
402-363-8997
I'm in central time and take calls from about 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Julie
New lowered price on my book:
Courage to Dare: A Blind Woman's Quest to Train her Own Guide Dog
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00QXZSMOC
-----Original Message----- 
From: Buddy Brannan via NAGDU
Sent: Saturday, November 19, 2016 8:37 AM
To: NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users
Cc: Buddy Brannan
Subject: [NAGDU] New equipment! YEEEEEHAAAAAAA!!!!!

Posted to Hilde's blog yesterday. Feel free to share. I'm happy to too 
Julie's horn for her :-) (since she sort of can't on this list...) No 
financial interest and all that jazz.

New Equipment! YEEEEEEEHAAAAAAA!!!!

November 18, 2016
We interrupt this streak of not posting anything with a post.

Ooh…a post? Really? Maybe I’ll post about our trip to the NFBP convention 
next, but this isn’t that post.

Over the past few weeks, I’ve gotten some gear from Julie Johnson, whose 
site can be found at http://guide-and-service-dogs.com/. Besides useful 
information, Julie manufactures a line of some dead useful things at really 
good prices. You can also buy from Amazon if you like, as she sells there. I’ve 
gotten a few of them that I’d like to talk about.

I’ll briefly mention the first aid kit, which doesn’t appear to be on her 
site. It’s a handy zippered bag full of, surprisingly, first aid supplies. 
There are bandages, ointment, vet wrap, and an emergency blanket. It’s a 
handy size to stash either in your home or in your luggage for travel.

Next, the collar bells are a pretty good idea for keeping track of your dog 
around the house, so that s/he will (theoretically) stay out of trouble. 
Julie sent me a set in trade for an honest review, and then Amazon changed 
their review rules. Still, I’ll happily give an honest review for them 
anyway. These are just your standard jingle bells on a nylon strap with side 
release buckle. The set comes with three sizes: one set with two very small 
bells, a medium sized bell, and a larger bell, each on its own strap. These 
would be great for a fairly quiet indoor environment. The bells aren’t very 
loud, so they wouldn’t be appropriate for outdoor use. The strap is only a 
couple inches long, with the plastic side release buckle closure, sort of 
like the buckles that snap your backpack together. Be aware, however, that 
these buckles are very small, so if you have dexterity issues, you may have 
trouble with them. The set I have is not adjustable, but Julie is thinking 
about making some that can be shortened if necessary. These would be most 
appropriate on a flat collar; just put the strap around the width of the 
collar and close, letting them hang down. I don’t think these would work 
very well with a slip collar, though they might with a martingale collar. I 
can usually hear these, when Fiona isn’t barking loudly, or if Hilde is not 
in stealth mode, so they’re pretty handy. I’d probably get louder bells, 
just because we have some loud household members, but it wouldn’t matter a 
lot, because this dog can move unbelievably quietly.

There are two things that a guide dog user must have. OK, three. One is a 
collar of some kind. Hilde wears both a flat collar, for tags, and a 
training collar, either a toggle collar or a prong collar, depending. Julie 
has flat collars and martingale collars, but I don’t have either one of 
those. I do have a collar with Hilde’s name and my phone number on it, in 
case she gets lost. This collar also has reflective stuff on it. I have a 
link somewhere if anyone’s interested.

But the other two things that a guide dog handler really has to have are a 
leash and a harness. Julie makes both out of quality nylon webbing. We’re 
most of us used to leather, and leather is really nice. I have a leather 
harness as well, and it’s great. Durable, classy, practical, fairly easy to 
maintain. Nylon, however, also has advantages. It’s light weight and even 
easier to clean, and don’t forget, it’s also inexpensive. I’ve used a nylon 
harness over the past six or seven years on and off. I like them especially 
for these Erie winters with all the dirt and grit and road salt and heavens 
only know what. So really, don’t discount the nylon.

First, the leash. You can get any length you like. I prefer shorter leashes, 
such as the Seeing Eye uses, about four feet long when in its extended long 
leash length. However, you can get one that’s 5 or 6 feet if you prefer.

Julie does something kind of neat, for which I will take at least partial 
credit. I say partial because I think there’s a school that does the same 
thing, but I can’t remember which one.

