Seeing Eye days 5 and 6 - ups and downs

Hi all,

I hope this post finds you all well. The last few days has been a series
of major ups and downs, a normal occurrance for dog guide training.

I'll start with one of the saddest stories I have to tell. I found out
Wednesday evening that the vets ended up having to put Phil down after
his health failed him. Not long after he came back to Seeing Eye he was
sent to a specialty hospital that did determine he was in the advanced
stages of liver disease. His prognosis wasn't good; a vet tech at Seeing
Eye took him home to take care of him as long as possible but soon after
his health went into a quick decline. To prevent him from suffering he
was put to sleep. This was very hard news to hear but news I am glad I
got. Phil was my world as I've said before. I can't even put into words
the emptiness hearing of his passing left me with, the bond a person has
with his guide is only describable as comparable to that of human and
his family. I had every intention of posting an article that one former
graduate wrote back in the 1970's for the New York Times but I haven't
found it in softcopy yet. It so elegantly described the answer to the
question, "does that dog really do anything for you?" An instructor put
it so well tonight, these dogs work for one thing--love. They aim to be
loved and to love in return. They love through working their heart out
day after day, block after block, simply to please their master in the
expectation that they will be loved in return. Every opstacle they move
us around, every car they move us out of the path of, and every
destination they bring us too, they do it through love.
Navajo is truly bonding with me. He is such an amazing worker. The last
two days I have seen nothing but improvement. Every opstacle, whether it
be a barrier or a trash can, he has worked through it as if he is the
master of the situation. He has the confidence that he knows his purpose
and can accomplish anything. He has shown absolutely no attention to dog
distractions and has worked through countless traffic checks thrown at
him flawlessly. He loves attention; I can walk across a large room from
him and he cries for me to come back. He really has stolen my heart and
we will be a great team.
Our lecture this evening was on dog control and behavior in social
situations. It was a lecture concerning controling a dog in different
social environments and a reminder to not let others pet and interact
with the dog to keep them focused--even out of harness for the most
part. I didn't do as well with Phil in this area especially in college;
people loved to pet him, he was just a friendly dog. With Navajo, to
help keep him at the top of his game for years to come, I intend on
reinforcing no petting and interacting so that I know he is always
having his mind in his work and getting me around safely. Please help me
be successful with this by not making eye contact with him, not petting
him, and not making me feel guilty for not letting you pet him; its for
my safety and our success.
Tomorrow, it is back to town to work the same route we worked today
(Thursday). Saturday morning we will solo this route--our first time
without an instructor over our shoulder in town. It will really be a
testament to how far we have both came in four short days. I know we
both can do it; the hardest part if there will be one is memorizing the
route and such in regard to how many blocks in each direction. Keep us
in your thoughts.
Anyways, I'm going to atempt to update tomorrow. Until then...