The Influence of Bacon
Recently, I was honored as a “Women of Influence” by the New Mexico Business Weekly. Over 550 people attended the sold-out luncheon that honored 30 women for their contributions to New Mexico’s economy and community.
During the luncheon, each honoree was to take the stage, share five things about herself that no one knew, and exit the stage for a photo with two prominent female business leaders.
Several of my dearest friends and clients attended the luncheon with me. We dined on a chef salad and other assorted treats. As a woman with a disability, I have limited balance, and the thought of eating a chef salad while wearing a business suit and anticipating my turn on stage, was a little nerve racking.
As I lifted the fork to my mouth, bits of bacon immediately fell from the fork and came to rest down my shirt. As I looked around at the crowded room, I dared not to try and retrieve it. I thought I would just live with it and remove it once we were loaded safely in my van for the drive home.
Whistle was tucked nicely under the table and my husband, Franz, and I visited with the attendees and cheered as each honoree took the stage for her five minutes of recognition. Before I knew it, it was my turn. As the hostess, local award-winning journalist Augusta Meyers, called my name and read my bio, Whistle and I made our way to the stage.
Augusta greeted me on the accessible stage and I boldly shared five things about myself that weren’t too embarrassing, but would hopefully give the audience a glimpse into who I am as a person. As I left the stage, Whistle and I made our way to the foot of the ramp where the two prominent community leaders presented me with various swag including a bottle of wine, flowers and a gift certificate to a local jewelry store. I felt like a runner-up to Ms. America.
Trying to juggle all this stuff in a wheelchair, things were starting to get a little precarious. I was trying to hold the plaque, the flowers, a bottle of wine, and the other gift items, when I caught a twinkle in Whistle’s eye.
Lo and behold, as I was positioning my wheelchair for the photo, Whistle had caught the scent of bacon. It was nothing short of the television commercial where the dog is chanting, “bacon, bacon, bacon”.
Whistle was obsessed with getting the bacon that was down my shirt. He jumped in my lap and proceeded to stick his nose down my shirt. I was mortified as I could hear the two women saying, “Oh, how sweet. He loves you so much.” And I’m thinking, “Are you kidding me? He loves bacon!”
As the photographer tried to get Whistle to look toward the camera for the photo, Whistle was fixated on my chest. He was staring right at my chest with a look of sheer determination.
I just chuckled to myself and told the photographer not to worry and to just get the best shot he could. As Whistle and I made it back to our assigned table, I had to laugh at the situation. When you’re at your zenith, there’s nothing like a dog to give you a lesson in humility and reality.
The next day, I received an email from the New Mexico Business Weekly announcing the honorees and celebrating the event. Wouldn’t you know it, there’s a photo of me with the two community leaders and Whistle is positioned next to me staring intensely at my chest. I had to chuckle once again.
I was so honored to be recognized as a “Woman of Influence” among my peers. And, I believe I am the luckiest girl in the world to have a service dog. Whistle provides me with the independence to get out into the world alone and he also makes each day an adventure and a lesson in what’s really important!
Rescue Dog Helps Kids Save Themselves and Father from House Fire
Today I had the privilege of interviewing Firefight Dayna Hilton and her fire safety Dalmatian dog, Sparkles, on Working Like Dogs at www.petliferadio.com. It was so great to experience Firefighter Dayna’s passion for working with Sparkles to educate children and their caregivers throughout the United States about fire safety.
Firefighter Dayna has created some really cool interactive web sites and (www.firefighterdayna.com and www.sparklesthefiresafetydog.com) that engage children, parents and teachers to learn about fire safety with Sparkles’ guidance. I never cease to be amazed by all of the ways that animals enhance our lives. Listening to Firefighter Dayna talk about Sparkles and how they have worked to change people’s perceptions and increased their knowledge about fire safety is just one more reminder.
