The Baybarker Autumn Newsletter

I think every one knows that Chris who runs Baybark, is teaching Middi and me, how to become a team and hopefully get that difficult Service Dog registration.

I an always full of worries that I am not doing the right thing and my darling boy is "blowing me off again"!

Not my words, but usually true.

Behind those serious eyes is the cheekiest brain, he can be a perfect angel and do everything I ask, 

or he can frustrate me so much with his inattention, that I am almost in tears.

Really its just like being a young mother all over again.

None of this has anything to do with what I was going to write about tonight, so back on subject!!

Chris has just published her Autumn News Letter,

and there is an article about Middi and myself.

She writes it as if Middi and I are doing all the work, this of course is not true, without her eternal patience with both of us I think I might have given up a few weeks ago.

Middi becoming a teenager has been very difficult for me, 

he is very strong physically and really wants his own way, not a good combination for a wheelie who likes to forget that she has a disability!!

ANYWAY,

this is what Chris wrote -----

A service dog in the making .......

For some months now, it has been my privilege to train a lovely standard poodle by the name of Midnight and his owner Anne. This beautiful black boy is destined to be a service dog.

Anne, lives in a power chair and had decided for various reasons that she wanted to train her own service dog, rather than have one assigned to her as is the usual process in Australia.

While there is nothing wrong with training your own dog, a service dog must be trained to a level beyond that of most ordinary dogs, the process can take up to two years, and when you are confined to a wheelchair this becomes more difficult.

Midnight is a very quick leaner, mastering walking nicely by Anne’s chair fairly early on.

His puppy training included the commands sit, drop, stand, back, and a few others.

As he progressed towards more complex training he has had to learn to feel comfortable with car rides, getting on the wheelchair lift in Anne’s transport vehicle, sitting quietly beside the chair and being confined to a crate on occasion.

While not yet a year old, Midnight must learn to ignore distractions around him when he is working and this area has been the most challenging so far.    He is now very large, very strong and still very much a puppy. He loves other dogs, but his exuberance in meeting them is often unwelcomed by the often surprised dog.

He and Anne can regularly be seen around the parks and shops of Bentleigh or McKinnon and they have become local celebrities.

 Anne adores her dog, and it shows in the dedication she has in training him.

As he matures, I believe he is destined to be everything Anne dreams he can be, giving her more independence and of course his, unconditional love.

Its a great article and of course I love the last part because he does give me his unconditional love, but it is really nice to hear someone else say it.

Read Chris' news letter, it is very interesting learning about the agility world and clever dogs and their owners.

While you are there browse her website, if you have a dog of your own I am sure you will learn something new. 

No pictures tonight, 

you will have to read the news letter for them.

Until next time --- Thanks Chris!!!!!

Oops, forgot the link !

http://www.baybark.com.au/files/Autumn%20newsletter%202011.pdf

Midnight at Ten months

Well the boy is now ten months old, actually he was born on the 3rd of June 2010.

I found his pedigree papers the other day, 

I had forgotten his registered name is --

SHERTONA SPECIAL EDITION.

He was the only puppy, hence the name.

This picture was taken when he was about 14 weeks old, 

it was his first day in a "working harness".

He still had his baby haircut and was so small.

Last week I wrote a new article  for Pet Stock,

here it is -------

                               Midnight at Ten Months

I cannot believe Midnight is now 10 months old, he is no longer a “little puppy”, now he is an adolescent, that challenging time all dogs  [and children]  go through!!!!!

 He is pushing the boundaries constantly --- never heard the word “Sit” in his whole life, and as for walking to “heel”, I am obviously talking to another dog, not him!! 

Just as well he is not my first dog, I know adolescence is just a stage, he will grow through it.

I think this is the time when I need to remember all the things that Midnight and I have achieved in seven months ----------

We have learned to trust each other enough to travel 7kms safely alone.

We can catch trains and ride in hoist buses with a carer. 

Attend council meetings and conferences, without Midnight moving from the side of my chair.

He has learned to stand still when I have a bad episode and not interfere when strangers come to help me.

My disability makes it very difficult for me to put on his collar and harness, Midnight knows when I give the command ”paws”, he must place his front paws on the chair I have chosen, push his head through his collar and harness and keep still while I slowly do up all the buckles!!

