by Sarah J. Blake
(Editor’s Note: This is the third installment in Sarah Blake’s continuing saga of retiring one guide dog and learning to work with another. Sarah will wrap up her account of an eventful year in a final “Braille Forum” installment in early winter.)
Because I realized that Dori was not a seasoned traveler like Elli, and I knew that she had probably never been on a plane before, I felt nervous as I struggled to move her efficiently into the row of seats and convince her to lie down under the seat in front of me. I was certain I was making a scene and holding up traffic. I supposed I would figure out how to communicate the essential information to Dori soon enough — and I would forget that flying had ever been a problem.
Dori turned out to be great at flying, even if she was a bit nervous. I petted her and tried to give her some reassurance as we took off. Soon she was asleep — and so was I.
Landing was quite an experience for both of us. Dori jumped up the moment we hit the ground, and I found my lap full of trembling dog. I didn’t correct her for her fear, and I chose not to struggle to return her to a more appropriate position. Only time would tell whether I had made the right choice or whether I had interpreted her behavior correctly, as a sign of fear. At the moment, I figured I had plenty of things to worry about without adding a stressful attempt to cram a resistant dog under the seat for the last two minutes of the ride.
My mother was waiting for me in the terminal. Her first impression of Dori was of her “regal demeanor!” This “regal look” turned out to be something many people would notice and comment upon.
I was tempted to allow Dori to work at the airport. She was so eager, and I was so proud! But she was new, and the airport was crowded. I reluctantly followed the school’s instructions about not working her in the airport. Mom guided me out to the car, and we drove home.
At home, Mom put a leash on Elli and brought her out into the front yard. Elli didn’t seem the least bit concerned about Dori’s presence. She was, however, very preoccupied with mine. I thought she would never stop panting and wagging her tail! I had missed her, and for just a moment I felt as if I had done something terrible, bringing Dori home to do her job. I decided that perhaps I would feel better after a while and waited for Elli to settle down and get used to my being home again.
Elli and Dori got along wonderfully! They enjoyed evening walks together with Elli following another family member on a leash. Elli wasn’t very interested in playing any more, but she and Dori soon learned to share my attention.
Besides Elli, I also had two cats at home. It took Dori some time to learn not to chase them, and she never quite overcame the temptation to eat cat food. After a short time, the cats also became accustomed to Dori’s presence and were no longer hostile.
Dori’s behavior while not working was discouraging at first. She had boundless energy and used it for retrieving anything made of plastic or paper and then destroying whatever she had retrieved. I was frustrated many times by her tendency to investigate countertops and snitch food items lying on them.
I learned very quickly that the reprimands which had been so effective for disciplining Elli were merely reinforcements for Dori. Eventually, I came to realize that I needed to at least pretend I was enjoying Dori’s little games so that, for example, she would bring me a retrieved object and release it. It took me several months to train myself to put my understanding of her behavior and her personality to this kind of effective use!
At the time of our homecoming, my biggest problem was, not with Dori, but with finding appropriate places to walk on a regular basis. I live in a small town, where most areas do not have sidewalks and are not traveled by very many pedestrians. Furthermore, I had experienced recent changes in my vision which made me feel uncomfortable about venturing out without knowing routes well in advance. In addition, my part of town had no bus access.
These factors and a belief that Dori’s off-leash behavior would improve if I lived in my own home rather than in my parents’ house, which was not “dog-proofed,” led me to begin looking for an apartment of my own. Before long, I found one, and we moved in at the end of January, just three months after our return from the Seeing Eye.
We began the adjustment process all over again. Dori took several weeks to reach the level of off-leash time that she had painstakingly earned at my parents’ home. However, the move turned out to be a very positive step for both of us — and I continued to learn more about Dori’s needs and how to work with her idiosyncrasies as time went on.
Elli stayed behind when I moved. The retirement was final now, and I learned to be content just visiting her when I visited my parents. She was establishing her reign over all the other pets in the house — my two cats and my sister’s beagle — and she was happy.