[NAGDU] Dogs and Canes in Tandem?

[Kevan Worley]

In someways, I think you have two separate questions here. I two came to the guide dog later in life. Onyx is my first dog and I’ve had her six years. But I didn’t get her until I was 60. This is after an entire life of using the long white cane and doing so fairly effectively. My ability to orient has always been good. I had difficulty with my trainer as well. But likely that was mostly me simply trying to adjust to a different method of travel and managing a guide dog. It took a lot of work after the training. Moreover my shepherd is extremely high strung! She has a significant pull and likes to walk at the speed of light! We have now melted into a wonderful team. It just took lots and lots of extra work. Extra travel etc. As for the Cane‘s. I almost always carry an NFB micro cane. They are wonderful! I don’t think most dog handler‘s do carry a cane. I observe some who I think probably should. But, that too is a different thread and probably a critique that guy should just keep to myself. Oh well. I didn’t. I do not pull out the micro cane very often. But sometimes I just like to find out why she refuses to go forward or I want to find out what is on my right or what is on my left. There may be an e Q of some kind and I want to know is that offense or some other interesting structure. I can pull my micro chain out and tap over there. I like that extra flexibility. But I don’t use it as much as I used to. yesterday I had to go somewhere that we had never been before. It was on the edge of downtown. Some broken sidewalks some crazy intersections some twisted routes, trees, narrow areas etc. I realized after we had gone to my destinations that I didn’t use my cane at all. We worked like a charm and figured it out. But the micro cane does fit in purse or pocket. Mine is 58 inches long. I strongly recommend it. It’s a wonderful tool An additional tool that I use a lot for navigation is BlindSquare. I really have come to like and use that app quite often. When I really get stuck I’ll use Aira. A additionally, Onyx is not great at going directly to a chair in a waiting room or restaurant etc. I don’t know about others. So once we get in the area of the chair at the airport or wherever I’ll pull out my microcane because it’s easier for me to establish exactly where the seat is. I think the question really is individual. What combination of tools will ultimately work best for the blind traveler. You kind of have to just determine that through trial and error. Actually, onyx and I are walking and I am dictating. So please excuse the errors. I’m confident you can figure it out.

At Your Service,
Kevan Worley

> On Apr 28, 2022, at 5:57 AM, Diane Graves via NAGDU <nagdu at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> 
> Greetings Once Again,
> 
> 
> 
> Back again with my 2nd question. I'm wondering if any of you use your dog
> and your cane at the same time when exploring unfamiliar environments?
> 
> 
> 
> As I've posted here before, I didn't decide to try using a dog until later
> in life. As a result, the learning curve relative to the transition from
> cane to dog was quite steep. My initial instructor was very condescending;
> not encouraging at all, so I didn't get the same quality of training as
> others likely did. Anyway, shortly after Izzo and I got together I took a
> pretty nasty fall. This was likely my fault, but nonetheless, it was
> frightening. That said, I  remain very apprehensive when in unfamiliar
> environments wherein I don't know exactly where the curbs and steps are. 
> 
> 
> 
> Have any of you had similar experiences? Do you see any problems with
> walking with the dog while checking out the new or unfamiliar environment
> with the cane at the same time? 
> 
> 
> 
> Any feedback appreciated.
> 
> 
> 
> Thanks,
> 
> Diane Graves
> 
> 
> 
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