First, there is some discussion about whether to make the Assistance Dog Blog Carnival bi-monthly.  I have not yet decided how I feel about that, but if you have an opinion, feel free to chime in and leave a comment here.

Which leads me to my latest thoughts, because they were prompted by the same blogger, Sharon at After Gadget.  I was reading her post titled Roadwork! (Walkin' and Talkin') and can totally relate!  Cura can get pretty bonkers when she doesn't get regular runs.  I don't know HOW Sharon has done it with an adolescent and no means to really exercise him! 

Some of you may know from previous posts that my method of running the squirrelies out of Cura is to use a golf cart.  The darn thing can get up to 20mph -- and Cura hardly breaks a sweat (figuratively speaking) unless it is the height of summer and then it is more the heat than the running that does it.  Being in New Mexico, even early morning runs can be toasty in Summer!

I have seen Cura go full out a couple of times and it is a sight to behold!  I swear that she can hit speeds in excess of 40 mph!  I would LOVE to find a huge field with a really high fence and just let her go!  Her running is why I used to think that she had Greyhound in her -- I was very surprised when the DNA test results came back and Greyhound was not in the mix.  But, she is still a hound and a runner.

So, when life gets away from me and Nona Ear Rubs and I can't get it together and run Cura regularly (three times a week usually does the trick) Cura lets us know.  With her exercise, she has better concentration.  She is able to deal with the "down time" more easily and patiently because she is able to move and work out the squirrelies on her runs.  Of Cura's needs, this is the one that I find the hardest to accommodate, but it is one of the most important.

Here is hoping that the golf cart stays healthy (anyone following our Tweets knows that it recently had a little glitch -- though it was quickly fixed) and we can keep Cura on her exercise schedule!

Bye for now!

It's Carnival! Let's Party!

Well, here it is . . . Sharon over at After Gadget is sponsoring the first Assistance Dog Blog Carnival and here is my entry! The plan is that the Carnival will take place quarterly with a different theme each time. The theme for this 'edition' is Firsts. My first thought was to tap imto one of the many 'firsts' that I have written about in the past -- there have been a ton of them. But, after what happened the other day, I decided to go ahead and write something just for the Carnival.

Why? You may ask . . . well it is because Saturday we experienced a first in a series of firsts and all of them had to do with Hot Air Balloons. Cura does not really like Hot Air Balloons. Not only does she not like the noise made by the burners, but she does not like seeing them floating in the sky -- near or far. Now, this would not be a problem in many places, but here in New Mexico it is a bit of an issue, especially this time of year with the Balloon Fiesta which just took place.

For those of you who are new to Cura's Corner, Cura is an owner trained Service Dog. Well, owner trained with professional guidance. She came home in March of 2009 and worked very hard together to become the team that we are today. But this is not about Cura's first days with me, it is about her changing attitude toward balloons.

Because she spent so much time in a shelter before being adopted, she had not been socialized to a number of things. The first time we went for a walk when there were balloons in the air, I thought I was going to lose her. She pretty much paniced and it was all I could do to get her home. She literally couldn't think -- all she wanted to do was get away -- to anywhere! She was panting, tail between her legs, ears back, head frantically swiveling from side to side . . . Obviously, this was something that needed some work!

Fast forward several months and we had another balloon first! It was the first time we went for a walk with balloons in the air where she was able to think. She was still not happy, but less frantic. She walked by my side in the proper place and listened to and performed the tasks that I asked of her. But her posture was unchanged . . . still panting, tail between the legs, ears back . . . but not so much head swivelling.

Finally, she got to the point where she could walk down the street with a bit more confidence when the balloons were out. Her tail was still down, but not tucked between her legs, and her body posture was better, but still not happy. Her solution was to go out, do what she had to do, and get back home as quickly as possible. No dallying, doing everything that was asked of her, not rushing, but no messing about. I can't tell you how pleased I was the first time I realized she was becoming better able to cope when there were balloons in the air. I respected her discomfort with the balloons and usually let her choose to walk the short route rather than the longer one on those mornings that they were out.

Then, there came the First that prompted this post. This morning there were several balloons in the air when we went out for our morning walk. Although she was aware of them, she was in quite a perky mood. The entire walk her tail and head were held high and she was obviously having a great time. We came to the point in our walk where, if we were taking the shorter route, she would turn to go home and she just kept on going! For the first time, she wanted to be out and about while the balloons were up in the air! It was a wonderful walk! All of that perseverence seems to have paid off!

So, that is the story of our Balloon firsts . . . like all of our challenges, it looks like one more has been overcome through dedication and perseverence. Having a Service Dog may not be a walk in the park but I think all the hard work is worth it. Cura has changed my life. She is my first Service Dog and I frequently wonder how I managed without her. Before her, so much energy went toward managing my life and now it goes toward living it!

Success when it really matters . . .

I was going to wait a bit before making the big announcement, but todays blog topic makes more sense if I spill the beans now . . . Cura will graduate at the end of this month!  Rick and Heather made the announcement at the beginning of the month.  This is our last month as students in the program.  I am both excited and proud to have completed the program.  But, that is not exactly what this post is about -- though it is relevant. 

As I have mentioned, before Cura came into my life, I fell quite often -- at least once a month and sometimes more.  But, since I have had Cura with me, I have not fallen . . . well, that is until a couple of days ago.  We were having one of our last training sessions and we were working on the 'Get' command.  This is the one where either Cura goes and gets someone to help me or someone tells her to get me so that she can lead them to me.  This has been a particularly difficult thing for Cura because she does not like to be away from my side.  She has also found it distressing to 'Get' me and find me laying on the ground when she gets there.  But, she had gotten much better and understands the concept well now.  But, practice is the name of the game, so Rick had walked away with Cura and I was moving to a different place (so Cura actually had to find me instead of just return to where I was before -- it keeps her thinking to mix things up a bit and helps insure that she can adjust to circumstances as they arise).