Dayna shared with us about one family in particular whose child participated in one of her and Sparkles fire safety presentations in Oklahoma. The child listened to Dayna share fire safety messages in the program and then watched Sparkles reinforce how to crawl low under smoke.
Little did they know that the young girl that witnessed Sparkles’ demonstration would have to put those newly acquired skills to use when she was awakened early one morning by the smell of smoke. Thankfully, she knew what to do and was able to help her father get out to safety. Their home was completely engulfed in flames but fortunately, because of Sparkles and Firefighter Dayna’s fire safety presentation, they knew what to do and they were all saved.
I hope you get a chance to listen in to Firefighter Dayna’s interview so that you can hear another story of how dogs have given of selflessly of their talents and love to once again, serve us. It always makes me smile when I think of our canine partners and the unwavering devotion and love that they so freely shower upon us every day. Thank you Firefighter Dayna and Sparkles for all the wonderful work you are doing together!
Barking Like A Dog
I don’t know about you, but I am starting to get Spring Fever. We just had over six inches of snow this past week in Santa Fe; however, I am already looking forward to the days of planting and the rewards of beautiful dessert flowers and fresh vegetables from the garden.
The other day, Franz, Whistle and I went to a local yard and garden store for their annual winter sale to buy some outdoor pots. We parked in the accessible parking space and as I was opening my van door, a man and his large St. Bernard dog strolled past our vehicle. Whistle was safely seatbelted on the back seat. He lept to his feet and barked like an untrained dog. I, of course, was shocked and appalled at his behavior and quickly commanded him to be “quiet.”
He immediately responded; however, the damage was done. My dressed service dog had barked at another dog in public! I was so embarrassed and asking myself, “How could such an intelligent, trained service dog like Whistle bark at a strange dog like that?”
Whistle and I are out in public almost every day and granted, this was a rare incident. However, it is still very concerning to me and I want to know if you’ve ever been in that situation before and what have you done to handle it.
Morgan, my retired service dog, never barked at other dogs. He simply ignored them whenever he was working. But Whistle, on the other hand, does pay attention to other dogs. I correct him but in the past, he has lunged toward another dog or forged incessantly in order to get closer to a strange dog.
He doesn’t do this every time he encounters another dog, but it happens enough to embarrass me and to make me a little uncomfortable about approaching other dogs. What is the protocol for meeting and greeting other dogs? How do you handle these canine situations? I can’t wait to hear your experiences and suggestions!
Holidays Too Much of a Good Thing for Service Dog
As the holidays draw to a close, I am concerned about changes I have recently witnessed in Whistle. My sister and her family visited during the Christmas holidays. Whistle was thrilled to spend some time with my niece and nephew and my nephew’s girlfriend. They are all college students with boundless energy and Whistle reveled in playing with them and falling asleep on the couch with them.
It did not occur to me until after they went home this week that Whistle wanted to remain in the holiday mood. I noticed that when we went out into public he was sniffing quite a lot, more than usual. I commanded him to heel but he was more interested in the crumbs on the floor. Overall, he seemed distracted and much more interested in smells and morsels of food in his immediate vicinity.
This was unusual behavior for Whistle. I began to wonder, “What happened to my usually attentive service dog?” His behavior had definitely changed and his responsiveness to me had diminished. He was clearly more interested in other things than working with me.
And then it dawned on me, he had been unharnessed most of the time they were visiting. He had romped and played with them all day and late into the evening. He had sniffed every yuletide aroma during all of the abnormal cooking and food preparation that occurred throughout their visit. He was a carefree dog for the entire week. Basically, he was on vacation and he was loving it.
Franz and I live alone with Whistle, my retired service dog, Morgan, and three kitties. Whistle was not used to this much activity around the house but he was clearly enjoying it. I don’t think he has any interest in returning to our normal routine.
So it begs the question, “How do we handle our service dogs during the holidays?” Do we let them overindulge like we do throughout the holiday season or should I be Ebenezer Scrooge and require him to keep working without any holiday revelry?