We have been working on the command “leave it”, an assistance dog must never pick up anything from the ground  or table, and definitely never ask for food. Sometimes it is really hard to walk past a piece of chicken lying on the ground, but he is now doing it.

An important thing I have learned, is how to protect him from potentially dangerous dogs. Because he is always attached to me and cannot defend himself Midnight can be a target for other dogs, a dog attack is a very scary thing when you are in a wheel chair.

This week my trainer – Chris, brought a manual wheel chair to our lesson, she wanted to replicate as much as possible, my limited movement  and possibly make training easier for me. It was very interesting for me to watch Middi working with someone else in a chair, thank goodness he was just as cheeky for Chris, as he has been for me lately.

Of course Middi and I have learned other things since we started on our long journey towards Assistance dog registration , but this is enough for now I think!  

Easter holidays are coming up soon, please remember chocolate is a cumulative poison for your dog, please don’t let him join in the egg hunt!!

Remember, if you see us roaming the area, come and say “Hello”, Middi and I love to chat, we can tell you about our holiday on Phillip Island – a puppy paradise.

                       Anne and Midnight.

Its interesting to look back on what we have done, and see how "the Boy" has grown and matured.

Like all children he can be very good 

and also very naughty,but I certainly love him!!!!!!!

                  Until next time --- Enjoy Autumn

Thinking outside the square!

Acquiring a disability later in life is definitely a challenge,

many of the things I took for granted I can not do now. 

I guess walking is one of them, 

funnily enough, its not really important any more,

as my friend Reen says --

"Walking is highly overrated. Reading is not" 

She like me, is a great reader, 

now of course I read with my ears not my eyes,

when the nights are long there is nothing better than a book 

to keep you company.

No, I am wrong, a cold nose and a warm fluffy neck,

beats everything else hands down.

In case you still haven't realised, the best thing that has happened to me in the last few years is Midnight!!

Remember, he is that large, black, peanut butter lover!!

He is now too big to fit on my bed,

and definitely too heavy to climb on my lap, 

so no more cuddles.

I think I miss the cuddles more than anything else.

Being me, this is a long rambling story, so be patient! 

[just like I am supposed to be] ---   :-))

I have a new piece of equipment,

This is my ceiling hoist, 

it runs on a track from the corner of the room to my bed.

It is used to get me in and out of my wheel chair.

Stupidly I refused to use one,

until my arm got too weak to hold me. 

Now of course I realise how silly I was

not to get it  a long time ago.

It is much more comfortable than my old manual hoist, 

that made me feel so sick that I would only use it 

when I was very unwell, 

that of course made the ride even worse!!

The great thing about the ceiling hoist is - 

I CAN OPERATE IT MYSELF 

=  INDEPENDENCE!!!!

Now back to my curly haired boy.

Sometimes I need to give him a cuddle,

just like everyone else, 

when we have had a difficult day

and nothing has gone right, 

I need to be able to show him how much I love him, 

but I cant, 

that makes me so sad that I feel like crying.

Lying in bed the other night I was feeling so low,

that I knew I had to find a way to get closer to My Boy.

The hoist was the answer, 

with a little help from Jessika I maneuvered myself out of bed and down near the floor

[first time I have done that voluntarily, for a lot of years!!!!

This was the result ------ 

Our first real cuddle as equals.

So many kisses on that beautiful face.

Licking off my tears of happiness.

Next I pressed the button and lay on the ground with my dog next to me.

I might not have looked so good, but the feeling was wonderful.

Here is a last hug

before I got back into my bed.

Do you know what the best thing is --- 

I can do it whenever I want.

 Isn't life wonderful when you have a puppy to love.

Enjoy the Day!!

Midnight's Castle.

This is Midnight's Castle, 

everyone else would call it a dog crate.

He loves it so much, it is his own little space that not even Nacho is allowed to take over.

As you can see it is huge and very comfortable,

two double bed size woolen blankets 

and his large fluffy sheep skin.

Sometimes he reorganises it and you will find his "sheepy" on the floor with his kongs and favourite toys.

He always has trouble getting them back in again,  so he will sleep half in and half out of his castle, looks really uncomfortable, but it doesnt worry him.