Anyway, there was something on the floor and I managed to step on it, lose my balance, and the next thing I know, I was on the ground.  Let me tell you, after over a year of not falling it was a big shock!  Heather called to Rick who, once he realized what had happened, told Cura to 'Get' me.  Before I knew it, she was at my side protecting me from anyone 'helping' me up before I had a chance to make sure I was unhurt.  Then, when I was ready, she helped me get up off the floor, we found a seat, and she sat with me until I had fully recovered from the incident.  She was amazing!  This was the first time she experienced a true fall (every other time had been simulated so the emotional element and sense of urgency was never really there before).  On top of that, we were in close quarters, so she had to adjust the routine to enable her to accomplish what I needed from her in a more confined space (an example of how mixing things up in practice helps Cura to do her job well). 

It is interesting that days after Rick and Heather announced that she was ready to graduate, Cura proved it -- I am so lucky!  Sure, it has required (and will continue to require) hard work and dedication, but it has definitely been worth it!

Ignoring, well, almost everything

But me!  That is pretty much what Cura does when we are out.  All of that time that we have spent in classes every weekend around all kinds of dogs with all kinds of personalities has really paid off.  Just this last weekend was the beginning of another cycle of classes so there were all sorts of new dogs and thier new owners.  This time there were several dogs that had poor puppy manners and were pretty fussy.  On top of that, apart from one session, the classes were all quite full so pure attendance alone made for very energetic classes.

Cura took naps.

But it isn't just in class that Cura does such a good job of ignoring other people and dogs.  When we are out and about and a person tries to engage with her, she usually turns her head.  She usually refuses to make eye contact with anyone and if someone reaches for her, she will move her head out of the way.  If a dog stares as her, she practically looks through them!  She is clearly no making eye contact on purpose.  She either stares off in the distance, puts her head down and dozes, or looks up at me.

She knows that just because people or other dogs are around does not mean that it is appropriate for her to interact with them.  She has a job to do and she takes that pretty seriously -- gotta love a good work ethic, even in a dog!

Ignoring old friends

Cura is a very friendly dog and is very energetic so one of the very early challenges was helping her to learn that she needed to ignore people and dogs that she knew when she was working.   I think that this last cycle of classes proved that she has well and truly mastered the whole 'impulse control' concept. 

For months now, she has stopped reacting to the arrival of Rick and Heather (something that they both glad and sad about).  But, just because Cura doesn't react when they arrive doesn't mean that she doesn't love them anymore -- as soon as I release her to 'Say Hello', she is clearly very pleased to see them.  But, the amazing development this time around had to do with Cura's old kennelmate.  A few months ago, the dog that Cura lived with at the shelter was also finally adopted and began attending the training classes.  Both dogs clearly remembered each other and would make attempts to greet each other and play (sometimes accompanied by wining or barking). 

This last round of classes, both dogs behaved beautifully!  Cura began treating and responding to him exactly like all of the other dogs in the class -- essentially ignoring him despite the fact that they are old friends.  Oh sure, she would look, but no more wiggling and fussyness.  And he is doing better as well.  They don't attend every cycle, but he is clearly benefitting from the socialization that he is getting (he is on the timid side, so needs exposure to situations outside the home). 

I really enjoy attending the classes.  Sure, everyone else is learning basic commands -- something that Cura no longer needs, but it is a wonderfully distracting environment that is perfect for reinforcing Cura's advanced skills.  By practicing in busy, active environments, Cura's skills become more solidified and she learns to focus despite anything else that is going on around her.

The next cycle of classes start the weekend after Easter -- looks like 'training withdrawals' are in our future . . . but, there is always the upcoming test! 

Ack . . . BALLOONS!

The other day, we woke to a wonderfully, clear day.  The temperature was lovely and the wind was non-existent.  Perfect Hot Air Balloon weather -- and boy were they out in force!  Of course, I knew immediately upon waking that there were balloons outside.  How, you may ask?  Cura knows they are there before she even leaves the bedroom.  She doesn't even have to see one out the window . . . she just knows.

When we headed outside for our walk, there were 15+ balloons in the air!  If I were to guess, most of them were within a 2-3 mile radius of the house, and many of them were within a mile.  Not only that, but they were on the low side so instead of appearing as small objects in the air, they were VERY BIG and we could easily hear the whoosh of the burners as the operators opened the blast valves.  They were a beautiful sight to behold (and me without my camera -- yes, again).  However, beautiful or not, Cura was having none of it!


Actually, that is not completely true.  The fact is, she did very well, considering.  We went on our walk without too much difficulty.  She was not happy and had a difficult time keeping her head forward and eyes front.  But, she was focused on getting up the street and back as soon as possible while trying very hard to stay in place by my side.  I wish that I did not have to attend a meeting that morning -- it was a perfect training opportunity if I only had the time to take advantage of it.  One of these mornings we are just going to sit outside in the back yard and calmly watch the balloons go by.  Like everything else, we will help Cura to work through this . . . she is already showing improvement, it will just take time and patience.

Filling a niche?

Recently, I began to focus some energy towards making some additions to Cura's Corner. I have attempted to add to Cura's Blog List AND embraced the concept of Blog Buttons, creating Cura's Button Exchange. This has resulted in a number of additions to both lists. Apart from the realization that there are a number of people checking in on Cura and I on a regular basis, this process also made me realize that there are very few current Service Dog Blogs out there.  I have conducted several searches and most of the hits that come up are at least a year old --  and many posts are older than that.  If you find an active blog that I have missed, PLEASE share -- post a comment with the link and I will GLADLY put it on one of Cura's lists!  Also, if you have a favorite doggie site or blog, let me know and I will check it out.