I’m lazy. So last year, when Hilde was a pup, I called Handcraft Collars to 
ask if they could make me some guide dog leashes out of tubular nylon. I had 
to describe what I wanted. So, instead of the usual arrangement where you 
can hook to one ring for a short leash, towards the bottom snap, and another 
ring near the top, for a long leash, I just had Debbie put in one ring at 
the bottom, to make a short leash, while leaving a standard handle with the 
bolt snap strung on the end of the handle. That way, all you have to do to 
get a long leash is disconnect from the bottom ring. Several months later, I 
told Julie about that, she said, “Hey, why didn’t I think of that?”, and 
thus, the Quick Convert Service Dog Leash was born.

I now have one of those, too. It’s a little heavier than the ones from 
Handcraft. Still, the stitching is quality, as is the hardware. Rather than 
a standard ring, Julie uses a D-ring. The bolt snaps are heavy duty ones, 
thicker than the ones on my Handcraft leashes. She uses nylon webbing, which 
is a bit grippier than the very slippery tubular nylon is, as well as a bit 
wider. Actually, the 3/4 inch width is as close to perfect as it gets. It’s 
good stuff, and I highly recommend these, and not just because it was sort 
of my lazy idea. Sort of. I stole it from somewhere else. Southeastern 
maybe?

Finally, the harness. I’m a budding guide dog equipment nerd. I love guide 
dog equipment. I’d love to see all sorts of different harness designs. Even 
so, I have very definite opinions on what makes a good harness. Of course, 
it has to be as comfortable as possible for the dog. Ease of putting on and 
taking off is desirable. A removable handle is a definite plus, and, while I 
wouldn’t say I’d never have a harness without a removable handle, I’ll 
always take a removable handle over a fixed handle. One thing that’s an 
absolute deal breaker, however, is the martingale strap. Ever since I got my 
first Seeing Eye dog, I have gotten very spoiled by this seemingly simple 
extra strap that runs between the dog’s front legs, from the belly strap to 
the chest strap in whatever configuration. Besides giving the dog more to 
pull into, the extra strap stabilizes the harness’s movement from side to 
side (so it doesn’t move so much), and makes it harder for your dog to 
accidentally back out of the harness.

The Sports Style Guide Harness meets all of these requirements. This is the 
second harness of this design that I’ve owned, and Julie has made some 
improvements. It’s made with wide 2-inch nylon straps and comes in several 
different colors. For Hilde, I got it in blue. The harness straps are padded 
to make it more comfortable for the dog to wear. You’ll notice right away 
that the design of the harness is different from most guide dog schools. 
Instead of one strap that goes around the chest from one side of the dog to 
the other, the harness is made with two straps that run from the back strap, 
over the dog’s shoulders, and meeting in the center of the dog’s chest at 
the breastbone. The martingale strap then runs back from this juncture, such 
that the three straps form something like a print letter Y. You’ll also 
notice the absence of handle stabilizing loops, or “bunny ears” that are 
present on most American harnesses. This isn’t nearly as scary as you might 
suppose. While it does afford the opportunity for more freedom of movement 
for the dog, the new handle has a much more rigid connection with the 
harness, so the handle really isn’t in a lot of danger of flipping up too 
high as it could with the previous PVC handle. Anyway, since there are no 
loops, there’s less bulk, and less bulk for your dog to have to lie on, 
which sounds a lot more comfortable. The belly strap is adjustable with a 
sliding buckle, and closes at the right side with a plastic side release 
buckle of the sort that you’d use to close a backpack. This buckle is quite 
large and sturdy.

The handle, as I said, is an improvement over the previous generation. The 
new handles are made of a flat metal stock wrapped in nylon. It is 
removable, attaching to the harness with plastic side release buckles. Don’t 
let that put you off, however; I’ve used a harness with similar handle 
attachments for a while with no problems. The buckles are sturdy and I’ve 
never had one disconnect during travel. Julie has also put a comfortable 
rubber handgrip on the handle, with finger grooves in the front. It’s a very 
comfortable grip, even for a dog with quite a bit of pull. I'd maybe prefer 
a bit more of a rounded grip, maybe a little padding under the grip, but 
even with that, I like it. You’ll have absolutely no trouble following your 
dog due to “sloppy” handle connections, because the connections are 
definitely not sloppy and don’t have excessive play in them at all. Highly 
recommended, especially for the price.

Anyway, if you’re owner training, or if you just need or want alternative 
equipment, give these a look. You won’t be sorry.

--
Buddy Brannan, KB5ELV - Erie, PA
Phone: 814-860-3194
Mobile: 814-431-0962
Email: buddy at brannan.name

--
Buddy Brannan, KB5ELV - Erie, PA
Phone: 814-860-3194
Mobile: 814-431-0962
Email: buddy at brannan.name

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