Class Matches for August 2010

Here are the dogs that were matched in the current class:

Don BLM - raised by Robert & Carmen Lauer, Daytona Beach Fl

Bagheera BLM - raised by John Bauer, St. Petersburg Fl

Sherman BlxGM - raised by Rebecca Hall, Charlotte NC

Moses BLM - raised by Donnie & Leslie Cechan, Dallas TX

Clarke YlxGF - raised by Susan Boyle, Hilton Head SC & Megan & Diona Boyle, Sun City Center, Fl

Judge BlxGM - raised by Russ & Mary Hillpot, Arlington VA

Patriot BlxGM - raised by Charles & Grace Nicholson, Pensacola FL

Cate B&TLF - raised by Kim Thomson, St. Petersburg, Fl

Hannah YLF - raised by Shay Doerner, Sarasota, Fl

Congratulations, puppy raisers!

Class Matches

Here are the matches for the June/July class. Congratulations!

J.J. BL/M-TX IMPACT
Lucky BL/M- raised by Liz Darmochwal, Charlotte, NC
Abbie BL/F- raised by George and Ruth Rae, Winter Haven, FL
Karol SW,SCC,M- raised by Brian and Margaret Swigert, Dallas, TX
Friendly YLxG,F- raised by Patricia Gurley, Jacksonville, FL
Jasper BLM- raised by David and Ruth Hamaker, co-raised by Phyllis Groff, Ocala, FL
Staria YLF- raised by Joyce and Stephanie Kistemaker, St. Pete, FL
Murray BLF- raised by Kelly and Paul Gittemeier, Dallas, TX
Lucian BLM- raised by Patrick Graham, Pensacola, FL
Brittany YLF- raised by Darlene Bigham, St. Pete, FL

Please note that in any class, there may be some changes.

Class Matches

Congratulations! The following dogs were placed in the May 2010 class:

Freckles, YlxG/F - Raised by Jacquelyn Buonasera - Gainesville, FL
Roman, Bl/M - Raised by Chad and Ashely Wright - Dothan, AL
Dorothy, BlxT/F - Raised by Frances Jones Kramer - Bradenton, FL
Dave, YLxG/M - Raised by Lena and Jenny Cole - Concord, NC
Brego, YlxG/M - Raised by Karen and Barry Gruver - Dothan, AL
Dexter, YlxG/M - Raised by Nita Jones - Concord, NC
Luna, YlxG/M - Raised by Angie Bosio - Nashville, TN
J.C., SCC/M - Raised by Carolyn Hersh - St. Petersburg, FL

We will also have 1 home placement upcoming. Stay tuned for that match. Thank you to all of our Puppy Raisers for your hard work and dedication.

House Manners

Sometimes trainers will bring an IFT dog into the office and let him/her off leash, just to see what they do. And my, my, what an interesting sight we sometimes see. Happily, the vast majority of them find one of the stray Nylabones we have laying around and curl up on the floor for a good chew. However……A few dogs beeline for the couch and make themselves comfortable. Some will stick their head in the trash can and go bobbing for goodies. Some try to surf whatever baked good is on the table. So now we know we have a slight problem.

The problem is house manners. Here’s the thing to remember: Whatever house manners a dog has when he comes in for training are the house manners he will have when he goes home with a student. There is just no way around that. It’s not feasible for us to teach these dogs reliable house manners during their time in training. Just like socialization, instilling reliably good house manners needs to be accomplished in the puppy raiser home.

I have a feeling that what might be happening is that some dogs aren’t being given any freedom at all in the house, so they can’t learn what is and what is not acceptable house behavior. We’re all agreed that puppies and young dogs (and some adult dogs) have to be monitored constantly and can’t be left unsupervised. But don't constantly confine the dog as an alternative to teaching him how to behave in your house. He needs to learn the consequences of getting in the trash or sitting on the couch. He needs to learn what he can and can’t do. If you don’t allow him some carefully controlled freedom, he can’t learn what the rules are.

A good way to teach house manners is to start with tethering. Keep the puppy on a leash and keep the leash attached to you. As you move around the house, keep the leash loose. As always, you want to train, not restrain. Praise the pup when he is doing acceptable behavior (sitting, standing or laying down on a loose leash) and correct when he tries an unacceptable behavior. Obviously, you can't be tethered every minute you are home. But try to do some tethering at least once a day. Once you think the dog is ready, move on to….

…the next step: try to let the dog off leash. Be sure to stay in the same room with the pup. Again, praise for acceptable behavior and correct for unacceptable behavior. (If you need to correct the dog more than three times for the same bad behavior, then put him back on leash). When you feel the dog is ready, let the dog off leash, leave the room, count to 30 and go back. If the dog is doing acceptable behavior, praise. If not, well, you know what to do. Increase the time the dog is alone until you can leave him for at least 15 minutes.

Things to remember: 1) don’t try to push the dog too far too fast. The tethering phase could last 4 weeks or 4 months, depending on the dog. Same for the next step. It’s important for the dog to be successful in each phase before you try to move on.
2) Barking and vocalizing are part of house manners. Many dogs will bark when someone knocks on your door, but they should tolerate hearing random noises (ie, the lawn mower next door) without vocalizing. In any case, the dog should quiet upon command ("no noise").
3) If you are having problems with any aspect of teaching house manners, ask your area coordinator for help. It’s important to not let bad behaviors get too out of hand.