So, it makes me wonder why many of the Service Dog Blogs that were out there do not have any recent posts.  Based on my statistics (at least as far as I can interpret them -- STILL struggling with Stat Programs), there is an audience out there . . . so why did so many other blogs on the subject fail to thrive?  My guess is that the key is to make it more than a 'dry' and 'practical' blog -- while it is important to address issues that Service Dog Teams encounter, I think that it is also important to share the joys, successes, trials, and tribulations that any person with a dog in their life may encounter.

Sure, Service Dog Training requires more precision than the average pet owner finds necessary, but the basic challenges do apply -- one of the main differences is that a pet is not required to get over their challenges because they do not necessarily have to deal with them . . . they can just stay home.   I hope that some of the things that Cura and I experience, combined with the guidance that we receive, will prove helpful to many of you, whether you are blessed with a Service Dog or a beloved Canine Companion  (both provide vital roles).

It is my hope that I will ultimately include all my followers in at least one of my two lists.  If you have a button, please let me know if you are not already included in the banner marque to the left and I will add you!  If you don't have a Blog Button, but still follow Cura's Corner, I will be happy to add your URL to Cura's Blog List, just let me know that you are out there!  Leave a comment  and I will be happy to check out your blog and add you to one of our lists!


Now that the technical post is over, check back later today or tomorrow for Cura's weekly adventures . . .

Imperfection . . . a key to learning

No . . . I am definitely NOT perfect and Thursday was a clear example of this fact!  It was probably the first truly "bad day" of training that I have had since Cura came home.

I am not a morning person . . . whenever possible I avoid setting appointments that require me to be walking out the door before 8:30am.  First, for those of you who are sitting there shaking your head and thinking "8:30!  I get up at (fill in the blank with an earlier time)", let me point out that I am frequently still awake in the wee hours of the morning, so being out and about by 8:30-9:00 in the morning is pretty darn good.  I am trying to adjust my sleep schedule to resemble something more human, but it is definitely a work in progress.  Second, this doesn't mean I am not up earlier (though it can), only that I attempt to limit my exposure to the outside world before then.  In fact, I try to limit my exposure to the inside world as well (no one should have to deal with me in the morning -- I can be grumpy).  Unfortunately, the world sometimes requires me to be up and out of the house earlier than I would like.  But, instead of moving forward my rising time so that I still have time to go through my morning routine in a leisurely manner, I usually sleep as late as possible and rush around like a mad woman to get ready and out of the house on time.  I share this about myself as an explanation of what contributed to the bad day -- not to excuse it.  Thursday was one of those early days -- fortunately, that afternoon was also a training day or I may have never realized what I was doing.

Now, Cura is simply not used to being asked to go through our morning routine so early, let alone while I am rushed.  If there is one thing that I have gotten pretty good at during the past nine months (WOW -- it has been that long since Cura came home) it is to make sure to avoid being rushed.  Cura just works better that way and my stress levels remain more manageable.  Thursday reinforced the need for that -- though I am not sure it would have made much difference since Cura was taken on her walk and given her breakfast about 2-3 hours earlier than normal -- but not being rushed will help to eliminate or lower my frustration levels, at the very least.

I am not going to go through a play by play of the day -- I am still trying to keep posts on the shorter side -- but I will say that my frustration levels continued to climb and, as they did, Cura's behavior became more and more fussy.  Fortunately, we had a short break between the commitments of the morning and our training session that afternoon.  Cura took a nap and I tried to get some course prep work done.  I viewed it as a 'reset' for the day and, by the time we met Rick and Heather, I was convinced that I had successfully released my frustrations from the morning.  But, I was mistaken.

Almost as soon as we began working, Rick and Heather were able to point out to me that I was being unusually impatient with Cura.  What was I doing?  My tone of voice with her was more stern than normal.  I was not clearly letting Cura know what I wanted of her -- and would correct her when she got it wrong.  My corrections were more harsh than necessary (Cura usually only needs a verbal reminder or a little flick on the leash to get her back on task).  The result?  Cura was jumpy.  She was trying, but (big shock) was not able to read my mind.  She didn't understand why she was being corrected -- so the corrections were not only on the harsh side, but completely ineffective.  So, to put it simply . . . I was being a HUGE bu**head!

When my behavior was brought to my attention, I was appalled!  (By the way, thanks Heather!)  I felt like such a heel.  I am not sure what I was more upset about . . . the fact that I had been behaving so harshly or that I had not even realized it!  I felt horrible!  I was allowing my earlier frustrations to affect the way I was interacting with Cura -- NOT acceptable!  I was breaking a very important rule of training -- never train in anger/frustration.  For the rest of the night, I broke another important rule of training -- don't dwell on the past.  I found myself trying to 'make up' for my previous behavior and showered Cura with love and affection.  Not necessarily a bad thing, but I actually woke her up a couple of times to do it (not ideal)!  Fortunately, by the next morning, I had let it go and we have had some very successful and productive days, training wise.

Now, you may be wondering why I chose to write about something that I claim to have moved on from.  After all, if I have truly "let it go", why feel the need to share?  I did struggle with this, but decided to post on this experience for a couple of reasons.  First, I think it is important to share both "positive" and "negative" experiences.  This blog is about the realities of training my own service dog and sharing those experiences with others.  So far, the experiences have been on the 'warm fuzzies' side.  Oh sure, I have shared our challenges, but they have not been overly difficult to deal with and, consequently, the posts portrayed my overall positive and optimistic approach to every experience.  Thursday was not a 'warm fuzzie' day and I think it is important to recognize that the training process is not all sweetness and light.  It is hard and there will be days that I make mistakes -- that does not make me a bad person or a bad trainer, it makes me human.  It is important to embrace the fact that I will not always do things perfectly, which leads me to the second reason I wrote this post.  When I make mistakes, it is important to evaluate them, resolve to avoid the same mistakes in the future, and then MOVE ON!  Cura is not holding a grudge.  Almost as soon as my behavior changed, her jumpiness subsided and we have made significant progress.  Allowing my mistakes to color my behavior with Cura (apart from learning from them) can be just as counterproductive as allowing my frustrations to affect my behavior.