I learned this season that I need to be more aware of how Whistle spends his time during the holidays. Like all of us, I think he should have some holiday fun but in moderation. I allowed Whistle to overindulge in treats and youthful attention and afterward I have a young dog on my hands that had rather play than work.
Whistle and I have to get recertified in January as part of Paws With A Cause’s requirements for all working service dog teams. It is clear to me that Whistle and I have to get back into shape. We need to work on his commands and my overall expectations of him as a working dog.
Whistle and I both overindulged during the holidays and now, we have to get back in shape. We both must set and adhere to some strict New Year’s resolutions that include sharpening our obedience and public access skills. It’s almost New Year’s day and the party is definitely over for me and Whistle!
Psychatric Service Dogs a Rare and Valuable Breed
I had the opportunity to visit with Joan Esnayra, Ph.D., President and Founder of the Psychiatric Service Dog Society (http://www.psychdog.org). I have to admit, Dr. Esnayra enlightened me to the fact that all service dogs are not alike. Theoretically, I was aware of that fact. However, after talking with Dr. Esnayra, I became acutely aware of some of the significant differences between service dogs that assist people with physical disabilities and service dogs that assist individuals with psychiatric disabilities.
I have to confess that I secretly felt that the most qualified service dogs were trained by an agency or organization. I had asked Lynn Hoesktra, a former service dog trainer for Paws With A Cause and one of the trainers that I immediately refer to for my complex service dog training questions, how seizure dogs were actually trained? Lynn explained to me that they couldn’t really train seizure dogs to detect seizures. Instead, they tested dogs to see if they had the ability to detect when someone was going to have a seizure. Since that conversation, Lynn’s words have resonated with me, “We don’t train the dogs, we simply ask the dog if he or she has the ability to detect when an individual was going to have a seizure.”
And after talking with Dr. Esnayra, this approach seems to also apply to psychiatric service dogs. Dr. Esnayra explained to me that it is actually better for a person with a psychiatric disability to train their own dog. She described how the longer a dog lives with their partner with a psychiatric disability, the easier it is for the dog to detect when a psychiatric episode is about to occur. Furthermore, as the dog gets to know its person better over time, it can also predict how he or she might react during the episode. It makes perfect sense. Dr. Esnayra also raised the point that a multitude of breeds can assist individuals with psychiatric disorders and not just the breeds we typically think of such as service dogs—Labrador or Golden Retrievers.
I am ashamed to admit it, but I did have some biases and false beliefs that a dog needed to be trained by a service dog agency or organization to be a qualified service dog. I know there are some people with dog training experience who might be able to train their own dog, but I was admittedly skeptical about the average person, such as myself, with no previous dog training experience. Training a service dog takes diligence, patience, and time. I especially referred to this false belief after two of my service dogs were attacked in public by other dogs whose owners claimed they were trained service dogs. In reality, these dogs were simply pets and they lacked the basic obedience skills necessary for public access. This has always concerned me because I worried that dogs who do not behave appropriately in public jeopardize public access for the rest of us whose dogs are trained and who do act appropriately.
Dr. Esnayra explained to me how the Psychiatric Service Dog Society works with its members to strengthen their public access skills and to ensure that their members’ dogs do behave appropriately in public while providing the vital support that their human partners require. Dr. Esnayra opened my eyes to another type of service dog and she also educated me about individuals with psychiatric disabilities and their specific needs. I am always amazed to learn about new ways our canine friends are coming to our aid such as: dogs who detect peanuts for people with severe allergies, dogs who assist people with autism, and countless other ways in which our canine friends demonstrate their unwavering love for humankind. Dr. Esnayra reminded me that I need to be open-minded to how these dogs are trained and how they assist their human partners. For more information and to hear my conversation with Dr. Esnayra, tune in to Working Like Dogs at www.petliferadio.com.
