(VICT) Re: stairs and curbs
- From: "Brenda-Ann Gillis" <hc89x48@xxxxxxxx>
- To: <vi-clicker-trainers@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Mon, 24 Sep 2007 09:32:19 -0400
Thanks Julie. Yes, it is me and you got the right Brenda. Had to take a
break for a while due to work obligations.
Ivy is still doing safe work for the small town we live in, but beginning to
show signs of retirement yearning. We are both enjoying a more leisurely
pace, playing more and working less -- Ivy seems to be happy with the
current arrangement as it involves more C & T than ever before.
As for the dog hunt, I think I scared the Aussie Rescue off.They found
several dogs and when I spoke with the foster homes with a myriad of
questions related to temperament and behaviors, they basically said it will
be a long long time before the "right" dog could be found. Most recently I
have been in contact with some reputable breeders of both Aussies and Labs.
I am presently awaiting a return phone call from a breeder who sounds
absolutely wonderful and knowledgeable, having bred dogs for several
schools. Unfortunately, she thinks it a very unwise decision to train your
own guide and is concerned about the ability of a blind person to
self-train. I plugged the list and explained that I do have qualified help
in Meg, but she hasn't let me know if she changed her mind yet nor has she
contacted my references to date.
Bottom line is that now I wait. Guess this will happen in God's time and
not mine. In the meantime, I am reading all of the posts with great
interest and building on my knowledge base for when the time finally
arrives.
Keep the info coming!
TTYL
Bren
----- Original Message -----
From: "Julie J." <jlcrane@xxxxxxxxxx>
To: <vi-clicker-trainers@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Friday, September 21, 2007 10:39 PM
Subject: (VICT) Re: stairs and curbs
> Bren,
>
> Thanks much! Glad to hear all is well with you. Are you getting another
> guide? Still thinking of owner training? Or am I getting you mixed up
> with
> someone else?
>
> I wanted to share this kinda neat way of orienting yourself to approaches
> to
> things where you need a bit of advance notice, like curbs, obstacles or
> steps.
>
> Before I had used my cane or a sound cue like a radio or TV heard through
> an
> open window. It worked okay, but I worried that my cane might become the
> cue to stop. It didn't with Belle, but I think some dogs might think so.
> And the audio cue didn't provide the preciseness that I sometimes wanted
> or
> needed. But anyway I read or heard somewhere to put a sprinkling of sand
> before the step, obstacle or whatever. I think this will work out really
> well. Definitely for outdoor use, but cheap and very doable.
>
> I'll try it out and let you guys know how it works out.
>
> Julie
> http://www.livingblind.com/eml
> Be who you are and say what you feel because those who mind don't matter
> and
> those who matter don't mind.
>
> Dr. Seuss
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Brenda-Ann Gillis" <hc89x48@xxxxxxxx>
> To: <vi-clicker-trainers@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>; "NAGDU Mailing List,the National
> Association of Guide Dog Users" <nagdu@xxxxxxxxxx>
> Cc: <vi-clicker-trainers@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
> Sent: Friday, September 21, 2007 1:57 PM
> Subject: (VICT) Re: stairs and curbs
>
>
>> Dear Julie,
>>
>> Personally, I like the way in which Ivy and I have come to do the stair
>> deal. This gal stops at the beginning of a flight, positioning me near
>> the
>> left banister/railing. I locate the step with my foot, tap the railing
>> with
>> my hand, praise my dog and give her a forward command, she then pauses on
>> the final step prior to the landing or bottom. If it is a landing, I
>> give
>> her a hup-up and she again brings me to the railing side of the flight
>> and
>> we repeat the process. I found this better than a simple pause in travel
>> as
>> it allows me to have my right hand on the railing while ascending or
>> descending. Ivy is just plain cautious about steps in general. She even
>> blocks my ascent/decent on a flight of stairs at home while off leash and
>> awaits the tap of that hand on the hand rail. (This assumes of course
>> that
>> the semi-retiree is not snoozing on the bed missing my household action
>> in
>> favor of a sunny patch on my comforter.)
>>
>> Good luck and I too am interested in the various ways people approach the
>> completion of the task as well as clever positive methods for teaching it
>> to
>> the dogs.
>>
>> Make it a great day! It's good to be back with you guys, gals and pups.
>>
>> Bren
>>
>> ----- Original Message -----
>> From: "Julie J." <jlcrane@xxxxxxxxxx>
>> To: "NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users"
>> <nagdu@xxxxxxxxxx>
>> Cc: <vi-clicker-trainers@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
>> Sent: Friday, September 21, 2007 11:39 AM
>> Subject: (VICT) stairs and curbs
>>
>>
>>>I am working on a training plan for my new dog and trying to iron out
>>>some
>>>details of exactly how I want to work this dog. So here's my question...
>>> How do you prefer to approach stairs and upcurbs?
>>>
>>> the options that I have come up with
>>> *complete stop before step, find with foot, continue
>>> *complete stop with dog's front feet on step, find faster with foot,
>>> continue
>>> *pause before step, expect step, step up without finding with foot
>>>
>>> If you have used more than one of these methods or something completely
>>> different, I would love to hear about it.
>>>
>>> I originally taught a complete stop, but then found it too time
>>> consuming
>>> so I then taught the pause method. That's faster, but isn't as
>>> accurate.
>>>
>>> Ideas? Thoughts?
>>> Julie
>>> http://www.livingblind.com/eml
>>> Be who you are and say what you feel because those who mind don't matter
>>> and those who matter don't mind.
>>>
>>> Dr. Seuss
>>>
>>>
>>
>>
>>
>
>
>
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