I’ve not been updating and this is why

Hiei has been an amazing dog, but sometimes unexpected things happen. Hiei had been having some stress this past holiday season. It later developed to a semi limp and we ended up getting xrays. She doesn’t have any skeletal problems but the vet and I have both heard her knees click. Knowing her problem could be muscular or nerve related I don’t feel comfortable continuing to have her work for me in high stress environments. She now pulls away when her back end is touched and is too sensitive to continue public access work. She will still continue to work with me at home and currently still attends Therapy with me. Not all dogs can be service dogs and it is with great sorrow that I have begun transitioning her to retirement. I am now looking and working with my therapist and family on training another dog for service work. I am also looking into organizations. So far I haven’t found any organizations that can train for all the support I need and would be feasible in distance, time and money- most do not offer cross training. So I set up a fund to save for the cost of a well bred and healthy dog with perfect service dog temperament. If I end up getting contacted by an organization that will work, I may instead take the money raised to Owner Train my next dog and put it toward the organization. Either way my therapist, family, doctors, and I believe another Service Dog would benefit me.

Hi, I am a young adult dealing with several disabilities and am in need of start up money to obtain a Service Dog Candidate. A Service Dog is a special dog trained in tasks to help mitigate a disabled handlers disabilities. Service dogs can be owner trained or obtained though Service Dog Organizations. I have chosen to owner train as I have multiple disabilities which most organizations* will not cross train for.

I would like to obtain a dog from a professional show breeder in order to make sure the dog is clear of health problems and has the perfect temperament for service work.

Some of the things a service dog will help me do include keeping me upright and balanced, retrieving objects for me when I am dizzy, helping me up when I am fatigued, help me to prevent panic attacks and sensory overload, and guide me to safe spaces when I need support.

I had a previous service dog who has had medical problems and reactivity problems and therefore cannot continue her job. I will still continue to care for her and believe that any dog I obtain is a part of the family and that I am making a commitment to that dog to provide it the best possible life and home.

Your donation will help pay for the cost of the puppy itself. Any additional Money I receive will be used for various other supplies and training costs. I have determined the best breed fit for my usage to be a Rottweiler- but I am also open to other large breeds. Due to their size they can be the perfect dog for mobility work.

I am and will be responsible for the general care of the Service Dog. I am asking for help in obtaining the money needed for a healthy, perfectly temperament Service Dog Candidate which would otherwise take me over a year saving $200 a month.

Any help is Appreciated,
Thank you.

*If I find an organization willing to work with my disabilities to provide a highly trained service dog any donations used toward this campaign will then go directly toward the donation most organizations ask for.

Some new videos and things we tried

So I have been a bit overly stressed lately and my handler has been trying to help me relax and make sure my stress is managed before me trying to go back to work. So in the meantime, we tried some relaxation exercises, play time, and some needed rest. I’m still going to be resting here at least until the holidays blow over, just to make sure I am ready to go back to work.

We will be having a relaxed christmas and plan on doing more videos in the future once we are able to. 🙂

Winter leads to less outings

Winter has led to more sleeping inside and less outings. Kinda has put me into a more pent up mood. So My handler took me to the dog park again today and out to work. My handler has been told to be working me every day but they been slacking! So I was a bit more excited then usual to get back to work. The weather outside got really nasty yesterday and it took out the smoking shelter after uprooting a tree in our apartment complex! Just look at it! Well, they do say smoking kills! I’m just glad no one got hurt. 🙂

Oh! We want to give a shout out to The Lola Project also. We love to read their facebook and hear about all their success!

https://www.facebook.com/britneyandlola
http://www.thelolaproject.org/

A night at the Hospital for A Sleep Study

We went to the hospital last night for my handlers sleep study. The staff were really nice andI did my best to behave myself. My handler was able to explain how I help them and I was able to provide a good transition to this new enviroment which would have probably taken them a lot more time and stress going alone. It was a bit stressful though, with all these new noises I didn’t know about! I got worried of them only a few times and was able to go wherever Swift told me. I didn’t sleep so well because of the new enviroment but I still worked and listened up thru the morning. My handler got a coupon for some breakfast at the hospital and we went to the cafeteria to wait for them to open.

Meridian Park Hospital Cafeteria

Still did really well listening and did some down stays as my handler got their food and had a bite. We then went strait home on the bus. I was exhausted! By the time we got home I was so tired. I went strait to my handlers room and right back to sleep!

A better day symptomatically- By Swift

It fucking pisses me off on the days I’m looking better, to get more bull shit from people. Go on the 12 hiei was perfect. Guy asked if service dog. Yes. Get back on 12 way back, same driver, asked if service dog. YES! Hiei yawns a couple times. Driver says something hardly audiable but to the effect service dogs shouldn’t be making noise. I said She yawned. That’s it! Why the fuck do I get so much more shit she I’m feeling assertive and having a lesser symptom day! You don’t know my life driver! And some service dogs do make noise on command. Such as alerts! It’s obvious she is trained. She’s in gear. She only got up on command. And we did a few commands on the way bk for practice. Sigh..

