It's flippin' HOT!

Happy Fourth of July!

Yesterday, Cura and I spent part of the day sitting around and answering questions at a nearby garden shop.  Okay, so I answered questions, Cura hung out.  We were in a covered area and I made sure that Cura was well fortified against the heat.  Her cooling coat was doing wonders -- keeping her core temperature down -- but after a bit, it became clear that her head was a bit warm.  This was my solution . . .

She was quite comfortable and I was happy to forego wearing my hat since the sun was not beating down on me directly.  I think I may have to look into getting her a hat of her own! (One that fits a bit better and doesn't fall off every time she moves her head!)

With the weather being as hot as it has been, making sure that Cura stays cool when we are out and about has been a big focus for me.  I think that I have mentioned that she is usually unwilling to drink while she is out working -- so making sure she doesn't get overheated is important.  I always know when I have failed in that mission because the few times she has gotten uncomforatable, she has actually taken a few laps of water when she is offered -- but only a few laps!  At least I know if she gets too hot, she WILL drink -- and it is a good gauge of how she is doing!

Still, even with all of the equipment to keep her cool, I am very careful not to have her out too long and we both are looking forward to the monsoons when the temperatures will drop a bit!

Mea Culpa!

When Cura first came home, due to my inexperience and a desire to 'make my life easier', I went ahead and got one of those Service Dog "certifications" that can be sent away for by just about anyone.  I have mentioned having a meaningless certification before.  Well, when the certificate came, it included a couple of "Registered Service Dog" patches.  I didn't get them put on Cura's daily vest or pack, but they were added onto her Cooling Coat.  Now that the weather is warmer, Cura is using her Cooling Coat more often and walking around town flashing the "Registered" patches all over the place. 

So what, you may ask . . . what difference does it make?  Well, here is the problem . . . by displaying patches that indicate that Cura is registered, it supports and promotes the public's misconception that Service Dogs need to be registered.  I am not sure why I did not make this connection earlier, but something that Heather said the other day suddenly clicked.  By the next day, the "Registered Service Dog" patches were removed from Cura's Cooling Coat.  I have to order another pair of her 'normal' Service Dog patches, but at least I am no longer contributing to the problem.

In reality, initially gettting the certificate and the patches was probably something that I needed to do.  I was not ready to deal with access challenges without having some kind backup -- no matter how flimsy I knew them to be.  If I could flash a patch, card, or piece of paper that others would see as validating Cura's status as a Service Dog, then I could avoid an unwanted confrontation.  Even with that support, for several months I came away from almost every access challenge with my heart pounding, hands shaking, and knees weak.  It took me a long time to feel comfortable dealing with such situations without getting overly stressed. 

Now after over a year of practice, it is time to stop leaning on these crutches and stop supporting the idea that Service Dogs should be registerd by displaying patches, etc. that indicate Cura is registered.  I apologize for buying into the hype.  I realize that I potentially made it harder for the Service Dog Team that happened to follow after me without some "registration".  Fortunately, one of the benefits of having Cura in my life for the past 15 months is gaining the skills to deal with such conflicts when they arise.  I am happy to say that I will not longer be sending out false impressions -- the patches are off! 

I have stopped 'making my life easier'.  In the long run, it is more effective to do the hard work of educating those who do not know any better.  I am now up to performing this task 100% of the time.  It may not always be fun, but it will always be worth it.  Thanks Heather for persisting and helping me to see the light!

Romping in the Garden

Frequently, I am asked if Cura gets any 'time off' or if she has to work all the time. As you can see below, she can play just as hard as she can work.  Watch as she speeds by Nonna Ear Rubs.  Then, of course, there is Skye who starts to jump into the fray and then gets camera shy.  Enjoy!

 

Oh, and if you are wondering about those straps you can sometimes see, that is her anti-jump harness -- if all goes well, by the end of the summer, she will no longer be wearing it!

Spring is coming!

It is time to prepare the garden for the next growing season . . . which means we get to spend time OUTSIDE! The temperature rose a bit and Nonna Ear Rubs and I decided that it was time to begin making the garden ready to receive all its goodies. Now, it is still way too early to put seeds or plants in the ground, but there is still much to be done.

There are several things on the list such as pruning the trees for the first time and pruning/cutting back various bushes and plants. The trees are now going into their third year -- finally, we will be able to walk under them and only have to bend down a little instead of crouch down almost on all fours! Well, maybe not Fuzzy Face . . .

Then, there are the 'big' projects planned for this year. We have to remove a bunch of gravel from beneath the trees and create planting beds instead so the trees can breath properly; create climbing trellises in beds along the back wall for various squash vines and other climbing vegetables; and this year we are going to build a cold frame (can you say veggies all winter?) I can hardly wait. It will be hard work at first, but the rewards are going to be great!

