Assistance Dogs of the West – Pioneers in Service Dog Training Programs
Recently I got to visit with Carolyn Clark Beedle, Executive Director of Assistance Dogs of the West (ADW), on Working Like Dogs at www.petliferadio.com. Carolyn stopped by to talk about the work she and her staff and volunteers are accomplishing at ADW in Santa Fe, NM.
ADW has been around since 1995 and they provide trained service dogs to people with disabilities in order to increase self-reliance and independence. They are relatively a small to medium size assistance dog agency that places about 20 dogs a year to clients in New Mexico and other parts of the country.
One of the things I enjoyed most during our visit was learning about ADW’s innovative educational and vocational programs. These programs engage elementary, middle and high school students at young as 8, at-risk teenagers, juvenile detainees, and youth and adult student trainers with developmental and physical disabilities.
ADW is unique in working with these populations to become student trainers. Since 1996, ADW trainers have worked with students at Santa Fe, Albuquerque, and other Northern New Mexico schools and agencies to deliver the ADW School Assistance Dog Program curricula. These innovative programs are teaching participating youth and adults the importance of patience and leadership, how to give and receive love, the necessity for emotional self-control, and the value of encouragement. As students build a relationship with their assistance dog, students also gain an understanding of the challenges facing people with disabilities. They also learn about generosity and sacrifice when they present the assistance dog they have trained to the client.
The genius of these programs is that the student participants pay a program fee to enroll in these classes. However, ADW does offer some scholarships and financial assistance for those who want to participate but can not pay the fees. ADW generates critical income and the student participants gain valuable social and personal skills. It is a win/win situation for everyone involved.
I was also encouraged by ADW’s Self Training Program where clients can bring in their own dogs for evaluation and training. A client’s potential service dog (of any breed) is assessed for temperament and “interest” in doing the work. If the dog and client are accepted into the program, for a fee, they can work with ADW trainers for a minimum of 40 weeks. Graduates of the ADW Self Training leave the program with Public Access Certification and an identified set of skills to support each individual client.
Hats off to Carolyn and her team of staff and volunteers for the innovative work they are doing to train and place assistance dogs with individuals with various types of disabilities!
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!
Dog Treats and Service Dogs
I have to say that I was so strict with my first dog, Ramona, regarding treats. The agency that trained her really frowned upon treats and instructed me that she needed to work for me based on praise rather than treats. It made sense because they argued that if her working was dependent on treats and let’s say, for example, that I had fallen out of my wheelchair and was not able to reach any treats and I needed her to get the phone. What would I do?
Therefore, I gave Ramona very few treats. When Morgan came along, he was trained by another agency with a different philosophy about treats. They felt treats could and should be used as a reward when appropriate. Morgan loved the treats but he was not as much of a “chow hound” as I lovingly referred to Ramona. She was a complete maniac for treats; but Morgan, although he loved them, was not as possessed and obsessed by the thought of a treat.
So, here I am with service dog number three, Whistle, still debating about how to effectively use treats. I keep pondering how often and exactly when should I reward him with a treat? Whistle loves treats more than Morgan, but he is not quite as obsessed with treats as Ramona.
Another big issue for Ramona and treats was her weight. Whenever I would give her treats, she had an almost immediate and noticeable weight gain.
Whistle, on the other hand, is very lean and muscular. I monitor his weight closely and although I have been giving him regular treats, he has maintained a healthy weight. However, the dilemma continues. How often should I give my service dog treats and when? I adore all of my service dogs and I want to be good to them, but is giving them treats being good to them or am I negatively impacting their overall nutrition? And second, what kinds of treats should I be giving them? Organic, meat, veggies, fruit, etc.?
I was trained to give Ramona minimal treats for a variety of reasons and I always felt guilty after she was gone for not lavishing more treats on her. As a result, I have been much more lenient with Morgan and even more so with Whistle. My philosophy is, if it doesn’t interfere with their work performance or their health, then it should be okay.
What do you think? How do you dispense treats and what kinds of treats do you give your service dog?
Service dogs and pinch collars: help or hindrance?
We really enjoy watching professional dog trainers work their dogs. I am amazed at how they can command their dog’s attention and maintain a level of control over their dog’s head through the use of a leash and collar.
As a wheelchair user, handling a dog can be challenging. From a sitting position, it can be more difficult to manage my service dog’s movements without the assistance of other techniques and devices such as a pinch collar or training collar.
Does your service dog forge or as I refer to it, have a secret desire to be a member of a sled dog team? All three of my service dogs have had a wandering head for either food particles on the floor or the need to get ahead of my wheelchair. I always feel so guilty for using a pinch collar but I have to say, it works like a charm.
When a trainer suggested a pinch collar for my first dog, Ramona, I was shocked and appalled. How could I put such an offensive looking device on my little angelic service dog? Well, my little angel was eating everything in sight and the pinch collar definitely got her attention. Ramona was more responsive to me whenever she was wearing it AND I didn’t have to pull so hard on her.
My second dog, Morgan definitely had aspirations to be a member of a champion sled dog team. He was somewhat interested in food, but he was more interested in forging ahead of me. This posed a real problem as I started developing shoulder and neck pain because of the force I had to apply to keep him from forging ahead and literally pulling me out of my wheelchair.
When I put a pinch collar on him, he too became more aware of his forging and became much better at heeling beside my wheelchair without pulling me out of my chair or causing irreparable shoulder damage.
My current service dog, Whistle, has these similar tendencies although they are not as pervasive as with Ramona and Morgan. He likes to find morsels on the floor that he can scoop up and he likes to forge every now and then. What he does like to do that Morgan and Ramona didn’t do, is he likes to sniff where other dogs have urinated. He just can’t seem to resist.
I was so thrilled because I really haven’t had to use a pinch collar on Whistle. However recently, his desire to sniff where other dogs have relieved themselves has become an increasing problem.
As a result, I finally broke down and purchased a new pinch collar for Whistle. Once again, it looked very offensive to me. I was so worried that I was hurting him, although I know it looks much worse than it actually is. And, I have to say, it has really curbed the issue of Whistle breaking from a “heel” command to sniff uncontrollably. So for now, I am back to using a pinch collar when Whistle and I are in public. I have to ask, “how do you feel about using a pinch collar on your service dog? Is it a helpful tool or a hindrance?”
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!
