(VICT) Re: Boy Howdy! I have a guide dog!
- From: "Tamara Smith-Kinney" <tamara.8024@xxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <vi-clicker-trainers@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Thu, 10 Jul 2008 13:29:07 -0700
Oh, Karyn! I'm giddy for you. Ain't it the best? Big hugs and treats =
to
you both!
Tami Smith-Kinney
-----Original Message-----
From: vi-clicker-trainers-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
[mailto:vi-clicker-trainers-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Karyn and
Thane
Sent: Thursday, July 10, 2008 12:35 PM
To: Vi-clicker
Subject: (VICT) Boy Howdy! I have a guide dog!
Yowser! Thane is awesome. I love and trust this guy so completely. =
Yesterday
was a test. A test to see if we could handle the bus beyond our small =
stint=20
in town that we had been doing.
I really wanted to get him out in the real world to test his readiness.=20
Testing here in town is great as far as it goes, but our level of =
commotion=20
in town is nothing compared to a big city. the stores we can access are=20
pretty small with one or two door openings at the front. They have been=20
awesome for early training, but it was time to see how well we could =
shine.
We walked to the bus stop we normally are getting off at. It was a nice=20
summer morning and I needed the walk to release the butterflies. What is =
it=20
with us people parts of the team! LOL
We had one of my favorite drivers. We settled down for the ride to =
Freddies=20
(Fred Meyers). Thane sat nicely much of the way but there was a tad of=20
unease at first. He settled nicely though which was really just way =
cool!
We got off the bus for Freddies. We had to cross a very busy street to =
get=20
there. Thane did just perfectly. It was just so cool. I felt so free. =
The=20
parking lot is huge from what I recall the one time I went there with =
Met.=20
It is set up with good sidewalks and crossings with pedestrain safety in =
mind though unlike Bi-Marts giggle
At that point I decided to try and see if he could busy. I knew the=20
likelihood was he did not need it, but I always like to offer- =
especially a=20
young dog going into a new experience. We were not too far from the =
store=20
entrance so from there I said find the door. Thane did it in style man- =
I=20
mean it was just so perfect. Of course though we had to enter in the =
smelly=20
clothing department! Arg
Freddies is a store that can really make me sick so I don't make a habit =
of=20
shopping there. We caroused all over the store from one department to=20
another. I was not planning on buying things until I stumbled upon the=20
perfect thing for a project I am doing. Then the fun began! Man this is =
a=20
huge store! Lets see where *take me to pay* is going to take me! LOL =
Thane=20
did not act confused though. He is used to seeing people behind counters =
and
people in line. He took me to customer service rather than a regular=20
checkout- but hey he had a cash register and he stood behind the counter =
Smile
He let us pay right there which was nice of him.
From there I told Thane find the door. I mean this is like the hugest =
store=20
guys. Who knows what side of the building we were gonna come out of! The =
door was quite a distance from where we paid for our items too. Thane =
found=20
a door in grand style. Thankfully to me it was not in the clothing=20
department. When we got outside, I said find the bus. I did not really =
know=20
if he understood this concept yet as we have only been doing this a =
short=20
time and always the same stop. True to form, Thane took off like he knew =
where to go. When he halted, we were at the bus stop to go home. This is =
a=20
stop he had never been to before, but he must have seen the shelter =
there.=20
The route and distance felt very close to the distance we travelled =
going in
so we must have come out of the store pretty close to where we went in.
He was just awesome in there. He tried to hard pull for a couple seconds =
and
then was just right in tune with me after that. Someone even petted him=20
while we talked and he did not turn all juvenile on me. I don't like to =
let=20
him be petted due to how smelly people can wind up making him for my=20
sensitivities but sometimes its good for a young dog to know that they =
can=20
restrain themselves Smile
On the bus ride home we had one of the most awesome drivers. I really =
like=20
her. We had to sit on the opposite side. Thane did really well with the =
ride
home. I had us get off one stop early so we could walk the road path =
home=20
instead of the rock path.
Gosh it was awesome-
and to have been locked off the net yesterday because my firewall =
program=20
decided it did not like me- it really gave my high a real letdown
But I know you guys will all share in the enthusiasm I feel today Smile
Karyn and Thane (Guide Dog!)=20
Other related posts:
