[Nfbf-l] Guide Dogs in the Work Place
Carlos J MontasAS
carlos.montas at gmail.com
Sun Apr 21 18:10:56 UTC 2013
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From: "Alan Dicey" <adicey at bellsouth.net>
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Sent: Friday, April 19, 2013 5:07 AM
Subject: [Nfbf-l] Guide Dogs in the Work Place
> Guide Dogs in the Work Place
> by John Justice
> When a newly matched dog and handler return home after training, one of
> the most difficult decisions is how to deal with fellow employees in the
> work place. For the most part, each person has his or her own set of
> rules to go by but there are some essential points that should be made,
> especially when the dog-and-human team are new to guide-dog work. This
> article will attempt to cover the most important issues a visually
> impaired employee might encounter when arriving at work with a newly
> trained dog.
> To begin with, the dog and human are still experiencing the bonding
> process.
> That requires that the dog focus his attention strictly on the blind
> handler. Anything that might distract the dog from this essential part of
> training should be avoided at all costs. Simple, easy-to-follow rules
> should be established by the dog handler and no exceptions whatsoever
> should be made to those rules. No co-worker should be permitted to do
> anything which might distract the dog from his primary purpose, working
> with the blind handler.
> These dogs are not pets! That is something which should be emphasized
> most strongly. If that single factor is kept in the forefront of any
> decision, it should be easier to determine just how to handle any
> situation. Time and time again, the guide-dog instructors will have
> mentioned this in one form or another. Nothing should ever be allowed to
> take precedence over that single, immutable fact. The dog is at work for
> one reason and that is to guide the visually impaired handler safely and
> effectively.
> Whenever possible, the dog should not be fed in the work place. There are
> always exceptions to this rule, of course. But if the dog has to be given
> food, it should be done in a quiet, restricted area such as the lavatory.
> At no time should anyone other than the dog's handler be permitted to feed
> the guide dog. Providing unrestricted access to a water dish is not
> always a good idea since the dog's intake should be limited and
> controlled. The old adage "What goes in must come out" is something to
> keep in mind. In most work situations, the animal will be required to
> wait quietly for a considerable length of time. If the dog's bladder is
> full, this may become difficult and accidents may occur. Until the dog
> accepts the work area as a part of his world, the same restrictions
> regarding vacating a bladder might not be as strong in the animal's mind.
> He or she might never think of going in the home but that same training
> might not apply to a strange environment.
> At no time should anyone be permitted to park the dog except in extreme
> emergencies. A dog will naturally attach feeding and parking to his human
> and nothing should detract from that part of the bonding process.
> To Pet or Not to Pet
> There are as many theories about this situation as there are guide dogs.
> But the one thing most trainers and handlers agree on is that petting by
> strangers should be avoided if not severely limited during the bonding
> process. For some dogs, that bonding will take months. Even a seasoned
> guide dog might become distracted if too much attention is paid to him by
> someone other than the handler. There have been cases in which the dog
> expressed an unfortunate preference for someone else in the family to the
> exclusion of the owner. This is certainly understandable given the fact
> that the handler must insist that the dog perform certain functions, while
> a friend or family member will not have to impose that kind of
> restriction.
> The dog, naturally, will prefer the company of someone who means fun or
> food over the person who puts pressure on him to perform. Not all dogs
> enjoy working. When it comes right down to it, pulling someone around in
> a harness isn't part of a dog's instinctive behavior.
> Establishing and Maintaining Rules for Co-Workers
> There are many factors which go into a successful working relationship
> with co-workers. But one thing is almost unilateral - if a person is
> working, he or she has to follow rules. That is part of how a successful
> business functions. If co-workers know what is expected of them, they
> will be much more likely to cooperate. Establishing and maintaining rules
> of comportment where the guide dog is concerned will take a mixture of
> logic, understanding and determination. Dogs can be friendly as part of
> their nature. This is especially true of the various Retriever breeds.
> They want to be petted and fussed over. Add to that the fact that having
> a dog at work is unusual. If the dog appears friendly, people will want
> to pet him. Some others will try to avoid being close to the dog as a
> part of their normal response to animals. However, we are now dealing
> with a highly trained guide dog. Having a set of rules printed and
> distributed with the cooperation of the management is an excellent plan of
> action. If the management is supporting these rules, then the employees
> will be more inclined to work within their limits. The best thing to do
> is to sit down for a while and think about what kind of working conditions
> are involved.What kind of working environment are you in? Do you work in
> a small office or in a larger area such as a call center or data-entry
> pool? Your dog's exposure to people will be impacted by that kind of
> working condition.Can you restrict access to your dog in some way? If the
> dog is out of sight, that tends to limit the interest of passing
> co-workers. If the dog is visible and easily accessible, people will find
> a way to pet him.How does your dog react to contact with strangers?