So, day one in the yard was spent pruning and cutting back. I am happy to report that we managed to complete it all! But, you may ask, what does this have to do with Cura? Ahh . . . be patient my lovely readers -- setting the stage is everything!

Last year, Cura was not allowed in the back yard unless she was on some kind of lead. Being the little fence jumper that she was in her previous life, combined with her single wall vaulting incident over the back wall (the one with a 12-14 foot drop onto a cement sidewalk or the sharp gravel surrounding it) last year relegated her to being leashed at all times. Just before the weather turned last year, I got her an anti-jump harness, but we were only able to use it a few times. Now that we have had our first day in the back yard, I believe Cura will have many more lovely days to wander the back garden off-lead.

Of course, she was wearing her anti-jump harness the entire time, but she spent about three hours outside with Nonna Ear Rubs and me and did nothing but enjoy herself. She laid and rolled around in the Puppy Pad (a little grass bit we installed last year for the dogs) and managed to get all sorts of bits of dry grass on herself. She investigated the various cuttings that Nonna Ear Rubs and I were accumulating as we meticulously made our way from one side of the garden to the other. She selected some of the choice tree branches that were available after pruning to chew on. In fact, she and Skye played the "you walked away from it, now it is mine" game with one particular piece of wood. Neither one ever took it from the other, they just noticed when the stick was sitting alone, all forlorn and unloved, in the middle of the yard and picked it up and chewed on it and/or carried it around for awhile.

Cura was very interested in the occasional rustling noise in the raised bed under the straw (we have four-legged fuzzies wintering over in there -- but now that we are starting to mess around out there, they will likely move on soon, at least they did last year). Both dogs had a blast -- well, except for that moment that Skye got 'bit' by a plant of the prickly variety -- she didn't like that and may never go in that particular flower bed again! Cura made no attempts to go over a fence or a wall. She would look out front through the fence a few times, but just look -- no excitement, just curiosity. Needless to say, when we were finished and came back into the house, Cura and Skye both curled up and slept for the rest of the day (and yes, Cura snored, a lot). On top of all the good fresh air that day, we also ran the dogs that morning so they were done in!

Long story short, if this first day of gardening is any indication, this summer will be filled with lots of relaxing time out in the back garden -- no fence jumping, just fun!

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!

Holidays . . . here we come

Time flies when . . . 

you have ENTIRELY 

too much to do!

The good news is that, at least so far, I appear to be on top of everything -- or at least I am not yet snowed under! 

The problem is really that much of what needs to be done involves me NOT going out and about.  Things like getting cards out, grading the final papers that were just turned in, attending meetings, finishing up those hand-crafted gifts, Holiday baking -- oh, and writing a Holiday Letter.  I just didn't get started on the cards soon enough to individualize them all and it has been a busy year, so rather than have my hand become one huge, ugly, and painful cramp I am opting for that time honored tradition of writing a general letter and then personalizing the card with a short note. (postage be D*%#$D).   I am probably leaving out something else that needs to be completed before the end of December -- but I am either not going to think about it or have decided not to share!

Back to 'the problem' . . .

With me working on things that involve a lot of sitting and very little moving, it leaves Cura with very little to do but lounge. 

      <--- Case in point! ---> 

 So, I am trying to make sure that the times that Cura is working, she is getting a real challenge!  We have been doing a lot of off-lead work when we are outside.  Frequently, if the situation is right, I am dropping the leash and expecting her to stay by my side.  Which she does -- though not always 'in place'.  Cura likes to be about 4-5 inches ahead of where I would prefer her to be.  But, as Rick and Heather have pointed out, that is probably my fault because where she is tending to place herself is right where she was initially placed before I realized that the position  I initially chose was not good if Cura is wearing her pack.  So, basically, I am trying to undo what I put into place in the very beginning.  Slowly but surely, Cura is repositioning.  She just needs to be reminded every once in awhile.  The good thing is that the reminder is usually just a verbal correction or me stopping or changing direction -- especially when I am working with her off-lead.  That is actually one of the benefits of dropping the leash -- no physical correction is possible so I have to find a way to communicate to Cura what I want without relying on the leash . . . same goes for her, she has to concentrate on me more so that she catches the signals I am giving her -- so she tends to forage less.

We have started using a new piece of equipment -- as well as reintroducing gear that she has worn before, though not for awhile.  Now that the weather has turned cold, she is back in a coat (the difference being that this one is to keep her warm rather than keep her cool) and she has to wear her boots again.  Most of the time she is less than pleased about the boots (LOVES the coat!) -- apart from our trip up to Madrid last weekend -- she was glad for the boots then!  More on that trip later -- there are some pictures running around some place of Cura in 'full' gear that I will share in another post (in the spirit of trying DESPERATELY not to be long-winded in this one).

