[nagdu] Taking dogs to convention

[Cindy Ray]

I am sure many have read this before, but I will post it here anyway. Much of this I had thought of before. Fisher was diagnosed with Clostridium and was on medication; until I read this I hadn't thought to get an all clear fecal sample before going to convention. I did this, and he was clear or I wouldn't have taken him. I was concerned about his vulnerability to other possible bacteria given his coming off this illness, and the vet thought it was probably OK. But I thought of the dog aggression, too, and whether he was really ready for this even though I've had him seven months, or if I was ready for it. I had been to the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) Big Tent Event in Atlanta just two or three weeks earlier, and Fisher and I had had an unfortunate event. He got a little too excited about a barking dog inthe park and broke away from me; someone helped me get him; I was evicted from the park because the guy said I didn't have my dog under control. By the time he said this, I did, though Fisher was right revved up by the horses and carriages in the streets, too, and the energy that comes from being cooped up all day. So I gave more thought to the pros and cons of taking Fisher as a result of reading this. I'm glad I did, and I'm glad I took him because it was fun working with him as he sailed about the hotel with his tail waving. I think the tips are well worth reading.

Below are some tips, to help relieve stress in our dogs for convention
goers that are also pertinent here as well, and that appeared in an
article written by Melissa Riccobono, who at the time of this article
was working with her dog guide, Fanta. Her article first appeared in
the 2005 spring/summer issue of Harness Up, the publication for NAGDU.
She revised her article for the Braille Moniter in 2006 in preparation
for the convention. I have pasted the ten tips that appeared
in the article for your review. Many of you may already know them, and
already implement them when around a large crowd of dog guide users and
their dogs. In addition to these, there also may be other tips that you
may wish to add and share with fellow graduates on this list. 

I will begin this discussion with my comment on tip three. While it is
a good idea for some people, this method of orientation may not be for
everybody. Other alternatives include seeking assistance from hotel
staff when you first arrive by either obtaining directions to a
destination and exploring on your own, or using a sighted guide and
healing your dog as you learn the layout of the hotel. 

Tip 1. Decide if Convention Is the Right Place for Your Dog.

This seems obvious, but I encourage you to take a few minutes now to
think about whether the national convention is the right place to take
your dog. I
believe you should do this especially if you've never taken your dog to
convention before. Ask yourself the following questions.

Is your dog extremely stressed in big crowds of people?
Is your dog afraid of canes?
Does your dog get along with other dogs, or does he or she tend to be
aggressive toward them?
Is your dog easily distracted by other dogs?
How long have you and your dog been together?
Are you confident in your ability to work well as a team?

Bear in mind that convention is full of crowds of people, many of them
swinging long white canes back and forth, as well as many other guide
dogs. If your
dog exhibits extreme stress in large crowds; is afraid of canes; or is
aggressive toward, afraid of, or distracted by other dogs, convention is
probably
not a good place for him or her to be. In my opinion convention is also
not likely to be a good place for a new guide dog team. I would
recommend a team
be together at least four months before attending a convention, but of
course this varies from one team to another. Some teams jell after only
a month
or so, while others might take a year to really settle down and work
their best together.

Think about how well you and your dog work together and how stress makes
you act and react toward your dog. If you become upset and stressed in
crowded,
noisy situations and you transmit these feelings to your dog, convention
would probably be a good place to brush up on your cane skills.

If you're wondering whether or not you should take your dog to national
convention, I suggest you talk with someone who takes or has taken his
or her dog
to convention. Such a person can give you many more details about what
convention is like than I can in this article. In fact, perhaps talking
to two or
more people would be helpful since everyone's experience is slightly
different.

Tip 2. Treat Your Dog for Fleas and parasites before You Leave Home.

So, you've decided to take your dog to convention. Now it's time to pack
and get ready to go. I would suggest treating your dog for fleas and
having your vet perform a fecal analysis and treating your dog for
internal parasites to be sure your dog is free of any parasites before
you leave for the convention.

External parasites such as fleas and ticks live on your dog
which serves as a host from which it derives sustenance by feeding on
its blood, or the blood of other dogs. Fleas regularly jump from one
host to another to ensure an adequate supply of nourishment. Thus if
your dog or the dog of another person has fleas they can quickly infest
other dogs and the environment in which the dog lives such as your hotel
room. During this time they will lay eggs in carpeting further
increasing the population when the flea larvy hatch several weeks after
you and your dog return home. This creates problems and discomfort for
other hotel guests not to mention the negative impression of guide dog
use implanted in the minds of hotel staff and management that will make
it more difficult for our national leadership to negotiate with hotels
when planning for future national conventions. For this reason it is
necessary for the hotel to treat rooms with insecticides to kill the
incubating flea larvy after you leave for home. The chances of your dog
causing a serious flea infestation can be eliminated by treating it for
fleas before leaving for the convention.

