(VICT) Three years as a team...
- From: "Jen" <jenandnixon@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: <vi-clicker-trainers@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Thu, 14 Feb 2008 11:15:39 -0800
I didn't attach picture, as mentioned below it says I did attach one, but
didn't...
I wanted to write this today since I have the time, and share this
wonderful, amazing moment that happened three years ago.
February 15th, 2005, at the Boring, Oregon campus, near Portland, of Guide
Dogs for the Blind, after lunch, we all met in the lecture room, to receive
words the names, gender, and breed of dog we were going to be matched up
with. Names were selected pulling them out of a hat. All of us were quietly
awaiting this moment sitting on the edge of our seats. There were 9 of us in
class at the time. I was a four-week retrain, since I was a new student, but
was a retrain since I had a guide dog previously before switching schools.
"Jen... You are getting a male yellow lab ... named Nixon."
At that point, IU was shaking, and asked my instructor to repeat his name,
and I spelled it back to her to make sure I heard her right... N-I-C...
"No,.." My instructor came over closer to me to my good side, and spelled it
out slowly for me. "N-I-X-O-N". She used her arms to make the X so I knew
what she meant.
After everyone found out their dog's names, we all went back to our rooms.
My roommate and I were pacing back and forth, getting nervous about meeting
our dogs. Amy got to meet her dog first, then it was mine. 1 1/2 seemed like
a long time to wait! It seemed like a long wait!
Then it was mine turn.....
My instructor came to get me and take me to the instructor's office, where I
would first meet my new dog. I sat down on the couch, gave my instructor my
camera, and all of a sudden as I turned to face a door, here comes Nixon,
bounding towards me and greet me, and comes right up to my face and gives me
a few good sniffs. Exactly as it is shown in the picture attached! The first
thing I noticed about Nixon was his *HUGE* brown eyes and how *WHITE* he
was!
My instructor, as I was petting Nixon, gave me Nixon's status
(height/weight, sire/dam, etc), but at that time, all that information went
one ear and out the other, so I don't even remember all that information at
that time. His instructor showed me a spot on his belly that was healing, so
I was aware that he had something, and wasn't going to go crazy over
something that was already there! <grin>
After that, my instructor walked behind me, while I heeled Nixon bak to my
room, sat on the floor with him while he was on tie-down. I talked to him
for the two hours we were to bond with our dogs. THe whole two hours, Nixon
sat there, staring at me, not moving the whole time. It was a hard moment
for me since I retired my first guide dog 9 months prior to meeting Nixon.
The following day though, in the morning, when I inserted my hearing aids
on, I heard, "thump, thump, thump..." I knew right then and there, we were
going to be a team for many years. Our first walk was smooth-sailing. I
couldn't believe how smooth and slow he was!
Today, he still will stop and wait for me, and look up to me waiting for me
to give him the next command. He does have a stubborn streak, though and
will try to guide som place else! This is the case on our college campus,
where I've been attending college for the last years!
So, in a way it is like the best Valentine gift I could ever have gotten,
Nixon, although he came to my life the day after the "holiday!"
Jen McEachen and "Nixon" (Class OR109)
Guide Dogs for the Blind, Inc.
Alumni Association Board of Director, Secretary
<mailto:jmceachen@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> jmceachen@xxxxxxxxxxxxx /
<mailto:jenandnixon@xxxxxxxxx> jenandnixon@xxxxxxxxx
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