So, when you are training your dog (service or pet) remember . . . you will make mistakes!  Recognize them, learn from them, and then move on.

Happy New Year!!

First, let me apologize for the long absence.  It was not my intention to take a break from blogging for the holidays, it just happened.  But, I must admit, I think it was for the best.  At first, I just had too much to do and had to make some hard choices about what had to give.  But, that would have only resulted in a delay rather than complete silence.  However, after completing all the grading for the semester, I began a computer boycott!
I taught several online courses during the Fall and, combined with personal computer use, spent practically all day, everyday on the computer and just couldn't bring myself to turn the darn thing on.  I deleted junk email using my phone but, other than that I completely ignored cyberspace . . . no blogs, no twitter, no email.  Frankly, I will probably never boycott the computer for more than a couple of days at a time ever again.  When I could finally face the computer again, I had LITERALLY hundreds of blogs, emails, and tweets (each) to read.  I am finally caught up again.

Now for the update.  I will make it short and sweet.  I promised some details about our trip to Madrid for the Christmas Parade.  Cura was dressed in all her gear and had a wonderful time.  For the first time, she was actually happy to be in her boots. The ground was covered in ice and snow and it was pretty cold, so I imagine she was much more comfortable with them and appreciated the protection.  There were a number of dogs running around, off-leash and on, and there were plenty of opportunities to practice my boundaries.  I was very successful with the dogs that were off-lead.  Those on-lead were less responsive to my boundaries.  They were more concerned with pulling against the tension on the leash than anything else.  The ones that I especially loved were the owners who assured me that their dog was friendly while the pup was dragging them around, excited and bouncing all over the place instead of remaining calm and interacting with other dogs and people politely.  But, the important thing is that Cura and I did very well in a new environment with numerous challenges.

Cura in Full Gear!

If you look closely, you can see the Gentle Leader that I mentioned in my last post.  While we still use a head collar, it is no longer the Gentle Leader.  The rubbing on Cura's muzzle became so bad that there was significant hair loss so I did some serious shopping and switched her to a Halti which, unlike the Gentle Leader, has padding on the muzzle straps.  Although Cura tends to grow hair slowly, after almost a month with the new head collar, she is starting to get her hair back on the areas of her muzzle that were affected.

We spent Christmas Eve at home, but had a number of people over for an Italian Feast.  Cura was a star!  It was the first time that so many people had been in the house, many she had never met.  At first, she was a bit excited, so I just kept her at my side on her lead.  Since I was in the kitchen, this required that she focus all her attention on my movements and ended up ignoring the guests.  While Cura was doing very well, I decided that it would be a good idea to put on her vest shortly after the first guests arrived.  I figured that it would keep everyone from distracting her with petting and attention and making it more difficult to do her job.  It ended up having the added bonus of focusing her even more.  Even with the door opening and closing and the house filled with festive people, Cura was very relaxed; eventually falling asleep once I finally stopped flitting around for the evening.

New Year's Eve fireworks were another challenge during the holidays.  However, Cura did much better than she did for Independence Day.  She got jumpy, but did not run and hide in a dark corner, quivering.  This holiday season gave us plenty of challenges that just reinforced the fact that Cura is growing more and more comfortable in her home and with her duties.

I must admit that, with all the holiday activity, I have not been as diligent with training as I usually am.  But, we have returned to a schedule that is more normal in the past couple of days and by the end of the week, I imagine we will be back into our usual routine -- if not a better one!  I am not really one for New Year's Resolutions (to often they get broken after a short time), so I will not 'resolve' to increase our training efforts.  But, there is always room for improvement and a bit more time spent in training will certainly not go amiss!

Black Friday Adventure

I guess I should begin by confessing that, for as long as I can remember, I have been very uncomfortable in crowds.  I have never been officially diagnosed, but I figure I have some form or combination of demophobia/agoraphobia/claustrophobia because my anxiety tends to flare when I am feeling physically constrained, either by people or space.  For example, I can be in a very large room with few people in it, but if they are all clustered by the only door in such a way that I would be unable to exit easily, my anxiety increases.  Elevators themselves are not really a problem -- but, if given the chance I will never enter a crowded elevator and I have been known to exit one if it got too full, especially if I got stuck in the back away from the door and had several floors to travel.  When my medical issues required that I have an MRI, not only was Valium required to get me into the darn machine, but I also needed a person to stay with me just outside, touching me and speaking to me to get me through the whole process without flipping out.  Even then, it was a pretty close call.  All of the above described situations were before I had spent any time as a person with a physical disability.  Things only got worse when I was injured.

Now, fortunately, I never got to the point where I never left the house, but I have had periods where my anxiety levels (read panic attacks) were unmanageable for periods of time.  Even when my anxiety was not unmanageable, for years now I have tended not to go out much unless absolutely necessary and usually not unless I was with another person, meeting another person, or had some kind meeting/class/job to go to.  At some points, I did my best to insure that I limited such "commitments" so that I did not have to go out on my own.

