It has been awhile...

It has been awhile since I last posted. I have been so busy trying to keep my head afloat during the school year. However, I train with Selik as often as I have time too.  Just in the past month we went to our local county fair. He was amazing. The only thing that spooked him slightly was the huge camel that towered above us. The fair however was so dirty, I wish that I had bought some boots for Selik to prevent his paws from getting so sticky.

False service dogs

A little white dog yapping and pulling its owner towards another dog, winding in the leash, tripping its owner, we all have to admit this is a common sight to see. However that normally wouldn't piss me off, what really set me off was that that small dog was wearing a 'free my paws' service dog vest, a scam company that makes it increasingly harder to legally own and travel with a legit service dog right after I saw that dog acting like that, they headed toward a bank! I was furious! That dog was misbehaving so badly that I wanted to jump out of my skin let alone he was wearing a vest that was making service dogs look misbehaved shame on you people who falsely represent your pet as a service dog!

Three days in.

Well tonight is our third night on our vacation( by the time I have wifi it will probably be our last night) so far our trip has been very fun, but I miss Selik so much to no end. Yesterday I had a 'episode' and it was way worse than it normally would have been with Selik. But you know what? I got through it, gives me a little sense of accomplishment, you see.
As some of my struggles go on, I have recently reached my 2 month mark on no self-harm! Selik has really helped me trough this, I know I will probably relapse but I can only hope it won't be as bad as it used to be.

~Selik and Suz

Scared...

With my Trip to the WA cost up and approaching, the day I have to leave my dog is also.  I have been relying on him for support and a alert system to my anxiety for about 2 months now and I am going to be away from him for 4 whole nights!  I hope I can cope ok without him, as this will hopefully be our last trip with out him.

on my trip I should be blogging daily about past things with Selik that I failed to post.  simply as a way of trying to keep him close as I am away

Wal-Mart and Costco public training

Well 2 days ago we began training in Selik's brand new vest.  Our first stop was Wal-mart. This was his first time entering through automatic doors, but he seemed unfazed.  This was his first time in a store and over all he did great!  When he saw the shopping cart for the first time he let out one little muffled 'woof' and after that was silent.

Today we took an adventure into a crowded and busy Costco.  I prepared for the worst with the Holt head collar, and harness vest.  I wanted/thought I needed complete control of him in such a busy area but he did wonderful!  completely unfazed by the people around him.  We even went in the meet isle and he was fine! didn't sniff or lick anything(not that I would have let him eat or lick anything anyway lol)

Over all he has been doing wonderful with his public training and is a major kid attraction.

Service dog vest

Selik in his service dog in training vest from wiredog. The vest is very well made and sturdy comment with questions on his vest if you like :)

Public training begins

July 29th, was the second day of intensive public access training, no that does NOT mean that Selik  went around wearing a red vest that said 'service dog in training' I simply mean that we were in a dog friendly area (Leavenworth WA to be precise) we were on a 2 day trip, Selik's first trip for more than a hour in the car.

When we reached our destination I took Selik to go relieve himself. Lucky for us he only goes on command (most of the time anyway) and he is very picky about his footing. It must be soft and not dusty or muddy (one of his quirks I guess)  He was pretty worked up after the long car ride, although we did have breaks at a couple of rest stops, I knew he still had to eliminate, as he is still a puppy and puppies ALWAYS have to go. So we walked over to a shady spot of grass and I told him to go (our elimination words are 'Go On' as I often used to get embarrassed saying 'Go Potty!' ) It took about 10 minutes of sniffing and sniffing and sniffing before he went, but it was EXTREMELY important that he went before we entered our hotel.
  We got settled into our room which was after a long steep but wide stair case (we were in a very nice old hotel however there were no elevators which was a bummer because I wanted to work on that with him again).  Now Selik has always found it fun to go up and down stairs, marching up then confidently, stepping way too high for each step and prancing happily.  This gave me a awesome opportunity to work on his 'drive' skill. This skill will be extremely handy for my balance issues because he can help pull me up the stairs in a forward movement. We also worked on our 'brace' skill which when walking down stairs he goes slightly behind me and puts strain and let's me use the leash as a balance.
  While walking around the town it was an amazing experience and training opportunity for Selik. It was a Saturday and there were so many people speaking different languages, walking dogs big and small, pushing wheelchairs and strollers. Now you are probably thinking that our situation would be the same if we were walking through a park, but the difference if that there were HUGE crowds of people, and at times we would  have to wait to even move.
  Not many of the stores allowed dogs but there were a few very close to a specialty dog store that did. We took that opportunity and went in them working on public etiquette.  There was also a outdoor art show and live music that we got to attend with Selik. Over all, in stores and public places, he is very well mannered.  We had many compliments on how well behaved he was for his age. 
  When it came time to turn in for the night Selik went into his collapsible travel crate.  I won't lie, he had a hard time going to sleep, the hotel was right next to a bar that had live music playing loudly till 2 am and people started screaming outside around 4 am. My aunt who was with us exclaimed that it was louder than Las Vegas at night. 