This has put me in a really pissy mood. And I relize yea, she shouldn’t have made any noise. But if I was wearing my sunglasses today and walking slower I don’t think I would have got this bull shit! Fucking nit picky about some small little thing! Sometimes having invisible disabilities SUCK!

~Swift

Out this evening alone

Well, we stayed home from group today because my handler has realized the days we have therapy are the evenings they have the worst mental problems. (prob due to stirring things up in therapy) So instead we laid back and did some small trips at Fred Meyer and Taco Bell. We did great at Fred Meyer. My handler was OK, just a little shy to talking. I did a great down stay at the deli where my handler got some chicken. Only minor 1 or 2 distractions. But my handler was able to tell me to leave it and we went on our way. We are getting better every day!

Anyway, as a small update since we haven’t been here writing the blog. We recently talked to a dog trainer with 7yrs experience training Service Dogs, due to recent issues with distractions. The dog trainer basically said that sometimes handlers can become a little lax on the training after a while and that could be why I’m having distraction issues. So she has suggested we started working every day all day as much as possible and get back to basics and all my commands even if we don’t use them much anymore. And so far that has really started working itself out nicely. She also was helpful suggesting ways to better manage treats / non-treat praise.

Anyway, my handler got seriously anxious at Taco Bell though. And hyper-vigilant. Several times I pawed their foot to alert and ground them. After first trying to lay my head on their foot (but their feet don’t touch the ground!). I would then look up at my handler to make sure they were OK. I think they really appreciated it.

A Day off at the dog park

Something people don’t know or think about. We get to be dogs when we aren’t working! And we still get to have a great time just like any other dog. It’s not all work. We have a balance of work and play! 🙂

We Waited for the bus. Hoping to go to the dog park for some social time and Hoping the rain left for at least a little while.

The rain sprinkled a little but we were still able to go to the dog park and have some social time and fun!

After some play we went to the coffee shop for a bit before going home.

We came home but I’m still thinking I want to do some more work today! But for now I will take a break at the door and rest.

A Day not as planned but still Great!

We were going to the dog park on our day off while there was a little sunshine out. Unfortunetly it started raining when we were only 1 block away so we decided to come back home on the bus. My handler hadn’t brought my vest, so they were a bit nervous as we have had access issues before even though we are not legally required to show any identification. I did great though! No treats. and did my work dispite not being in gear! It’s certainly too bad I couldn’t go to the dog park though. Instead here’s some photos / video of dpt and arm licking. 🙂

Winter Upon Us!

“As we go into winter, I’ve been a bit more kept in. The cold this year has actually been affecting my joints / pain level. And It also reminded me of my Raynauds LOL. Yea.. Fun times! I am hoping (sorta) that we are closing in on some of my medical problems. The sleep doc last told me she thinks I have a hypo-ventalation problem. While I normally avoid looking up medical info, I’ve been sitting here for a few weeks worried and well.. I’ve only really found 1 condition that could be the cause of my breathing randomly turning off related to the auto-matic breathing system. However I suppose there are a couple other options. A muscular problem, Sleep apnea while Im awake? Well.. Whatever it is.. I have found out that a lot of my problems COULD be from long term oxygen / breathing problems. My vision issues, fatigue, pain, migraines, anxiety, Developmental Disabilities, memory problems, etc. Apparently breathing (rather not breathing) can affect a lot of things in your body. Well.. I’ve been using a wedge for sleep and it has def lessened my fatigue. Not 100% better but it is better. At least I’m not having nightmares every night and waking up with splitting headaches (which was caused from essentially suffocating in my sleep o.o). I am kinda hoping it is not this condition.. and very unlikely to be. Then again with my family genetics, nothing is ever “common.”  And again I’ve thought this before.. Like I thought I knew my issue and it turns out to be completely wrong. So Who knows. It just is scary not knowing what it is. and obviously not breathing can be fatal. Well I supose I’ll just keep you updated.

What I really wanted to get to now, Since it’s winter I’ve been taking some more pics of Hiei. Gives me a little more something to do and focus on. Have too many negatives so I really need the positives! 😀 Here you go!”

~Swift

Oh, and It was really late and I was obviously tired.. But my friend was saying I should start making videos of Hiei doing her tasks. I could have simulated the breathing / sweating but I was too tired to. Also so was Hiei. LOL. Hopefully I can make more videos in the future. Also I prob should have used some treats with her. Tho I know she will still do without them. Just keeps her more motivated. 🙂

Can view the late night video here. Also was recording and doing commands by myself so Sorry if the video is hard to see etc.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G5aq-h_rmlU&feature=youtu.be&a

Comming Back After a Long Break

Graduation of her Puppy Class

Hey guys! We are back after a long break from our blog site. We have updated a lot of information and hope you will go ahead and explore! Our Training and hard work sure is paying off and Looking back my Handler and I can see how beneficial we have and are for each other! Since we came to know each other a lot of my Handlers Mental Health Problems have greatly Improved. They are now a lot more stable, confident, independant, and feeling better about themselves. I hope you are all doing well!