[nagdu] Working third shift

[Julie J.]

Barb,

What you are suggesting is illegal and very dangerous.

In order for a dog to be a service dog:
1. the handler must have a disability
2. the dog must be individually trained to do things to mitigate that disability

As far as I can tell you have a visual disability.   However you want a dog to do security duty at your job site.   Security duty does not mitigate your disability, therefore this is not a service dog for you.

If you want a guide dog, then get a guide dog and work the dog as it is meant to be worked, meaning all the time as a guide and not relying on your vision.  The trouble with having some useable vision is that you think you can see stuff.  Sometimes you can, but sometimes you won’t even know you aren’t seeing things correctly.  that’s when very bad things can happen.  If you don’t work the dog all the time as a guide, he will not keep up his skills and he will learn that he doesn’t need to be diligent in his work.  then the situation will be even worse because you may think you can see obstacles, but in reality you are missing some, but you’ll think you have the dog as back up, but you don’t because he has learned that he doesn’t have to pay attention because you have done that job for him.  There are no B guide dogs.  It is either a guide dog or it is not.  There is no middle, no little bit, no halfway.  

If you want a dog for security, then get one who can do that job, but realize that it is not a guide dog.  Get your employers approval and find a different transportation option to and from work. Don’t take the dog into places where dogs are not permitted and this option is perfectly legal.

Truly, I think you are looking for some sort of easy way out.  You want to be sighted, but you want a guide dog.  You want to go and do things that you want to do, but you won’t learn the skills necessary in order to be safe and efficient in doing those things.  You complain about your employer, but won’t get a different job.  There is no easy solution.  Life is hard.   I don’t know what to tell you.   Sometimes you have to take a step back in order to move forward.

Julie