  The second day went a lot like the first.  Busy streets, stores, people and kids stopping to pet the 'puppy' either with a warning or not.  Selik handled the attention very well.  Paying attention to me, but still being affectionate towards his admirers, licking their hands and being patient with the little ones. 
  Before heading back we went to a restaurant with outdoor seating and worked on restaurant manners.  He did very well and did not create any sort of disturbance.
Over all, our months of intensive training on obedience and socialization really proved to pay off by this trip.  I think he is ready to be introduced to the public as a SDIT (service dog in training)   
 

The Challenge Continues!

We continue the Service dog training journey.

1. Car travel:

 X Yes __No Dog did not attempt to exit until given the appropriate command

 X Yes __No Dog was under control while exiting car and immediately after

 X Yes __No Dog did not interfere with or become distracted by a passing dog

2. Approaching a building:

 X Yes __No Dog was calm around moving cars

 X 1    2 __3 __4 Dog remained in a heel position on a loose leash

 X 1    2 __3 __4 When handler stopped the dog also stopped

__1  X 2 __3 __4 Dog did not attempt to greet or sniff others

 X 1 __2 __3 __4 Dog did not attempt to eliminate unless specifically cued to do so

3. Entering a building:

 X Yes __No Dog entered building in a controlled manner using a manual door

 X Yes __No Dog entered building in a controlled manner using an automatic door

4. Moving through a store with distractions:

__1  X 2 __3 __4 Dog remained in heel position on a loose leash or calmly in place

__1  X 2 __3 __4 Dog was focused on handler

 X Yes __No Dog did not brush against or topple any merchandise

 X Yes __No Dog was not bothered by shopping carts and other distractions

5. Grocery Store:

 X 1 __2 __3 __4 Dog was calm and kept pace alongside handler pushing shopping cart

 X 1 __2 __3 __4 Dog did not sniff any food products or people

 X Yes __No Dog remained calm around shopping carts and people

6. High-distraction behaviors:

 X Yes __No Dog did not break the stay, startle or vocalize during the step-over

 X Yes __No Dog tolerated contact from the child

 X  Yes __No Dog did not break its position during contact with the child

 X Yes __No Dog was largely focused on handler during contact with the child

__Yes  X No Dog successfully tucked its tail

7. Mass transit: (not yet tested)

__1 __2 __3 __4 Dog boarded and exited public transportation calmly

__1 __2 __3 __4 Dog remained in position without disturbing others

8. Restaurants:

__1  X 2 __3 __4 Dog successfully ignored food or crumbs on restaurant floor

 X 1 __2 __3 __4 Dog remained in position out of the way of others

 X 1   2 __3 __4 Dog did not beg, sniff, or create a disturbance in the restaurant

 X Yes __No Dog did not break its position during the dropped food challenge

 X Yes __No Dog did not sniff the dropped food item

 X Yes __No Dog did not try to consume the dropped food item

9. Bathrooms:

 X Yes __No Dog entered the bathroom without obvious fear

 X Yes __No Dog remained in position while handler washed his/her hands

 X 1 __2 __3 __4 Dog did not whine or peek into adjacent stalls

10. Elevators:

 X 1 __2 __3 __4 Dog entered, rode the elevator without fear, and exited appropriately

11. Escalators (NOTE: This part of the test is optional):

__Yes __No Dog got on the escalator without incident

__Yes __No Dog rode the escalator calmly

__Yes __No Dog got off the escalator in a controlled manner

12.

Stairs:

 X Yes __No Dog climbed stairs with handler in a controlled manner

13.

Off lead recall with distraction:

 X Yes __No Dog came immediately to the handler without hesitation or distraction

14.

Surfaces:

 X 1 __2 __3 __4 Dog walked confidently on a variety of surfaces

15. Basic commands:

 X 1 __2 __3 __4 Dog sat on command

 X 1 __2 __3 __4 Dog laid down on command

16. Team relationship:

 X 1 __2 __3 __4 Handler positively reinforced dog when commands were followed correctly

 X 1 __2 __3 __4 Dog was confident, relaxed, and friendly

 X 1    2 __3 __4 Dog was under the handler’s control

Scoring:

The team must score a 1 or a 2 on all 1-2-3-4 parts of the test. The team must score “yes” 80% of

the time on the yes/no parts of the test. There are 24 such items, so the team must score “yes” on at

least 19 items if all optional items are included.

Result from test: PASS!!!!! However we still need to work on the buses in our area

The Training files

I remember thinking about how 'cool' it would be to take your dog everywhere. I mean what kid wouldn't want to? But of course I came to my senses and thought on the practical side of things... Stores do not allow dogs, neither do most hotels or restaurants. However in the resent years I have developed some disabilities (both physical and psychological) including dizziness flashes, major depression and flash backs with panic attacks. When I acquired Selik from the breeder my only intention was to teach him to do obedience and agility AKC shows. But in the resent month or so I began Service dog training with him. He provides balance during flashbacks or dizziness flashes. So this blog, I dedicate to the journey through training a service dog.