[Nyagdu] Introduction

[Heather Bird]

Hi, nice to meet you. Lab golden crosses are so neat. Sometimes they act 
essentially like pure labs or pure goldens that just look different, 
sometimes their traits are equally mixed and sometimes its like they are 
a whole other breed with a very unique quirky personality. Your 
situation is very interesting, living in NJ and working in NY. NYC is 
such a challenging and sometimes, fun work environment. Ilsa and Frieda 
both loved the city and probably wish that I had gone there more often. 
I will go sign up for the NAGDU list soon. I've got to adjust my sort 
rules to get separate folders because right now I've got IAADP, ADI, 
TSE, and NYAGDU emails all going into one folder and I can tell that 
that is going to get confusing.


On 11/18/2016 8:06 AM, Tracy Carcione via Nyagdu wrote:
> Hi Heather.
> Welcome to the list!
> If you enjoy guide dog discussion, I recommend the national NAGDU list,
> which is much more active than this one.  It's been quiet lately, but I'm
> sure people will start chirping soon, especially if an exciting new member
> joins!  You would subscribe the same way you subscribed to this NYAGDU list,
> putting in NAGDU instead of NYAGDU.
>
> I'm Tracy.  I live in northern New Jersey, and work in Manhattan.  My
> current guide is Krokus, a blond lab/golden cross from The Seeing Eye.  He's
> been quite a handful from the start, though he's matured a bit in the 2
> years I've been working the big rascal.  He's my second dog from The Eye,
> and my 7th guide dog.  The others were from Guide Dogs in San Rafael.  I've
> had 1 shepherd, 2 yellow labs, 3 black labs, and 1 cross.
>
> If I were a dog, what would I be?  Labrador, probably.  Easy-going, serious
> about work, ready to play.
> Nice to meet you.
> Tracy
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Nyagdu [mailto:nyagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Heather Bird
> via Nyagdu
> Sent: Thursday, November 17, 2016 10:51 AM
> To: nyagdu at nfbnet.org
> Cc: Heather Bird
> Subject: [Nyagdu] Introduction
>
> Hello, list.
>
> My name is Heather. My current guide is Ilsa, a black and tan German
> Shepherd Dog from the Seeing Eye in Morristown New Jersey. Ilsa is my second
> guide from TSE, my previous Seeing Eye dog being Frieda a black and tan
> coated GSD who just retired in August of 2016. I have had two GSDs, Paisley
> and Drew, sable and black and tan respectively, from Fidelco Guide Dog
> Foundation and my very first guide dog who I got at age 16 was a yellow
> Labrador retriever named Brittany, from Guiding Eyes for the Blind in
> Yorktown Heights New York.
>
> I grew up with guide dogs as my mother, Bernice, has been working guide dogs
> for almost 40 years. When I was an infant my mom, essentially a single
> parent, did such a good self-advocacy job that Jeff Lock agreed to make her
> one of GEB's first home placements, and the first of her dogs that I met was
> a black lab named Brenna. Now my sons, Jeremy 8 and Caleb, 3 in January are
> growing up watching me work my dogs, which is great because both of them are
> visually impaired. I had Paisley when Jeremy was born and I brought Frieda
> home just after Jeremy's third birthday. Caleb still asks where Frieda is,
> but he is adjusting to Ilsa.
> My biggest challenge is convincing my toddler parrot not to repeat all of
> the commands that I give to Ilsa while he rides in a baby carrier on my
> back.
>
> My husband, Jim is a service dog handler as well. He is sighted, but he uses
> a psychiatric service dog, a smooth coat collie named Dante, a dog we
> jointly owner trained to address Jim's combat-related PTSD. Jim is
> supportive of guide dog handlers and is quite savvy about the different
> schools, the guide dog/service dog laws and he and I help one another not
> only as spouses, but as fellow service dog handlers.
>
> Jim and I are both members of IAADP, International Association of Assistance
> Dog Partners. Jim, Bernice and I are all members of NFB Rochester as well.
> Jim and Bernice are also joining NYAGDU and one or both of them may or may
> not join the mailing list in future.
>
> I am a total guide dog geek, I admit it. *smile* I love to learn from and be
> inspired by more experienced guide dog handlers, and I love to teach/mentor
> less experienced guide dog handlers. I am a big preponent of my current
> school, the Seeing Eye, but I am also supportive of the rights of owner
> trainers and I am very interested in the constant changes in the guide dog
> world, including the areas of strength and weakness, growth and change  at
> all guide dog schools including my own.
>
> I have a passion for working dogs of all types as I believe that generally
> speaking, dogs are happier, healthier and more fulfilled when they are
> guiding, herding sheep, pulling sleds, finding drugs, identifying bombs,
> rescuing people who are lost, partnering with police officers, serving in
> the military, providing animal assisted therapy, helping hunters bring home
> dinner, or performing service dog tasks. I contend that a trained dog is a
> secure dog, a working dog is a fulfilled dog and as we all know, a tired dog
> is a good dog.
>
> PS, as an icebreaker for me to get to know some of you other listers...
> If you were a dog, what breed would you be and why? I would be either a
> German Shepherd or a Dobermin Pincher, as I am intelligent, but also very
> vocal, a little bit dramatic, a little bit obsessive, and these traits often
> work to my advantage, but sometimes work against me. My older son would be a
> standard poodle, my younger son would probably be a golden retriever, my mom
> a Labrador and my husband would be a golden/doberman cross, civilian self
> combine with military self.
>
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