So, with that (very) cursory background information, you will hopefully understand the significance of my Black Friday Adventure.  I imagine the only reason I actually stepped up and did it AND got through the whole thing relatively unscathed is because it was "training for Cura."  Yeah, right -- more like therapy for me!  Funny how so much of Cura's training is actually addressing my personal challenges . . .

Originally, the plan was to go shopping with Nonna Ear Rubs with the intention of scoping out a Christmas present for Fuzzy Face.  But, due to scheduling issues, Nonna Ear Rubs couldn't go.  YIKES!!  Well, let me tell you, that was almost the end of the Black Friday Adventure right there!  At the very least, the adventure was going to be postponed until Sunday when Nonna Ear Rubs could make it.  No way in ____ was I going to face the insane post-Thanksgiving crowds on my own . . . oh, wait . . . I would not BE on my own.  Cura would be with me . . .

So, we went -- though I managed to accumulate several errands in addition to "Mall Cruising."  For some reason, this helped me to prepare for tackling the insanity of the Mall.  Maybe because we were able to do some "normal, everyday" things first . . . who knows!  All I know is that it helped me get into a good state of mind before actually stepping foot in the Mall.

For the most part, we did great!  Cura was not overly thrilled with the crowds (especially the free-range, loud, rambunctious children that were naturally attracted to her lovely -- frequently curved -- tail . . . a part of me thinks this attraction may sometimes play a part in her lowering her tail when in stressful situations -- maybe not every time, but sometimes) but she stuck close and did everything that I asked her too.  Besides, it isn't as if I was thrilled about the crowds, either!  I did a bit of shopping for myself and scoped out some things to purchase later for Christmas gifts.

We used the escalators (up and down), wandered in crowded, tight spaces where Cura had to follow me rather than be beside me, stood in lines, and browsed the various counters.  With the volume of people, we still managed to either get jostled or "trapped."  Still, the jostling I received was drastically reduced -- hardly a brush -- AND I got an apology rather than the person(s) pretending that it didn't happen!  As far as getting boxed in . . . it did happen several times -- and I did start to get anxious every time.  When I did . . . Cura became VERY deliberate in her motion and, while slowly moving forward, also leaned against me slightly (just brushing my leg).  In hindsight, it was as if she was reminding me that she was there with me.  Regardless of her intention, the result was that my anxiety remained at manageable levels and we were able to spend a little over an hour in the Mall on Black Friday!

Was there room for improvement . . . of course!  But we managed to tackle a difficult situation together -- at the very least it strengthened our bond even more.  In reality, Cura managed to help me through a situation that would have been virtually impossible for me (especially in the past seven-plus years) before she came into my life.  I would have never contemplated attempting it.  Instead, I would have found a perfectly logical and acceptable reason for avoiding it completely.  Progress . . . I LOVE it!

Our next private training session is scheduled to take place in the Mall -- a wonderful opportunity for fine tuning!  I can't wait!

Setting Boundaries

About two and a half months ago, Rick and Heather took me to Watermelon Mountain Ranch Kennels for a training session.  It was a session that focused on training me rather than Cura.  Now, if you have been following this blog, you may be thinking something along the lines of "Aren't ALL the training sessions about training you?"  To some extent, you would be right.  This whole process has been quite a learning curve, even for someone who has lived with dogs much of my life, been involved in the training of some of them, and 'in charge' and 'responsible' for several of them.  But, this particular training session was very different since Cura was not involved at all.  It was all about learning to control other dogs in my environment.

The whole thing started because Cura and I had gotten charged by two different dogs in a very short period of time and both Cura and I were not doing so well with the prospect of other dogs in our vicinity.  I am sure that it was more me than Cura -- she was most likely responding more to my reaction than to the fact that another dog was near.  Hey, what can I say, getting bitten, no matter how minor it turned out to be, is rather traumatic.  I wasn't really afraid of getting bit again (well, I wasn't looking forward to it, either!), I was more concerned that, next time, I would not be able to stop Cura from getting hurt.  I had been successful so far but, to me, it felt that I had managed to keep Cura safe more out of luck than any kind of real control over the situation.  So, my lovely training team came up with a solution . . . go into the kennels and set boundaries for dogs that I had never met.

WHAT!!?? Don't worry, I didn't go in by myself.  Rick and Heather were with me to give me pointers and to step in if things got dicey.  Turns out I didn't really need it (quite possibly because I knew that they had my back) -- things never got out of hand at all.  Sure, it took some time for me to get the hang of setting boundaries, but at the end of the session I had managed to create not only calm, but set a circle boundary around myself that the five dogs in the pod did not attempt to cross.  Well, let me tell you, that was a serious confidence builder!

Since then I have been more or less successful at boundaries with other dogs.  I am beginning to notice that my success (or lack thereof) is reflective of my mental/emotional state at the time.  Big surprise! (she says in a voice dripping with sarcasm)  I am also noticing that my mental/emotional state is frequently influenced by the actions and attitudes of those around me.  I seem to have encountered a number of 'negative' people lately and it has taken its toll.  Hmmm . . . boundaries may come in handy for more than just the uncontrolled dogs that I encounter -- I am going to have to try it on the next negative person that comes my way!

Things Floating in the Air

Successful trip to the Aquarium! You may ask why the excitement over such a simple thing . . . after all, it is just a matter of walking around and looking in the tanks, right? It is, in fact, just wandering around and looking at all the different fish swimming around in their tanks -- and I if I had not been accompanied by my trusty sidekick, you would be correct in thinking that this was no big deal -- just another touristy event to take the visiting relative to for one of the many tastes of New Mexico.

But, let us take a step back for a moment and try to see this lovely excursion from Cura's perspective . . .