The new gear is a Gentle Leader.  I must admit that I quite like it.  It works very well with my physical limitations and Cura and I work together even better than we did before (which is saying something, because if Rick and Heather are to be believed, we are doing pretty darn good -- I chose to believe them, not that there is not room for improvement!).  

There are just a few problems that we have to work out . . . 

1) When she has the Gentle Leader on, she will sometimes try and rub it off her muzzle.  This is a rather significant problem when she decides to use my thigh to rub up against!  On a good day it is simply inconvenient -- on a bad day it could be dangerous.

2) After a couple of days with the Gentle Leader on, as directed by the instructions provided in the packaging,  Cura started showing signs of wear on her muzzle with a little bit of hair loss.  No redness or other irritation, but still . . .  We have loosened the Gentle Leader significantly (pretty much ignoring the directions provided -- now, I feel that I must be clear that we are not really using it to prevent pulling or lunging AND this decision is being made in consultation with professional and experienced trainers so the usual disclaimer applies . . . DON'T TRY THIS AT HOME, BOYS AND GIRLS -- if you are not a professional or are not being advised by one, you should follow the directions provided by the manufacturer).  We have a play date on Thursday, so we will reassess the Gentle Leader then.  If the irritation persists, the plan is to try a Halti, which is another 'head collar' with a slightly different design that will fit differently and may not irritate Cura's muzzle.

3) Regardless of the fact that the 'damage' is hardly noticeable, I feel horrible that this new tool is obviously a physical irritation to Cura.  I have even caught her rubbing her muzzle (against the carpet or her bed) when she doesn't have the Gentle Leader on and hasn't had it on for hours -- this is new, since we have loosened it -- or maybe it was happening all along and I just now noticed it (say it isn't so!). 

One of the difficult things about Cura and finding gear that works for her is that she tends to fall in between sizes.  Frequently, she is right at the edge of a medium and a large -- or between a large and extra-large.  So, it is very possible that just changing the size of the gear will solve the problem.  Unfortunately, vendors do not give individual's the option of testing the equipment for a realistic period of time to determine if it is successful.  They either require that you shoulder the costs of returning the equipment that proves damaging in the long run -- sometimes with a 'restocking fee' added on -- or do not accept the return of a 'used' piece of equipment at all.  Fortunately, I have great trainers who are willing to trade things out with me -- if something does not work, they will take it back at no cost!  I realize that they can still use it as a training tool, but it is still a perk that I appreciate and feel compelled to call your attention to because it is NOT standard operating procedure (at least in my experience) and if you are in the market for a trainer -- be it for a Service Dog or a Pet -- you may want to ask if your potential trainer is willing to provide you with this kind of service. 

Well, despite my attempts, this post is on the long side . . . maybe it is time to start thinking about stepping up the pace a bit and providing bi-weekly posts. (especially since I have not yet managed to share the details of our trip to Madrid last weekend).  Your thoughts, my phantom readers -- and those who are NOT phantoms -- on this would be appreciated.  Should I keep the posts short, but post more often. . . OR should I stick to once a week and let the posts get longer and take the risk that much of them will not be read?  Hey, I follow several blogs . . . I know what I do with long-winded posts -- be HONEST!).  I would love your feedback so PLEASE leave comments that will give me some indication of the best way to proceed when developing this blog.  Is it time to provide more frequent posts? 

Shoes . . . (and fences)

Yes, again . . . but it is the training focus at the moment which means that shoes are what is foremost on my mind so that is where I am going to begin -- who knows where I will end up!

In addition to her walks, Cura wore her shoes from about 9am to about 1pm yesterday -- almost four hours non-stop. For the most part, she did really well, but she did have her points of protest. This time it was getting in and out of the car. All of a sudden, she couldn't jump up onto the back seat or from the back seat onto the ground. Adjusting the shoes did nothing to solve the problem and ultimately she managed the maneuvers -- but I certainly felt like the Wicked Witch of the West making her do it despite her protests. Maybe I should clarify . . . by protests I don't mean that she was making any protesting noises (no whining, barking, grumbling -- nothing like that). Instead it was just Cura pitifully attempting to make the 3-ish foot jump into the SUV that completely fell short of the mark.

Now, before any of you start feeling sorry for the poor puppy who is being ruthlessly forced to do the impossible, let me give you some of that 'history' I told you I was not going to go into in the first posting but would probably have the opportunity to share in later posts. On Cura's adoption paperwork it specifically says that she needs a yard with at least a SIX FOOT FENCE. Why is this necessary, you ask? Apparently, she is capable of jumping a six foot fence FROM A SEATED POSITION with hardly any effort whatsoever.

