-
How to Keep Your Service Dog Occupied in Quarantine
If your service dog is anything like Crush, they have a lot of energy. I’m lucky to be in close contact with the organization that gave me Crush. They have been proactive about coming up with helpful solutions to doggy boredom. They’re not all perfect but I’ll take what I can get. So here are some ways to keep your dog occupied and trained during quarantine. Keep Training Crush knows a lot but there’s always more to be learned. I want him to be able to know objects by name. When I say get “XYZ” he’ll know what I’m talking about instead of having to point and direct him to…
-
Making Life Changing Choices
Making choices is not my strong suit. When faced with a decision, I usually have to consider all my options. I talk about it a lot and lay out all the pros and cons. Right now, I’m in the midst of deciding on whether to get a surgery that has the possibility to change the course of my life. I’m not ready to divulge the topic or changes it would make. Once I finalize decisions, I’ll let you in on my choices. I find making choices somewhat difficult. The chance of making the wrong choice often feels too close to me. People in the chronic illness community have to make…
-
Calming My Anger and Resentment
In the past two weeks, I’ve been excessively angry. I have regressed from the mental state of radical acceptance. I have become filled with resentment. I’m actively working to remedy this change, as I don’t like the effects anger has on me. I like feeling warm and cozy within my body and anger doesn’t provide that home. This anger has been focused on individuals who don’t interact well with Crush. It’s rare that I encounter people that are rude or unpleasant towards Crush. Rather it’s people who are overly excited about seeing a dog that have the ability to ruin my day. When I say they ruin my day, I…
-
Dealing With Ignorance
It’s interesting to me that I have to address this topic. After this week, frustrated. I have noticed that people have started to treat me differently since getting Crush. Most people are very accommodating or overly nice but there are others that are not. I recently watched a video on Youtube. A blind woman described her experience with her guide dog. She recalls times of being denied by a Lyft or Uber drivers, simply because of her dog. I can’t say that I’ve ever experienced this. I can’t imagine. I’m sure it will happen eventually but the Twin Cities is very accommodating. Let me preface this with the fact that…
-
We Graduated!
Last Saturday Crush and I graduated from our program! Although Crush has had the official title of service dog for sometime, this event marked a special occasion in our journey together. Getting Crush was such a journey. From when the idea sparked in my mind to meeting him for the first time was a process, to say the least. There is so much to know before you get a service dog but nothing can prepare you for the beautiful reality of it. I’ve been brought into a community of people that is unlike anything I’ve ever experienced. Everyone is kind and loving. I had the joy of meeting the people…
-
Service Dog Essentials I Carry With Me
As I was reminded during the training process, Crush is still a dog. It wasn’t Crush who reminded me of this, it was the trainer. Of course, Crush has his essentials. This includes his hard handle harness, halti, and leash. That’s not what I’m discussing in this article. Although few and far between Crush makes mistakes. Whether he needs more payment for his work and focus or if he ever had an accident, I’m well prepared. Here are all the things I carry with me for Crush… Extra Treats This is important. He may not need extra treats but there have been times where I forget his treats at home…
-
Tomorrow is Surgery Day
I have to write about this because it’s heavy on my mind. I’ve been preparing all week, moving upstairs, buying snacks and sweatpants. Going out with friends and ensuring my health is all in order. Today, I have a few preoperative appointments. I’ll sign documents that accept the risks of surgery, which is always anxiety provoking for me. I’ll meet with a physical therapist that will tell me my restrictions. Most of which are pretty extensive for the first few weeks. I didn’t anticipate needing hip surgery. When my original physician brought it up I assumed it was a scare tactic. Stop running or you’ll cause real damage. I didn’t…
-
Navigating the World With a Service Dog
If you have a service dog, you know how much it changes your world. After having Crush for over a month, I realized there’s a lot of things people don’t tell you about having a service dog. Getting Crush is the best decision I ever made. I am free to do things independently, but it doesn’t come without a few ups and downs. There are times when people interfere, causing frustrations. When we’re out in public, there’s a spotlight on us. That’s not always a bad thing, most times it brings a smile to my face. Crush is such a helper, he is a safety net. When shit hits the…
-
Service Dog Etiquette
I’ve had Crush for a month now. It’s clear that there are some large pitfalls in the education system about service dogs. I haven’t had any intolerant or inconsiderate encounters. For that, I am grateful. That being said, people do not respect the sign, please don’t touch. So, I’m taking this time to set out a basic guideline for how to interact with a service dog. Don’t TouchThis should go without saying but apparently it needs to be said. Despite the sign that says, please don’t touch, I often have people ask to pet him. If Crush is working, you can not touch him. It’s that simple. I’m not being…
-
My First Week With My Service Dog
It’s been a little over a week since I brought my service dog, Crush, home from the facility that gifted him to me. As I’m writing this, Crush is trying to insist I play tug with him. It’s cute but not very productive. Having Crush home has been like no other experience I’ve ever had. Unlike our family dog, Crush is well trained and responds to most of the commands he’s given. He’s focused and attentive. We’ve been on several outings. Here’s an overview of our first week together. Our First Outings Crush and I went out together before the scheduled time. Due to some driving inconveniences, he went out…
