As you will see from today’s picture, Jerry still has work to do for the Guide Dog Association. We are in the middle of National Guide Dog week, and Jerry has been doing his bit by looking cute while Roy hopes people will pop a pound or two into his collecting tin. Worcester has been full of GD instructors, working dogs, puppies, retired dogs and assorted volunteers. It was quite a turn-out!
Roy and Jerry walked in and, although I have been saying for some time that Jerry has been slowing down, it is the first time Roy has walked anywhere with him for some time. He was very struck by how much Jerry has slowed down, and this just re-enforces that now really is the right time for Jerry to retire.
As for Jay and me we walked into Worcester this morning, stopping along the way at a few key places – the Dentist, my Hair Dresser, Boots and M&S. We came home on the bus (which didn’t phase Jay at all). We will do this exact route once or twice more before he qualifies; this will help him to gain confidence and purpose when he is working. Jerry has never been one for shopping but I am hoping that Jay will enjoy the experience and accompany me on a few shopping trips.
This afternoon we repeated our walk to our church – the one where we encountered lots of dog distraction on Monday. Jay was less excited today and clearly remembered the route. There is one tricky point where he has to find a path which leads off the main footpath, and he did seem to remember where it was – very encouraging. He is a clever dog and learns new routes quickly. This tendency may cause him, from time to time, to guess that I want to find something, perhaps a shop or house, which I don’t want to visit. It’s important always to praise the dog for being helpful and then gently to encourage them on to the place you really do want to find. Telling the dog off when it is trying to help and please you can cause a loss of confidence in their own ability. Isn’t it complex – there is so much more to training and working with a dog than most people would ever imagine. A good working partnership looks so effortless, but so much will have contributed to the success you observe.
The other thing we did this afternoon was what is called “off kerb obstacles”. This involves placing a deliberate obstacle on the pavement so that the dog has to decide whether it is possible to pass safely or whether we will need to go into the road. Parked cars, barriers around holes, A-boards, discarded bikes, these can all cause problems. Needless to say, Jay did well in taking me to the kerb to show there was an obstruction and in taking me back onto the pavement when it was clear. Clever dog!
Tomorrow we are going to do trains in the morning and, in the afternoon, my trainer (Karen) is going to be observed herself. She is about to complete her own training as an instructor.
No comments:
Post a Comment