Now, we do not have a six foot fence, however, on the other side of one of our five(ish) foot block wall is about a twelve foot drop to a concrete and gravel surface. Since Cura had formed such a strong bond with me and was going to be in an environment that was constantly challenging her, the fact that our wall was not 6+ feet was not considered a problem -- and for several weeks it wasn't. Rick and Heather made sure to tell me that any time Cura looked at the top of the fence/wall she needed to be corrected to counter her conditioned response to fences -- which was to jump them -- and the few times that she looked, I did correct her, but there was no real attempt to jump the fence and leave the yard . . .

And then I started getting confident that she WOULDN'T jump it. Within two weeks of me commenting on the fact that, while her paperwork said that she bolted out doors and jumped fences, I had never seen such behavior -- she did BOTH! Just goes to show you that the universe is perfectly content to teach you a lesson immediately! Well, the powers that be decided to pretty much put me in my place in short order. Right about the time I realized how different (in a positive way) my life was now that Cura was with me -- even though she was not fully trained in her job -- I was put in two situations that made me face the possibility that I could lose her, however remote a possibility that might be. (Rick and Heather are PRETTY DARN CONFIDENT that Cura is simply NOT going to take off).

First, she decided that she was going to bolt out the garage as the door was coming down. It took about ten minutes for me to get my hands on her. To top it off, and this is the part that was frustrating for me, whenever she turned a corner, she would keep peeking around it to make sure that I was still following her! It was one of the more difficult moments in my life when she finally responded to my command and didn't prance out of my reach. The fact is that she DID (finally) do what I told her to so I HAD to praise her for her obedience or I would be undermining the command -- but, because of the merry chase she gave me, I just wanted the throttle her! I am happy to say that I managed to shower her with love and approval -- but it was a close call!

Then, about a week later, we were in the back yard and (I found out later) a man was walking his dog along the sidewalk behind our block wall -- the one with the twelve foot drop. She started to rapidly pace the wall and, before I could stop her, she jumped onto the wall and was precariously balanced there for what seemed like an eternity. I like to think that she didn't actually INTEND to go over once she saw how far the drop was. She managed to balance on top of the wall for a bit, but not long enough for me to actually reach her and stop her from going over. That time was scarier for me because people race down that road entirely too fast and I had to actually lose sight of Cura in order to go around the block so that I could get my hands on her. Once again, she led a merry chase -- though shorter in duration. Lesson learned -- she is not ready to be in the back garden off-lead.

However, given the jumping rebellion we had today -- maybe putting her out there off-lead in her shoes would work just fine!

Shoes Anyone??

If you have not had the opportunity to see a dog learning how to walk in shoes, let me encourage you to do so at EVERY opportunity. Why put shoes on a dog, you ask? Well, because she is a service dog, she must go everywhere with me regardless of the weather. Think about how you feel walking across a parking lot in bare feet when it is sweltering outside and the asphalt is 100+ degrees -- or whether or not you would like to go barefoot when there is snow on the ground. Even if you are of the mind that dog's feet are more resilient than those of a human, what about all of the glass and other damaging items can be found on the ground? Now imagine how well Cura could effectively be my service dog if her pads got cut or torn. So -- while she will not always need them, it is very important that Cura become comfortable walking and then working in her shoes for those times that they are needed. One important note: since dogs have only two ways too cool themselves (panting and through their paw pads) it is important to make sure overheating doesn't occur when wearing the boots -- Rick and Heather have introduced me to a cooling coat which works to keep Cura cool. It is AMAZING. Cura is a black dog and we live in the desert so the cooling coat has come in handy.

Here is a video of Cura taken a few weeks ago. It is actually the 3rd or 4th time she was in her shoes so the 'prancing' is significantly reduced here, but still very pronounced.




One of the primary things we have been working on since last Thursday is getting Cura more comfortable walking in her shoes. She has gotten much better, though not exactly comfortable. In fact, she is still rather disgusted with the whole concept -- her face says it all. As with all things in this whole process, persistence is the key. We have even had a few successes in the past 24 hours. She has managed to figure out how to sit, lay, and relieve herself while wearing her shoes (okay -- probably too much information for some, but this is one of the realities of having a service dog).

Now, being ABLE to sit, etc. in the shoes doesn't mean she has gotten obedience in the shoes down yet. This may prove to be a bit of a challenge because on the directions of Rick and Heather, until Cura gets used to them, boots are a required element of her gear. Every time we leave the house, she is supposed to be in the boots. Tomorrow and Wednesday are going to be interesting as far as obedience is concerned. Especially Wednesday since on top of it all we are going to be riding the bus -- one of Cura's more challenging activities at the moment (more on that later, I am sure!).

Working with Cura on the shoes has presented another challenge that I have not really encountered yet -- at least not to extent that I am now. Having to make Cura wear something that is clearly not comfortable for her is quite difficult for me. I have to keep telling myself that this is what is best in the long run (after all, I don't want her to burn or freeze her paws). This is one of the harder parts of persistence -- sometimes it actually makes you feel like you are being mean! But consistency is the key and we will continue to persevere!

Until next time . . .