Do not underestimate the importance of good house manners. Bad house manners in a dog are annoying enough when you can see. When you are visually impaired, a dog with bad house manners can be destructive and a danger to both the dog and the person. A guide dog is a complete package – good at guiding, trustworthy in the house, and well socialized to the world. Puppy raisers play a huge part in creating this guide dog package.

Class Matches

The following dogs were matched in the March 2010 class:

Casey Yl/F - Orlando, FL raised by: Belinda & Kevin Ream
Sarge YlG/M - Nashville, TN raised by: The Wolters Family
Emma Bl/F - Gainesville IMPACT, Weekend home: Paul & Joyce Guilfoil
Hugh B&TxG/M - Charlotte, NC raised by: Amanda Matthis
Lacey Yl/F - Pensacola, FL raised by: Martha Neal

The following dogs are home placements:

Jewel Bl/F - Columbia, SC raised by: Jeanette & Jeff Rehrig
Dancer Bl/F - Ft. Myers, FL raised by: Roy & Deborah Kennedy and Karin Fortin

Congratulations and thank you for all you do!

Leash Management

If you’ve been anywhere near one of my obedience classes, you’ve undoubtedly heard me talk about leash management. I’m a big promoter/enforcer of proper leash management, because I feel it is so important in training dogs to think, make good choices and exercise self-control.

So what do I mean by “leash management?” By that I mean that the handler holds the leash in the proper position and uses the leash to give proper and effective corrections. Proper leash position means the dog is on a loose leash and collar 99% of the time. When the dog is at your left side, your left arm should hang down naturally and you should hold the leash so that there is just enough slack to let the collar hang loosely. There should be a slight dip in the leash, so the leash forms a letter “J”. You don’t want so much slack that the dog has 2 feet of leash with which to get into trouble. Neither do you want the leash constantly taut with the collar pulled tight. In this case, you are no longer training the dog, you are merely restraining him. He’s not learning a single thing, except how to pull harder and ignore you.

When giving a correction, the leash should move in a snapping or popping motion, almost like you are trying to (gently!) crack a whip. You quickly pull the leash back to tighten the collar and just as quickly relax your arm to let the collar loosen again. The entire collar correction, where the collar is actually tight around the dog’s neck should last only a second or two. Pulling the collar tight and holding it there is not a collar correction, it is restraint and you can say the rest now by heart right? “Train your dog, don’t restrain him.” You should make this snapping motion even if the pup is on a flat collar or martingale. If you have trouble mastering the “pop”, or aren’t sure if you are doing it correctly, ask your area coordinator for help.

Of course, there’s an exception to the rule (isn’t there always?) The one time there should be constant tension on the leash is during a forward walk. Guide dogs need to pull out slightly in harness. They need to forge ahead of the handler somewhat in order to guide effectively. On a forward walk, we want the dog slightly ahead of you, pulling slightly on the leash. If you force the dog (by correcting him) to walk next to you on a loose leash during a forward walk, then it is going to be much more difficult for the trainers to get him to pull out in a harness. The dog should not be pulling so hard that your left arm is parallel with the ground and you’re skiing down the sidewalk. Just a slight tension in the leash is good.

One more thing about leash management: it’s important to consider who is holding the leash, too. The handler needs to be capable, knowledgeable and consistent. Does the handler know and understand our protocols? Can the handler effectively issue commands, praise the dog, and correct the dog as needed? Is the handler strong enough to control the dog – keeping the handler and the general public safe? These requirements are one reason we don’t allow any unrelated children under 16 to handle our dogs. This also rules out adults who aren’t familiar with our protocols and have no desire to learn them.

While it’s great to socialize our dogs to all kinds of people, it can be detrimental to the puppy’s training to allow just anyone to handle the puppy on leash. Think about it. You’ve worked for days trying to stop the puppy from lunging at squirrels. You’ve finally got him relatively under control! Then you let your officemate/sister/neighbor/whoever take the dog out, where they promptly let the pup lunge and pull and generally carry on when a squirrel runs by. At best, you’ve got to completely start over on the squirrel issue. At worst, your 10 month old, 70 pound unneutered male has injured someone by yanking them off their feet.

A good guide dog not only complies with commands, he must also think, make good choices and exhibit self-control. Puppy raisers are the pups’ first teachers and proper leash management will help puppies learn these lessons easily. You hold the key (and the leash) in your hands.

Class Matches

The following dogs were matched in the February 2010 class:

Florence Bl/F - TX IMPACT, Weekend Home: Donna Allison
Charley YlxG/M - Atlanta, GA raised by: Lezlie DeGan
Scout Yl/M - Bradenton, FL raised by: Kathy Hysmith
Caesar's Joy Bl/F - Copperas Cove, TX raised by: Sue Caesar
Baxter Bl/F - Sarasota, FL raised by: Michael Miller
Chase Bl/M - Orlando/Daytona FL raised by: Kenneth & Regina Byrnes
Mike Bl/M - Ft. Myers, FL raised by: Pat & Kathy Hansen
Bobbie YlxG/F - Pensacola, FL raised by: Walter & Pearl Hart, III
J.T. Bl/M - Atlanta, GA raised by: Mark & Amy Zahorian
C.C. Yl/F - Huntsville, AL raised by: Rick and Joan Ackerman

The following dog is a home placement:

Seamus YlxG/M - Jacksonville, FL raised by: Taunnie Novak

Congratulations and thank you!