[NAGDU] A Thanksgiving topic for discussion

[Al Sten-Clanton]

Happy Thanksgiving from me as well, also for those who don't celebrate it.


I seem to remember as far as my first guide dog class in 1979 that we 
were strongly discouraged from giving our dogs people food.  One reason 
this stuck with me is that at home we'd often give our pet dogs the 
leftovers in a cereal bowl, for example.  I think the reason for 
discouraging it was that our guide dogs would become even more 
determined to get people food than they might already be, and would make 
themselves unwelcome at a restaurant or at somebody else's table.  It 
didn't mean we wouldn't have a problem--even I knew that--but it might 
be less of one.


I've kept to that practice since.  If food lands on the floor, I don't 
try hard to stop my dog from getting it unless it's in harness:  there 
seems a limit on how strict I can be as a practical matter, so I tacitly 
adopted the rule that what lands on the floor can belong to the dog.


I haven't had a dog that didn't snarf food from the counter or the table 
from time to time.  A couple of months after I got Sheldon back in 2018, 
he even tried to grab ham off my plate at a gathering with his gentle 
leader on.  It took me a while to cool his jets.  So, I don't really 
know how much this line I've tried to draw has helped.  But I think 
Sheldon's behavior about getting on furniture suggests it may have 
helped some:  he seems to have learned that while he can get on our bed, 
he is not supposed to get on the other bed or any other furniture here.


Now, I gather that there's some idea that it's good to feed dogs some 
people food at least from time to time.  (I've been reading THE FOREVER 
DOG.) Maybe it would be good enough to give my dog food only in his pan, 
whether dog or people food.  But until I know something better, I figure 
it's bets to keep his people food to what he laps off the floor or 
steals and gets corrected (usually) for stealing.


I hope this is useful.


Al

On 11/24/22 16:03, Raul Gallegos - NAGDU via NAGDU wrote:
> Hello everyone, first off, Happy Thanksgiving to everybody who 
> celebrates it. If you don't, I still hope you have a great day no 
> matter what. Now, as to the topic for discussion, I would like to hear 
> pros and cons, do's and don'ts, concerning the topic of giving your 
> guide dog a special extra treat on thanksgiving. Whether this is a dog 
> treat, a sweet potato, a dog breath treat, or turkey from Thanksgiving 
> dinner, let's have some positive discussions as to why people do and 
> don't, or whether people do or don't do this.
>
> I can even go first. With a few dogs in the past, I have occasionally 
> given them a small piece of turkey. However, I no longer do this, and 
> my current guide dog does not get any. Instead, I might give him an 
> extra sweet potato treat that I know is fine for his stomach and 
> digestive system. Let's remember, positive discussions and no right or 
> wrong answers here based on philosophy or beliefs.
> -- 
> Raul Gallegos - President
> National Association of Guide Dog Users
> 346-439-7444 | RGallegos at nagdu.org
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