Like fleas ticks also live on your dog and obtain their
nutrition by feeding on your dogs blood or the blood of other guide dogs
attending the convention. Ticks are also known to carry serious diseases
such as Lime's Disease, and Rockey Mountain Spotted Feevre which can
infect other animals and humans causing serious illness, or even death!

Internal parasites such as the tapeworm Echinococcus multilocularis
also carry their share of diseases which can cause sickness and death to
both animals and humans should an infestation be left untreated. They
are passed between dogs if an uninfected dog eats the stool of an
infected dog or other animal. The old adage applies, "An ounce of
prevention is worth a pound of cure." 

Treating your dog for these parasites prior to coming to convention
will insure that you won't bring any unpleasant little critters to the
hotel with you. It also means you will not pass external, and internal
parasites on to other
dogs, the chances of your dog having an accident can be reduced as
internal parasite infestations can increase your dogs need to eliminate
by causing intestinal irritation, (Particularly in older dogs), and your
dog will be protected in case someone else isn't as considerate.
Parasite infestations can be a problem with dogs that like to scavenge
and eat everything they can grab whether it's good for them or not.
Consult with your veterinarian concerning this matter. Your vet may
prescribe medication to deal with any digestive or intestinal
irritations your dog may have during the convention. You should
administer this medication according to your vet's directions.

Tip 3. Orient Yourself to the Hotel to Make Life Easier for You and Your
Dog

OK, so you've decided to take your dog to convention, and you've treated
your dog for fleas and parasites. Now you've arrived in a huge hotel,
and you don't know where anything is. I recommend devoting some time to
orient yourself to the hotel as soon as possible after arriving. I
always bring a cane with me to convention,
and often I heel my dog and walk around with my cane a bit. This helps
me get a better feel for the hotel, and it helps me give Fanta clearer,
more confident
directions. Walking somewhere with my cane also allows me to point
things out to Fanta. This may help her remember where something is
later. I find that
the more I wander around, trying to find something, the more confused
both Fanta and I become. This doesn't help either of us. Do I still get
lost, even
after walking around the hotel with my cane a bit? Absolutely! That's
unavoidable, but I believe that using my cane a little in the beginning
is still
helpful.

Tip 4. Remember Your Dog's Needs as Well as Your Own

Convention is a busy time for everyone. It's one week out of the year
when I usually don't eat regular or healthy meals. But I always try to
keep Fanta's
food and water needs in the back of my mind. I suggest trying to keep
your dog's feeding schedule as normal as possible. If that means leaving
a meeting
a little early or getting somewhere a little late, at least you'll have
a happy dog who has been fed to take with you. Keeping a regular feeding
schedule
also helps with relieving, as I'm sure all of you know.

If you know you're not going to get back to your room to feed your dog,
bring the food with you when you leave your room in the morning. This
way you can
always feed your dog in the rest room if necessary.

Convention meeting rooms can get warm. I usually carry a water bottle
and a portable dog dish with me so that I can give Fanta water in case
she gets thirsty
before we return to our room. I usually look at food and water at
convention this way. Am I hungry? How late is it? Is Fanta hungry too?
Has she gotten
all of her food today? Am I thirsty? Is Fanta thirsty too? How long has
it been since she's had water?

Tip 5. Relieve Your Dog Often.

I cannot emphasize this tip enough. During convention your dog does a
lot of walking. He or she is also relieving in a strange place with lots
of distractions.
Even if I don't think Fanta has to go, I usually take her to the
relieving area at every opportunity. Over the years she has surprised me
more than once
by relieving even when I didn't think she would have to. Giving your dog
as many opportunities as possible to relieve means you will be less
likely to
have an accident to clean up. Remember, both stress and activity cause
dogs to relieve more often, so my advice is to relieve your dog even
more than you
ordinarily do at home.

Tip 6. Clean up after Your Dog

Cleaning up after your dog in the relief area is your responsibility. If
you do, you leave the area clean for the next team who uses it, and will
help control the spread of internal parasites among guide dogs attending
the convention with their owners as well as discourage wildlife and
loose pets from using these areas. The vast majority of guide dog users
maintain a high degree of canine health, but this is not a guarantee
where the local populations of stray pets and wildlife are concerned. I
also find it
useful to clean up after Fanta at convention because that enables me to
keep track of what she does and how often.

Convention is a stressful place. When Fanta has gotten an upset stomach,
it was helpful for me to pick up after her and realize what was
happening. I could
then watch her carefully and pay attention even more closely to her
relieving needs.

If your dog does have an accident of any kind, do your best to clean it
up yourself immediately. Always carrying extra plastic bags and paper
towels for
this purpose is a good idea. Never just walk away from a mess because
you're embarrassed it happened and hope that no one will notice that you
were responsible.
If it happens late at night, when few people are about, you should
request assistance from a member of the hotel staff. If you are faced
with this problem
during the day or early evening, try to find a passer-by to ask an NFB
staff member with a two-way radio to notify the relief-area staff to
come to your
assistance. Alternatively someone could go to the relief area for you
and summon help. A volunteer could also stand over the problem area,
protecting other
people from stepping into it while you go to find a relief worker. To
preserve our good relationship with hotel personnel, we must always try
to prevent
accidents whenever possible and to deal with them within the
organization whenever we can.