> Today, most guide dogs are basically friendly but there is some difference
> in how each dog responds to attention from others. At first, limiting that
> attention or eliminating it entirely is always best for the dog/human
> bonding process.
> Can you get your dog under control if he begins to respond to the
> attention of strangers? If you lose control, you lose your guide dog's
> usefulness for as long as it takes to reestablish the fact that you are
> the one he should be putting first. With a new dog, that is a clear and
> present danger. Whatever it takes, you must retain contact with your guide
> dog.
> Parking Your Dog
> Where you take your dog to relieve himself will be dictated by the kind of
> environment you work in. But there are some basic ideas to keep in mind.
> Until the dog becomes comfortable with his surroundings, he may not be
> willing to go at all.Whenever possible, a quiet area with minimal traffic
> is best. If the dog has few distractions, the parking process is more
> likely to succeed. The same area should be used each time since the dog
> will recognize his own scent and be comforted by that. Remaining calm
> yourself is a surprisingly strong influence on your dog's own demeanor.
> If his human companion shows tension or demonstrates uneasiness, the dog
> will most certainly pick up on that and respond to it.Today's guide-dog
> handler is always taught to pick up after the animal. Many cities and
> towns have regulations which insist that an owner not leave any evidence
> that his or her dog has been visiting. But what to do with the bag after
> everything has been successfully completed is always a question of
> planning and knowing your surroundings. Some employers have gone to the
> extreme of providing special containers for the disposal of the dog's
> solid waste. In most cases, there are usually outside trash cans which
> will solve the problem. But this is one activity which should be kept
> absolutely private. The presence of anyone else might distract the dog
> enough to prevent nature from taking its course. No matter what the
> provocation, never ever bring the baggies back into the building.
> Grooming and Dog Fur
> One of the most difficult problems a dog owner may encounter is in dealing
> with his or her guide dog's fur. No matter how hard we try, dogs do shed,
> some more than others. If the work area is carpeted, an amazing amount of
> fur can collect when the dog stays in one particular place. During
> certain seasonal changes, the dogs will "blow their coats" at an alarming
> rate. Our only weapon against this invader is continuous and careful
> grooming. The more hair we remove, the less likely it is that it will end
> up on our clothing, the carpets, upholstery in vehicles or on other
> people's garments. If one of your co-workers doesn't particularly like
> animals and then finds dog hair on his or her clothes, the result may be
> some kind of confrontation or even a complaint to the management.
> Brushing the dog every day before work is something that is recommended
> (though isn't often practiced). But in the final analysis, that is our
> only defense.
> Removing hair from our own clothes can be accomplished with relative ease
> by a device called a "Lint Roller" which is designed with sheets of sticky
> film which, when rolled over pants, skirts, blouses and coats, does remove
> an incredible amount of loose hair. There are other devices like lint
> brushes which have short, stiff bristles that can also be used for the
> same purpose. How we appear to our sighted co-workers is important to
> them, if not to us. People with sight rely on it for a large part of the
> input they use from day to day.
> Finally, a word or two to the cleaning staff might help with the fur which
> collects in the area where the guide dog rests during each work day.
> Warning! Please Read!
> The one piece of advice that can be offered to any new guide-dog user
> without reservation is this: Maintaining a low profile with your dog is
> always best. Attention of any kind, even the most well intended, can be
> damaging to a new relationship between dog and master. Encouraging your
> co-workers to keep their distance and to give you and your new dog a
> chance to learn and grow is the best course of action. A new dog/human
> relationship can be compared to the sprouting of a new plant. Too much
> handling, especially by someone who doesn't know and understand the way to
> do it, can only cause harm. There have been extreme cases in which a dog
> had to be returned because the human handler had lost all control of the
> situation. It just isn't worth taking that kind of chance. Your new dog
> is a rare and precious thing. Don't allow well-meaning heavy-handed
> strangers to deprive you of one of life's most marvelous experiences.
> Thank you for taking the time to read this information.
> John and Linda Justice
> with Guide Dogs Jake and Zachary
>
>
>
>
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