[nagdu] Just heard on news12 last night that Congresswoman Gabby Giffords has a dog from GDF continued

Fri Feb 15 03:06:32 UTC 2013

Now that is so cool.
Wow someone in the leather department can make good money doing this.
A swell program to be sure.
Do you have as many persons in a training class as one does in the 
guiding class?
Then to come up with as many dogs for all classes has to be a trade of 
all trades.
Original message:
> HI Dar,

> The harness used depends on what kind of support the person needs. The
> regular guide dog harness body might have a fixed handle, bolted to the body
> piece at about a 45 degree angle for stability, or it might have the balance
> handle, a square handle that goes over the back strap and sticks up for help
> with balance or curbs or stairs. The guiding is then done via the leash.

> America's VetDogs is a program within the Guide Dog Foundation that trains
> guide and service dogs for veterans and active duty service members of the
> Us Military and certain First Responders. If you were a veteran and came to
> get a guide dog from us, your harness would have a patch for America's
> VetDogs instead of the stamp for Guide dog foundation.

> Our service dogs may have a combination of harness, vest and pack depending
> on someone's needs. The vest and pack have the VetDogs logos on them.

> Jenine Stanley
> jeninems at wowway.com
> http://www.twitter.com/jeninems

> -----Original Message-----
> From: nagdu [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of d m gina
> Sent: Thursday, February 14, 2013 1:00 PM
> To: nagdu at nfbnet.org
> Subject: Re: [nagdu] Just heard on news12 last night that Congresswoman
> Gabby Giffords has a dog from GDF continued

> Hi there,
> What does the harness look like, is it the balancing harness handle standing
> up, or the longer handle as we use on our harnesses.
> What reads on the center of the harness, guide dog foundation, or the name
> of the other school Thanks, Would this be something nagdu would consider
> having someone come talk to us at convention?
> Learning more about what is happening?
> Anyone not just her.
> ?
> Original message:
>> To answer both Tammy and Rebecca and give some more info:

>> First, I can't elaborate on Ms. Giffords' particular dog and his
>> specific training as that's confidential, as it is for all of our
> graduates.

>> I can explain though how guide tasks are taught to our service dogs
>> and under what circumstances. All dogs taught guiding tasks are taught
>> intelligent disobedience and stopping at any change in elevation. This
>> means stopping at curbs. Yes, totally flat curbs are problematic, but
>> they are for all guide dog handlers.

>> Some of the guiding tasks we use for our handlers who are not legally
>> blind
>> include:

>> The follow command for those people who need assistance navigating
>> complicated places like airports. This involves people whose senses
>> may shut down in complex environments due to over stimulation.

>> "Let's Go" which is equivalent to the guide dog command "Outside" and
>> is used to direct a dog to take the person outside and away from a
>> distressing situation safely.

>> This command is really important for people with Post Traumatic Stress
>> Disorder who experience panic attacks and can sometimes become either
>> immobile or run and tend to not be able to pay attention to their
>> surroundings. They can give the dog the "Let's Go" command and the dog
>> can smoothly guide them outside, say from a store, mall or public event.

>> One handler told me that this has really changed his life. Before he
>> applied to get a dog, he had stopped going into some local businesses
>> because when he had a PTSD episode, he had rushed out, knocking over
>> displays or people, or he had ended up prone on the floor unable to
>> move. It was profoundly embarrassing. With his dog, he can simply
>> issue the command, even close his eyes if he wants, and follow the dog
> outside. It's elegant.

>> The other type of work that resembles guide work in that it utilizes
>> the dog's pull is called counter balancing. This is when the dog walks
>> slightly ahead of the person to maintain positive tension on the
>> harness handle. For someone like Ms. Giffords who has difficulty
>> standing straight up, having the dog pull forward as she walks with him
> does help her to stand straight.
>> For other people, this helps them from falling to one side or the
>> other and helps them move up or down stairs.

>> Hope that helps everyone to understand the guiding tasks. The key
>> factors though in any of these tasks are that the dog avoid obstacles
>> and exercise intelligent disobedience no matter what the disability or
>> degree of vision loss or difficulty.

