[NAGDU] Guide dog trainers in Pennsylvania

[Julie Johnson]

Emma,

Welcome to the list!  I don't think I've seen you post before.

I do know of people who will privately train a guide dog or even cross train 
for multiple disabilities.  they aren't in PA though.

I think it's great your parents are so supportive of a service dog for you. 
However, not every dog works out as a service dog.  It's quite possible that 
this puppy might not be the right dog for the job.   Australian Shepherds 
are serious working dogs.  Be prepared to be doing a lot of walking and 
going places.  You might also consider trying doing something like agility 
just to focus all the energy and drive.

Are you wanting to do the puppy raising yourself and then hire the service 
task work to be trained by a private trainer?  Or are you wanting to have 
the dog trained by someone else from the beginning?  Both are possible, but 
the more time the dog spends with the trainer, the more expensive it is. 
Puppy training and socialization should start immediately.  I'm talking 
about things like sit, down, walk nicely on a leash, comfort with all sorts 
of people, various situations, noises and so on.  Then there are house 
manners: relieves outdoors on leash, chews only on his toys, no jumping up 
and so on.  Guide and service task training shouldn't begin until a bare 
minimum of 12 months and probably more like 15.  The task training can take 
from 3 to 12 months depending on the scope of what is needed, the dogs 
mental ability and the physical maturity of the dog.  If you need the dog to 
do tasks requiring weight bearing, you have to wait until the bones are 
fully developed and ready, which could easily be at around 2 years of age. 
Also an Australian shepherd may not be large enough to do mobility work. 
They should be large enough to do guide work for a small to average sized 
person though, especially the males.

I owner trained three guides and had my fourth privately trained through 
basic guide work.  I finished up her advanced training.  If you'd like to 
talk more about your options, I'm happy to help.  You can email me at: 
julielj at neb.rr.com
If you prefer to talk by phone I'm happy to give you my number off list.

All my best to you!
Julie
On The Go with Guide-and-Service-Dogs.com
http://www.guide-and-service-dogs.com
also find my products in the Blind Mice Mega Mall
<https://www.blindmicemegamall.com/bmm/shop/Directory_Departments?storeid=1916046>
-----Original Message----- 
From: Emma Mitchell via NAGDU
Sent: Friday, December 29, 2017 12:53 AM
To: NAGDU at nfbnet.org
Cc: Emma Mitchell
Subject: [NAGDU] Guide dog trainers in Pennsylvania

Dear all,
My name is Emma Jane Mitchell I’m 22 years old with cerebral palsy and am 
Blind and I have some questions for you:

This Christmas I was surprised by a puppy by my parents.
She is a three month year old Australian Shepherd  with the hope of becoming 
a service dog in her future do you know of possible trainers for service 
dogs?
Ps. Is there a certain age in which she has to be in order to start the 
training itself?
Thank you, Emma
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