First, there are quite a large number of people milling around. After all, it is still summer and parents are desperately trying to find things to occupy their, by now, bored youngsters in the few days left before they return to days filled with lessons and homework. Ah, wait! Not just people, but little people . . . not just little people, but little people who spontaneously decide that the walking is not a fast enough way to get from A to B and that said travel must be accompanied by high pitched screeches or other similar sound effects. Now from our perspective, this is SOP for places of this nature. Children are understandably excited about what they are seeing and thrilled to be sharing these experiences with one or both parents -- naturally there will be the appropriate movements and sounds. But remember, dogs naturally have a prey drive -- if it runs, it not only usually attracts the dog's attention, but also sparks a merry game of chase (hence the reason that a great way to get your dog to 'come' is to run away from it). On top of that, as a rule, they have much better hearing than we do -- in fact, the only sense that is stronger in a dog is their sense of smell. So you can bet your bottom dollar that if that screaming and chatter is getting to be a bit much for your ears -- they have long passed the point of comfort for a dog. On top of that, since they can hear in frequencies that humans can not, Cura was likely dealing with additional sounds from machinery and possibly even the creatures in the tanks! (though I didn't see any whales or dolphins, so who knows.)

Puppy perspective number two: the smell! Naturally, an aquarium smells a bit like . . . well . . . fish. Not in a 'sitting out on the counter for three days' kind of way, but any of you who have owned an aquarium in your home or has known someone with one are very aware that fish tanks have a particular odor no matter how well they are maintained. It is not necessarily an unpleasant smell -- just a fishy one. My brother had an aquarium in his bedroom for several years when he was younger and when you entered his room, there was a decidedly damp and organic smell to everything -- think of freshly tilled earth or freshly cut grass and translate that into aquatic fragrances and that is what an aquarium smells like to me. Well, let's look at this from a doggie perspective, shall we? Dogs have 220 million olfactory receptors in their nose and we inferior humans have only 5 million! So, if I can register the smells of an aquarium can you imagine what smells Cura was identifying (even if she may not really know WHAT they are, she certainly recognizes that they are there!)?

Now, in some ways, I already covered sight with the flitting little people -- but there is an added visual challenge . . . the actual fish! First and foremost, just a little reminder that Cura is not overly fond of things in the sky/air . . . balloons, clouds, statues, tall signs, ceiling decorations, recessed lighting, smoke detectors -- all of these things and more have triggered a negative response from Cura at some point and some of them still do. Her reaction is increased if the object in question MOVES! Well, when you think about it, that is pretty much the definition of an aquarium -- a place where lots of things move around and float in the air.

On top of all this, Cura's dedicated owner (yes, that would be me) added to her stress in two very distinct ways. First, I made a mistake . . . that morning, we had gone for a run and I had switched Cura's slip collar to reflect the fact that in the run she is on my right instead of my left (most of the time, I don't drive). This allows the collar to release from any correction when she is running instead of pinching her neck (we are trying to reduce her 'enthusiasm' in the beginning of the run since, if I am having a bad day, her exuberance may be too much for me to handle -- I would not be surprised if she has the ability to dislocate a shoulder on some days!). Well, rocket scientist here forgot to switch the slip collar back to reflect the fact that Cura would be walking on her usual left side when we were out and about. So, what do I do? Here we are, going into the Aquarium and, because Cura is out of place, I quickly turn -- tightening the collar. Imagine my surprise (and guilt) when Cura yelps! The collar had tightened and pinched her because I had neglected to switch it after our run. That certainly did not help the situation -- though I waited until she had calmed before actually entering the aquarium.

The other contribution is a little harder to avoid. I have always been claustrophobic. This not only manifests in a discomfort -- that is an understatement -- when in small spaces, but also in tight quarters of any kind. For example, being in a crowded room where my access to an exit is blocked or I feel my movement is restricted is problematic for me. Combine this with an increased nervousness in places where I can be jostled which is a direct result of my disability and you have a person who does not react to crowds well. While I have noticed that, generally, people give me more space since I have Cura with me, I do still get quite nervous in such situations. When I am nervous, Cura reads that and tends to become nervous as well. Substitute pretty much any emotion or state of mind into that sentence and it will be true -- trainers will try to explain this and frequently people don't believe it, but dogs DO pick up on the energy of your emotions and state of mind.

Having grown up with dogs almost all of my life, I 'knew' this on some level, but until I was constantly being accompanied by a dog everywhere I went, I don't think it really sunk in. After all, a pet is not with you 100% of the time. If you are having a stressful day, you don't necessarily have to be around your pet (in fact, I would venture to say that some of the major stresses occur away from pets). But, a service dog is there all the time -- every spike or dip in your energy, they react to. Now, Cura did absolutely brilliantly all the way through the Aquarium despite the smells, floating objects, flitting and exuberant children, etc. She really only started to 'get twitchy' in the last room. This is the room where everyone had congregated because it was the location of one of the larger tanks, had several viewing points, and was the last glimpse of this amazing environment before leaving the aquarium. Naturally, the body density increased and so did both the noise and unpredictable movement. I became very aware of the close quarters.

Regardless of whether Cura was only picking up on my discomfort or if she was experiencing her own discomfort in addition to mine, her solution was just what we (Heather, Rick, and I) are looking for. Cura's flight response is clearly diminishing if not completely disappearing. Eighty to ninety percent of the time, when she is stressed, she moves closer to me rather than trying to bolt and get away from the situation. Even when she does 'bolt', it is usually only far enough to put me in between her and whatever has spooked her. On top of that, even if she is overwhelmed and stressed, she is now able to perform her obedience skills. This is a rather new development -- as little as five or six weeks ago, Cura had trouble performing a sit, down, stay, stand, etc. if she was stressed. Now, she is still stressed, but able to focus on her job despite it. I am sure that as I get better at managing my responses to situations and Cura has more experiences to draw from, she will just keep getting better and better.

