[NAGDU] class coming up, and questions

[sunshine]

Actually, the morning park and feeding has changed. We park the dogs first and then feed. It is believed that this change has resulted in less accidents. I liked taking Velvet out first. The meal times are at the same time: 7:00 AM, 12:00 PM and 5:00 PM. Relieving time in mid morning is between 10:30 and 11:00. However some people like to relieve their dogs before going into town. The Schedule for working our dogs is the same. The first week, we stay at the lounge until people in our classes have completed their trips. There is no one in the lounge. Beginning the second week, various people are present. I know that Paulene was there and Kathy Sutton was as well. I can't remember who else right off hand.


If we tell the instructors what we need, they can simulate for us.

> On Oct 16, 2018, at 1:29 PM, Kerri Sprecher via NAGDU <nagdu at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> 
> Hello to all,
> I'm so excited to be going to Morristown, NJ on Monday the 22nd. I
> heard something about a welcome meeting or dinner when I got my flight
> arrangements set up with the travel agency. That part was new to me
> and I liked that.
> So, my thing is this: in order to pack all the training that used to
> go into a 3 and a half week class for a retrain and 4 weeks for a new
> student, into a shorter class time, 2.5 weeks for retrains in my case,
> can someone shed some light on how in the world they manage to pull
> that off? I bet it's a whirlwind of activity; I'm definitely expecting
> the 5:30 AM feed and park, meal times to be the same, one AM and one
> PM trip, and feed and park again, some lectures and one last park
> time, but, do they have you doing longer trips with more work per trip
> than before? I would imagine that in order to get someone prepared for
> life with a guide dog, you'd have to pack more skill sets into a trip
> in order to get it all in there before going home time.
> I spoke with a good friend of mine who goes to GDB for her dogs, and
> she said hers is similar in that they do clicker training, targeting,
> chaining, and the like, but when they shortened their class time also,
> they changed the ratio of student/instructor to 2/1 instead of 4/1,
> because they put in longer trip times with more training in each trip
> than in previous classes before.
> I'm guessing that Monday and Tuesday are dedicated to paperwork,
> orientation, lectures, and Juneau walks to make sure the match is
> right, and then Wednesday, the day everyone looks forward to, Dog Day,
> lunch, and your first ever trip together. And, I am also guessing that
> in the first few days of getting the new dog, it'll be the simple
> familiar quiet routes, then more in-depth and more complex ones. I
> just was shocked when I first learned they had shortened class,
> because even with a 3 week class, it felt like we were always running
> and going, with a little down time sprinkled in, but mostly busy, and
> now, to think that it's even shorter makes me wonder just how much
> more work they'll have for me to do at once. Glad I'm a seasoned
> handler by now, or I might feel overwhelmed; heck I might feel that
> way anyway. Smile.
> So, what do you think, for those of you grads out there, about the new
> 2.5 week class, and how has it affected or changed the way they do
> trips and the amount of work for each trip?
> Thanks all, and I am ecstatic!
> Kerri
> 
> -- 
> Kerri Sprecher,  President
> Big Country Chapter NFBTX
> spedangel84 at gmail.com
> 325-280-6272
> Chapter Google Voice: 325-704-8787
> Chapter E-mail:
> bigcountry at nfbtx.org
> Check us out on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/AbileneAreaBlind
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> characteristic that defines you or your future. Every day we raise the
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