>> Jenine Stanley
>> jeninems at wowway.com
>> http://www.twitter.com/jeninems


>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: nagdu [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Tami Jarvis
>> Sent: Thursday, February 14, 2013 11:12 AM
>> To: NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog Users
>> Subject: Re: [nagdu] Just heard on news12 last night that
>> Congresswoman Gabby Giffords has a dog from GDF continued

>> Jenine,

>> Thanks for the clarification. Is America's VetDogs affiliated with GDF?
>> Or is this a joint effort between two separate programs?

>> Either way, it is great to see that an individual can get a dog with
>> both types of training without having to go the do-it-yourself route
>> for one or both. /smile/

>> Tami


>> On 02/14/2013 06:40 AM, Jenine Stanley wrote:
>>> Actually, though Ms. Giffords is not totally blind, her vision was
>>> severely affected by the shooting and her dog does do some guiding
>>> tasks along with balance and other tasks.

>>> He is a combination of our two types of training, what both programs,
>>> Guide Dog Foundation and America's VetDogs have strived to do since
>>> their beginning, serve people who need trained dogs to further their
>> independence.


>>> Jenine Stanley
>>> jeninems at wowway.com
>>> http://www.twitter.com/jeninems

>>> -----Original Message-----
>>> From: nagdu [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of cheryl
>>> echevarria
>>> Sent: Thursday, February 14, 2013 8:56 AM
>>> To: nagdu
>>> Subject: Re: [nagdu] Just heard on news12 last night that
>>> Congresswoman Gabby Giffords has a dog from GDF continued

>>> Well since Congresswoman Giffords is not blind, but disabled it will
>>> be a service dog, it may have also been at the time that her husband
>>> did reach out, which he did, because he may have connections through
>>> NASA since he is an Astronaut, to go to GDF and ask questions.
>>> She may not have been 100 percent mentally when they first reached
>>> out to the school, she did receive a gun shot to the head.


>>> Disabled Entrepreneur of the Year 2012 of NY State Leading the Way in
>>> Independent Travel!SNG Certified - Accessible Travel Advocate!Cheryl
>>> Echevarria,
>>> Ownerhttp://www.echevarriatravel.com631-456-5394reservations@echevarr
>>> i
>>> atrave
>>> l.comhttp://www.echevarriatravel.wordpress.com2012 Norwegian Cruise
>>> Line University Advisory Board Member.
>>> Affiliated as an independent contractor with Montrose TravelCST -
>>> #1018299-10Echevarria Travel and proud member of the National
>>> Federation of the Blind will be holding a year round fundraiser for
>>> the http://www.NFBNY.org after Hurricane Sandy and other resources.
>>> Any vacation package booked between November 6 2012-November 6, 2013
>>> and vacation must be traveled no later than 12/30/2014 a percentage
>>> of my earnings will go to the affiliate.  Also is you book a Sandals
>>> for couples or Beaches for families and friends resorts vacation,
>>> $100.00 per booking will go to the affiliate as well.  You do not
>>> need to be a member of the NFB.org, just book through us.


>>>> From: REBECCA.PICKRELL at tasc.com
>>>> To: nagdu at nfbnet.org
>>>> Date: Thu, 14 Feb 2013 13:50:26 +0000
>>>> Subject: Re: [nagdu] Just heard on news12 last night that
>>> Congresswoman Gabby Giffords has a dog from GDF continued

>>>> The line about her caretakers struck me. Sounds like this dog will
>>>> be more
>>> of a service dog then a guide dog.
>>>> Also sounds like her husband reached out to GDF, not her which is
>>> interesting.
>>>> I did like the press release, it provided good information and also
>>> mentioned that sometimes it isn't appropriate for a dog to always be
>>> with its person. That was good to see that.


>>>> -----Original Message-----
>>>> From: nagdu [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Cindy Ray
>>>> Sent: Thursday, February 14, 2013 8:39 AM
>>>> To: NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog Users
>>>> Subject: Re: [nagdu] Just heard on news12 last night that
>>>> Congresswoman Gabby Giffords has a dog from GDF continued

>>>> I think this is interesting about Gabby Giffords. I had heard on a
>>> newscast on the day she spoke to Congress that she is blind. Of
>>> course a service dog for her would be far more than a guide at this
>>> point. I think this was a wonderful piece, and it points up just how
>>> well she is
>> doing.
>>> That is just so amazing to me.

>>>> CL


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> --
> --Dar
> skype: dmgina23
>   FB: dmgina
> www.twitter.com/dmgina
> every saint has a past
> every sinner has a future

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every saint has a past
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