So, now you may understand the excitement that I have because Cura had such a positive and successful experience at what would be a very mundane activity for you or I. She has been with me for just over four months and is constantly reinforcing the fact that all she needed was a job -- she was not unmanageable or untrainable, just bored. Thankfully, Heather and Rick saw her potential and introduced us. I will repeat an observation of another member of our household . . . "What did we do without you?" The training may require dedication from both of us (me especially), but ultimately it is worth it! All concerned benefit -- I see that on the rare occasions that I look at Cura sleeping deeply and contentedly (snoring, by the way) despite the thunder and lightening outside -- or because she has had a busy and challenging day filled with new experiences. I know that I find great comfort in knowing that I have helped to provide a fulfilling and active life for a beautiful and loving creature such as Cura. I hope that she finds a comparable comfort in providing me with a fuller and more independent life. I hope that, from her perspective, I manage to honor our bond as much as I believe that she honors it. Some of you may think that this is giving Cura too much credit. To you I say that, until you have been chosen by such a dedicated creature as my blessed Cura -- one who trusts you completely and is dedicated to, not only following your lead, but insuring you safety above their own -- you should take a step back and reserve judgment. Despite my mistakes and inner demons as well as the sensory challenges the aquarium presented, Cura was with me the entire time -- she did not bolt, instead she stayed by my side. In my opinion, there is no greater praise -- I am not the perfect leader; I have and will continue to make mistakes -- but Cura trusts me to take care of her as I trust her to take care of me. Heather and Rick have taught us that practice and persistence will only increase our success -- I believe that and Cura's progress is a testament to this philosophy.

Welcoming Access

I have alluded to the fact that Cura and I are frequently warmly welcomed by most businesses. There are a couple of incidences that I would like to highlight at this point -- particularly since I have posted on my difficulties in this area before (without identifying the businesses, of course, given our litigious society). Some information will be very specific while others will be less detailed. However, unlike my posts dealing with negative experiences -- I will happily provide specific information about those businesses that, in my experience, have either welcomed or encouraged my patronage as a person with a service animal.

I have frequently been met with smiles and compliments at the Walmart on Unser in Rio Rancho as well as the one on Coors in Albuquerque -- there was one incident of a challenge, but most times I was welcomed right off the bat. I frequent both of these locations often and have almost always been welcomed warmly initially and am convinced that the only 'challenge' that I experienced was either an innocent or a legitimate concern by an employee that had not registered Cura's vest (I still find this a baffling, but legitimate reaction) or was overly exuberant about their responsibilities since, once it was brought to the employee's attention, we were welcomed without further protest.

Hello Deli on Jefferson NE in Albuquerque on Monday 27 July: We descended upon them with several challenges: a grandmother using a walker, a service dog (Cura), AND a pet dog (Skye). They not only welcomed us all to their patio, they graciously volunteered to bring the dogs a bowl of water! After the initial offer, at least two other members of the staff came out and asked if anyone had brought the dogs water -- this was a rather hot day (somewhere in the 90's) so this attention was very appreciated. While I always attempt to insure that I have Cura's needs taken care of to the best of my ability (yes, I manage to forget things once in a while), it is VERY pleasing when a business is willing to provide for my service dog while they are providing a service to me. Hello Deli certainly managed to do this when we were there -- thank you very much!

Scalo on Central SE in Albuquerque 28 July: OH MY GOODNESS! What a lovely experience! Once again, we were on the Patio, but only because the person who arrived first thought that Skye would be with us in addition to Cura. But, because of our plans for the day, Skye was not with us -- while there is a possibility that Skye will, eventually, become an assistance animal, that decision has not yet been made and she is not in a training program as of yet, so does not have the same access as Cura. First, I would like to compliment Scalo on the patio environment that they provide -- despite rather high temperatures, the patio is quite pleasant. On top of that, our waiter graciously asked if he could provide Cura with some water. Unfortunately, I neglected to note the name of our server (something that I have now vowed to remedy when I am out and about from now on because I want to give credit to individuals when it is warranted -- and this server DEFINITELY warranted it!). All I can do is try to give as much information as possible in the hopes that this individual will be recognized by his employer for his excellence. Prior to my disability, I was a server at a restaurant and I am both sympathetic to the stresses of the job and I also have very clear expectations of what warrants exceptional service, and what we received that day was, without a doubt, exceptional (even my father of Scottish descent, who frequently conforms to the monetary stereotype, loosened his purse to acknowledge the service we received this day). As I am sure you have already figured out -- our server was male. In addition, he sported a closely shaven/bald head and a crucifix around his neck. We were the only party on the patio at the time. There were four of us in the party along with Cura -- one of which was my grandmother who, while physically challenged, is very decisive and alert. In addition to making sure that Cura's needs were taken care of, our server also gave me ample opportunities to reinforce Cura's training. Not only is she supposed to be friendly in public when given permission, but she is also supposed to avoid contact and distraction. Our dog-loving server gave me the opportunity to reinforce both responses to public overtures. Thank you!

Satellite on Alameda in Albuquerque (several instances): While there is nothing overly exceptional here -- it is just as important to me to have a 'normal', 'uneventful' experience as it is to have an exceptional one. Every time I have gone to Satellite, I have had a very calm, normal, unstressful, experience. We have always been on the patio because Skye has been with us, but I have always been the one to go in and order and not once has anyone reacted to Cura's presence. Thank you, Satellite, for helping me to feel just like any other customer!