Tip 7. Keep Your Dog Out of the Way.

This can be tough, especially with a big dog in a relatively small
space, but do what you can to keep your dog out of the aisle. Your dog
will be much happier
if he or she is not stepped on, and people who are trying to get from
place to place will appreciate having a free space to walk. Fanta has
actually become
accustomed to curling up as tightly as possible at convention. When I'm
sitting, I push her as far back under my chair as she'll go. At times
she's even
positioned herself sideways under my chair so that very little of her
sticks out. Of course she has an advantage because she's a smaller lab,
but even
big dogs can be slid under a chair at least a little.

Try also to keep your dog out of the way in your hotel room, especially
if you're sharing the room with other people. I usually try to designate
a corner
for Fanta in my room out of the way as much as possible. If need be, I
can put her on her tie down or leash in that corner and know she won't
be stepped
on and can relax.

Tip 8. Beware of Food.

Convention is a place where many people raise money by selling candy
bars, peanuts, crackers, and many other snacks. People also bring food
into general
sessions with them to eat if they get hungry. Inevitably food drops on
the floor, which is at the least distracting and at the worst dangerous
for your
dog, especially if chocolate is involved. Keep track of what your dog is
doing when you walk. If he or she is sniffing or has stopped to pick
something
up, investigate right away. When you're sitting in meetings, make sure
to hold onto your dog's leash at all times and keep track of what he or
she is doing.

I learned this the hard way. I once gave Fanta's leash to a friend for a
few minutes, got up, and ran an errand using my cane. When I came back,
my friend
told me apologetically that Fanta had turned herself around, crawled on
her stomach completely underneath my chair to the row behind me, and
eaten a muffin
that someone had in a bag under her chair. This was very embarrassing
because I felt really bad that my dog had eaten someone's breakfast. I
offered to
buy the person a new muffin, but she wouldn't let me. Luckily she was a
dog lover and didn't seem too bothered by the whole thing. But I was
embarrassed.
I was also worried that Fanta would get sick from the muffin. This
experience taught me to be more careful of whom I leave Fanta with or
whether to leave
her at all. Am I saying that Fanta would not have gotten the muffin if I
had been there? No. I might have let my guard down and stopped paying
attention,
so it might have happened anyway. But, let me tell you, this lesson has
taught me to pay attention to where Fanta is during meetings. If I can
help it,
I never want her to get a muffin or any other unintended food again.

One more word about food. If you're fundraising yourself or sharing a
room with someone who's fundraising, make sure that whatever you're
selling is kept
out of your dog's reach. This is only common sense, but it's easy to
forget about putting food out of reach when you're unpacking and
thinking of a million
other things. And the person you share a room with may not be used to
dogs, so a gentle reminder from you to keep food in a drawer or on a
high closet
shelf won't hurt.

Tip 9. Give Your Dog Breaks.

Convention is a stressful place for dogs and people alike. Make sure you
give your dog breaks from the hustle and bustle whenever possible. Even
fifteen
minutes in your room off leash or on tie down can be very helpful for
relieving your dog's stress level. Make sure you pack some type of toy
for your dog
to chew or play with during these breaks. Fanta loves her bone and her
Kong, and I make sure they are both in my convention suitcase. Don't
leave your
dog alone, however, when you are giving him or her a break. Dogs left
alone, especially those who may be under some stress already, are more
likely to
chew, bark, whine, etc. Also hotel housekeeping staff will often refuse
to clean a room with an unattended dog inside. So, if you really feel
your dog
needs a break and you can't take a break yourself, try to find someone
you know and trust who wouldn't mind keeping your dog in a quiet place
for a while.

Tip 10. Listen to What Your Dog Is Telling You.

One of the best things about dogs is their ability to communicate. This
is very helpful during guide work and makes me feel great when Fanta
says she loves
me. This communication is especially important at convention. Listen to
what your dog is telling you. As much as possible try to be patient with
your dog
as he or she navigates big crowds. If he or she seems hesitant, don't
just urge or correct him or her forward without checking whether or not
your dog
wants you to avoid something. This can be challenging, especially if
you're lost or in a hurry to get somewhere, but it will make convention
easier for
both of you.

In meetings make sure you pay attention to your dog's behavior. Is he or
she panting, whining, or restless? Is this normal behavior? If not, pay
attention
to that behavior. Does your dog need to relieve? Is he or she thirsty?
Does he or she need a break? Be a detective and try to figure out and
take care
of your dog's needs. It will make him or her, you, and those around you
more comfortable.

As I say, these ten tips are common sense, but I appreciate your taking
the time to read to the end of this article anyway. I appreciate the
fact that you
care so much about your dogs that you will do all you can to give them a
positive convention experience, and I hope to meet many of you in
Dallas.


Cindy Lou Ray
Each day is a new adventure