Yesterday half the family came to visit 

and this is what he found when he went to have a nap -

three girls and a robot!!!!!

When we were at Ventnor he found something that was even more comfortable than his castle --

Niki's trundle bed.

What a life for a puppy.

Until next time ------ hug a puppy!!

I could not resist this picture of Indi and the boy,
the castle is becoming a favourite spot for cuddles!

Who will I find in it next?

Self Advocacy!!

 Tully runs the Peer Support  Network, at Yooralla.

A while ago she asked if I would write something about self advocacy for the blog.

I thought about it for a while and decided to put a slightly different slant on things.

As usual these days the grammar is a bit strange,

but here it is ----------------

People who do not have a disability often wonder why 

    I am frequently complaining about something.

I am not really a negative person, 

but because I live in a wheel chair, the system makes me appear that way.

 Just imagine if you could not drive, and the public transport system was not accessible,

Or the driver "can’t see you" 

because he just cannot be bothered pressing a button, or getting out of his cab and loading you.

You want to go shopping, but you can't get into the shop because there is a step, or worse still,

a whole flight of stairs! 

Narrow doorways, counters that are high, shops with crowded aisles, too high shelves, checkout lanes that are too narrow!

       AND shopping carts!! 

They are almost impossible to wheel ,even without trying to dodge other shoppers.

The list of problems seems to be endless and sometimes overwhelming.

These are the things I thought of, when Tully asked me to write something about self advocacy.

 Then I thought again, these are big problems that concern everyone who is disabled, 

 we all need to work together to get these changes.

Personal advocacy can be the little things that happen day by day.

 Each time I ask if chairs could be moved at a little street café, [so I can get through], I am advocating for myself.

If I come back another day and the chairs have been rearranged, I know I have succeeded in making a difference for all of us.

I think the secret is to smile and explain to people 

what you need and why, most people like to help if they can.

Now, my local butcher, small supermarket, fruit shop and variety shop all greet me at the door with a smile and happily organize everything for me.

These may be small things, but they make my day easier and happier.

 I hope they also help other people become aware of our needs.

           

              REMEMBER, SELF ADVOCACY 

                 BREAKS DOWN BARRIERS!

Well that is what I wrote, I hope it makes  people think.

Here is a link to The Peer Support Network ----

  http://tully.tinbrain.net/

                                     

                                   

       Until next time --- Hug a Puppy and love yourself!!

More Midnight!

 Midnight is almost nine months old!

Have you ever seen a pair of eyes like these,

when Middi looks at me like this, I melt, 

he is so trusting and loving.

This is my problem, 

it is my responsibility to help him become the best Asistance dog he can possibly be.

Sometimes I feel I cant do it, that I am not good enought, 

this is when I need to look back at all the things we have both learned,

IN LESS THAN SIX MONTHS!

We have learned to trust each other enough to travel 7kms in any direction from our home, we can go on trains,

ride in hoist buses together,

attend council meetings 

and even go through the scarry underpasses. 

I can protect Midnight from potentially dangerous dogs

and he gives me the courage to attempt things I would not do before having him.

None of these things would we have been able to do 

without the help of "Chris".

We met when I was looking for a puppy school for Middi.

I wanted us to learn basic obedience skills

and him to play with other pups.

The trouble was, we couldnt get up the stairs

at the puppy school, so Chris came to us! 

This is her web site ---

http://www.baybark.com.au/index.html 

it explains the way she teaches - always positively

and with patience. 

Midnight and I, are her first "disabled team", 

so it is a learning experience for all of us.

Here she is with her own dogs --

read about them on her web site.

Here she is working with Middi --

"sitting" beautifully for a treat.

practicing "look".

having a cuddle at the end of a session.

walking with "Angel", 

it is very important that Middi learns to walk on a lead, not just in his harness.

this is Kimmy, she is Chris's rescue dog,
she doesn't stand any nonsense 
from adolesent poodle boys!
I have a prettier picture of Kimmy, but I love tongues!!


This is a very small part of the training Chris and I do together.
I think I am very lucky to have found someone as caring and dedicated, 
who can also put up with
unsure 66 year old wheelies!!!!!


Next time I will talk about what we do in our sessions together.


Until then --- love a puppy, [and yourself]