Flying Star in Bernallio on Saturday 25 July: Very similar to my Satellite experiences, this breakfast at the Flying Star was very mundane. But it is VERY important to realize -- from my perspective, having a rather mundane experience is actually desired. Ultimately, I wish to have the same service as any other customer at a restaurant -- the difference is that "I" includes both myself AND Cura. So, making sure we both have a comfortable experience goes a long way in my book. Flying Star managed to provide a pleasant experience for both Cura and I when we visited. While it was not an exceptional experience, it WAS a normal one and, in my life, normalcy is warmly embraced!

These are some of the local businesses that are providing me with normal or exceptional experiences. Thank you so much. Regardless of whether it is a "normal" or an "exceptional" experience -- BOTH are greatly appreciated. I will gladly recognize future positive experiences with details and share less than positive experiences by providing ambiguous details -- just stay tuned!

Don't laugh -- even if it IS funny

There are some things about training a service dog that can be rather amusing. I was reminded of this over the weekend when we went to the Herb and Lavender Festival that was held in Santa Fe. The reaction is not unique to Cura, apparently it is one that many dogs have -- and when you think about it, understandably so.

Imagine if you will, being a dog and walking along, doing y0ur job and minding your own (and your charge's) business -- suddenly you encounter a life sized statue of a person or -- as happened this weekend -- of a mule! In both cases, here is a figure that looks like a living creature but does not smell or move like one! Figure out how to process THAT! Now -- think about the mannequins that are popular in the shops. Since working with Cura, I have noticed that many of them are the size of a normal adult or child human being, but they lack important body parts -- like heads, hands, and/or feet. Combine that with the fact that they don't SMELL like the humans that they look like and you can be dealing with anything from a slightly wary to a completely FREAKED OUT dog!

While this is not a new challenge in our training, it is one that took on a new dimension this weekend since, prior to this, it was primarily humanoid shapes that bothered Cura. I find the whole situation very funny. Not just because Cura is spooked by a statue (though that is rather humorous in a baffling kind of way) but because it frequently takes me at least 30-60 seconds for me to figure out WHY Cura is all of a sudden unwilling to walk at her place beside me -- and there have been a few times where it has taken someone else pointing out the trigger to me for me to 'get it'. I am sure that my utter confusion during these moments is hilarious! They certainly are to me once I solve the mystery, work the trigger, and then have a chance to reflect on it -- so I can only imagine an observer's take on the whole thing!

Let me explain . . .

For the most part, when we are out and about, Cura behaves in certain ways. Either she is doing just what she is supposed to be doing -- kind of 'floating' at my side -- 0r she is slightly out of place, just ahead of where she should be, putting a little bit of pressure on the lead. But, when she notices a life-like, non-live statue/mannequin she moves as far away from the trigger as she can get, given the slack in the lead. Most of the time, this means shifting to my right side, behind me. This is because Cura usually walks on my left side and she rarely reacts strongly to 'strange' things on my right. Instead, it is the things on the left that she reacts to -- it is almost as if she doesn't notice things on the right, but I know this is not accurate because, frequently if there is something or someone on the right, she will either turn her head or prick her ears briefly in that direction (not the ideal reaction -- but she IS still in training). But, her reaction to things on the left is VERY different.

Rick and Heather have provided insight into why this is the case . . . if you are between your dog and the item in question, the dog's reaction is more subdued or nonexistent . . . if the dog is between you and the item in question, the dog's reaction is enhanced. So, if you find yourself in a situation where you have to pass another dog or person that your dog (pet or service) will not be comfortable with -- put yourself between your dog and the trigger, your dog's reaction will be much less fussy. (I have seen and experienced this so it is not something that magically only trainers can do -- though it may seem that way at times -- it really works!)

So, back to this weekend . . .

Here we are at this festival and we have been near this particular mule statue several times throughout the day, but we have either walked by it so that I was between Cura and the mule OR we were near the statue but not directly passing it -- focused on another destination. Up to this particular point, Cura didn't react in any way to the statue -- it was like she didn't notice it -- and (I am sorry to say) I didn't even register its presence.

In an effort to gather our party together, Cura and I were on a mission to track down members of our group that were in the museum and, to get there, we had to pass this particular mule statue on my left hand side (translate: Cura was between me and the statue). There I was, walking toward the museum door and, all of a sudden, Cura was no longer floating by my left side, but had swung back and to the right and balked against moving forward. I was baffled because I just had not registered the mule statue. Both the person who pointed out the trigger to me and myself found Cura's reaction humorous -- it was all I could do to keep from laughing! But, that does not provide Cura with the assurance to deal with such encounters, so it is a less than productive response to these kinds of situations. Instead, Cura has to be 'worked through' the trigger. This means that she has to be passed by the statue and asked to perform her service skills near it until she performs them without a severe reaction to the statue. This does not necessarily mean NO reaction, although that is the ultimate goal. Instead, this has to be seen as a process where improvements are seen as successes -- ultimately, continued improvements will result in the ideal reaction to the situation. Perfection is not usually the first success so it is not realistic to expect it. (This is related to Cura's 'storm triggers' which, I am sure, will be discussed in other posts.) Instead, the key is to diminish the reaction each time. Eventually, the result will be no initial reaction at all. Challenge met and overcome!

I wish I had some footage of Cura's reaction -- but it was quite hot so I limited what she was carrying to her cooling coat (to keep her from getting overheated) and vest with my absolute essentials in it rather than her pack -- which, admittedly does not usually include my camera (though maybe a rethink on the 'essentials' required in her pack). So, no humorous pictures or video (sigh).

I was able to work Cura through the more severe reaction to the mule -- with a combination of obedience commands and a few passes, she was walking by the statue with0ut balking. She may not have been happy about it and would still glance warily in the direction of the statue, but she walked by it staying in place by my side. Whooohoooo! (remember -- celebrate the little successes!) So, while the challenge has not yet been overcome completely, we are meeting the challenge and managing to improve our results.