[NAGDU] Seeing Eye

[Al Sten-Clanton]

Hi, Julie!


I'm on my fifth Seeing Eye dog.  I got my first in july of 1979, when we 
still had traffic checks for dinosaurs.  (In 1989, when I got my second, 
there were wooly mammoths.)


I've been very happy with Seeing Eye.  When I decided abruptly that I 
wanted a guide dog, it didn't matter to me which school I'd go to:  the 
first Federationist I hung out with had one from Guiding Eyes for the 
Blind.  My mom insisted that I should apply to Seeing Eye, and I had no 
problem with that, other than the old-style formality I saw and that was 
in effect for my first two classes.  I learned later that it was the 
only school from which you graduated with outright ownership, and I 
became very glad indeed that I'd gone there.  (I understand that this is 
no longer true, but I don't know the ownership policies of the other 
schools.)


I've had five good dogs and a good instructor to help with each one.  
Sometimes, thinking about my mistakes over the years, I've wondered if I 
was a bad match for my poor dogs, but I think they were all good matches 
for me.  I will admit that my third instructor paid such close attention 
to detail and seemed to find so much I was doing wrong that I worried 
about flunking out, but that dog came home to mostly work well, cause 
mischif often, and let me know if my wife was locked out or something 
else was amiss.


I wish you the best in your class.


Al


On 3/13/24 13:59, Julie A. Orozco via NAGDU wrote:
> Hi everyone,
>
>   
>
> Thank you for all the comments about Seeing Eye. It is great to know I will
> have an excellent class manager who will answer questions and listen to
> concerns. I'll tell a little more of my story below in case more
> reassurances are forth coming.
>
>   
>
> I retired my second dog in the fall of 2021 shortly before my daughter was
> born. I did not complete the application process for my third dog for a
> while after that because well, motherhood. So I haven't worked a dog in
> almost 2 and a half years, which is the longest I've gone without the
> harness in my hand since 2008. I only had to wait like 5 months between my
> first and second dogs.
>
>   
>
> My life has changed completely in the last several years. I am a mom of a
> toddler now, and I feel like I need a unicorn of a dog. I live outside of
> Washington DC and take the metro a lot, walk a ton, and definitely deal with
> plenty of chaos and crowds. But I need a dog that will be gentle and
> forgiving of my toddler and tolerant of young children in general, since it
> looks like we'll be taking her to day care on a daily basis.
>
>   
>
> I am so nervous. Not only do I feel like I'm looking for a dog that might
> not exist, but I also fear a mismatch. I know everyone has them, but I
> haven't had one yet. My first two dogs were great matches, and my second dog
> in particular was an amazing worker and could pretty much read my mind. So,
> I'm not sure I can get that level of awesome in a dog again. The Seeing Eye
> is a new school for me, and although I've seen great dogs come out of there,
> I'm still nervous. I will be spending three weeks away from my family to do
> this, and I want that time to count.
>
>   
>
> There is truly nothing like working a dog though. Even with the rideshare
> denials and the airline forms, I have to do it. I have to try and do my best
> to make it work. I do plan on asking lots of questions when I'm there, and
> I'm not shy. So hopefully that will help.
>
>   
>
> I'm so glad there are so many happy Seeing Eye graduates on this list.
> Hearing about your experiences is definitely helping. So thank you, and
> thanks for reading.
>
>   
>
> Julie
>
> Julie A. Orozco J.D.
>
> _______________________________________________
> NAGDU mailing list
> NAGDU at nfbnet.org
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nagdu_nfbnet.org
> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for NAGDU:
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nagdu_nfbnet.org/albert.e.sten_clanton%40verizon.net