Service Animals

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sandi

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Is anyone here using a Seizure Alert Animal?
I have a beautiful Dog Named Dee -Who is my companion and service dog.
I have a cat as well she always wants to lay on my back (LOL)
Well you know they had that cat that could tell WHO was ready to Die in the Home! So it's kinda strange-She never did that years ago -She was feral and we could barely hold her.
 
seizure dog

Well after checking around ,I am currently training my own- I have a trainer to come to my home- I have a fantastic website that shows me what to teach and how and I have an owner trained group on line that's been doing it for many years.
It has been the only way I could get out especially when the vision issues arise
as I bump into things and she can clear them , she also can find the door to get me out if needed ,or stay with me if I am bad.
Hubby has been real supportive, and helped in the training as well.
We are currently teaching her to get Daddy on command.
A year ago I was fighting to get the dog and everyone thought I couldn't take care of one. She has only been with me 8 months but you would never Know it.
She does great work in the store as well.
There is No official certification body -and for seizure it is specific to the person no trainer can pre-train that either they have it or don't(sixth sense)
 
My dog tells me I've had an altered consciousness seizure after I've had one. He howls. He also reminds me to take my meds. But today I was extremely preoccupied and didn't pay attention to him crawling all over me and licking my face. Instead of taking my meds and then giving him a treat like I'm supposed to, I told him to get down. I didn't connect to what he was telling me. Just couldn't remember what it meant.

Sure, the dog is trained. But how do I train ME?
 
training

- That's the harder part We aren't a perfect team yet.I can't let my guard down sometimes,It's more me.
Hubby has helped alot reinforcing the behavior we want.
Dee has also learned to be patient She will lay next to me waiting for that treat.

I sound crazy but I talk to my dog all the time If she looks at me funny or try's to get my attention I just ask her any question like What do you want?
I also tell her when I'm okay.
She knows when I'm out of it and doesn't demand anything from me.She's also calming and will be still while I hug or stroke her.
You can teach a certain signal like paw or hand bump to signal.If it's consistant enough than you just have to put your trust in the dog.
What kind of dog do you have?
Some people teach the dog to roll them over to their side and hold them steady through the spell.
 
I have a beagle mix. I like it that he is persistant and highly annoying when it's time for my meds. But it drives me nuts that sometimes I forget why he's doing it. What a good dog. Even if I discipline him for bugging me, he still does it. It doesn't stop him. The rest of the time he is an angel. He's not verbal all of the time like most beagles. Beagles aren't supposed to be the best service animals, because of their verbalization and they are very easily distracted. But my little dog has been excellent. I figure if they can make excellent sniffer dogs for the department of agriculture, they can make a good service animal. :)

Laughing... He was trained for 6am and 6pm, then my doc changed my meds to 6am, 2pm, and 10pm. The 6pm behavior never extinguished. So now 4 times a day he's bugging me for treats. I still give him one at dinnertime, to keep the behavoir current, because what if my doc changes me back to twice a day again? It feels like I'm giving him treats all day long.

One thing I wish he was better about is he hits the time APPROXIMATELY, give or take 20 minutes. I really need to take my meds right on time.
 
dogs

I had a post and sent it into cyberspace, I guess
Well yout pups a good size and Beagles do make good service animals- persistence -they never give up!
I take my Dee eveywhere
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Here is a great training resource:
http://viassistancedogs.blogspot.com/2010_06_01_archive.html
 
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Sharpeis...LOVE THEM! :) Smart dogs but can be stubborn when it comes to training, lol. How is she in public when you have a sez? They can be quite protective in some situations so it isn't a breed I would have thought of for a service dog but if she's workign for you then how fantastic for you both :) :) :)
 
Hi. I have a guide dog/seeing eye dog who also is a hearing dog and a seizure responce dog.
His main training is a guide dog where I got him at GEB in New York. While in training at the school for one month, I had a few seizures and the trainers and instructors observed me and Umbro and changed up the training plan a little. Umbro was chosen for me because is highly aware and causious. When we realized that he is warning me of my seizures or odd behaviors, we watched that closly and my instructor taught me and him what to do during the aura or seizure phase.
Now while walking, Umbro will turn into me, which is a no-no for a guide dog. But when he does this, I slow down and if he turns totally into me, then I know its possible seizure. So I kinda walk slower or stop- sometimes the seizure starts as I'm walking and its possible that I could walk into someone or a wall or anything or out into the street because I just keep going without really understanding it.
So Umbro weighs about 60lbs and I cannot walk strongly enough to drag him along. So he helps to stop me and usually I am aware of his behavior too so I know to sit down in the grass or what not.
I love him a lot and after realizing what he does for me, I wrote an email letter to GEB and let them know how we have been doing.
When I have a seizure, I like to rest afterwards even though I don't have GMs. CPs/complex partials make me real sleepy and out of it..so I go rest in my room until I feel better. Umbro will join me on the bed and curl up in a little ball behind my legs. He doesn't leave me at all. He becomes clingy. When I have not had a seizure, he hangs out close to me but not litterally on top of me. He finds a cool place to sleep and just rests anywhere- but close though. My little boy... :)

Anyway- my doggie Umbro has three jobs. A guide dog, hearing dog and seizure responce dog. This behavior cannot be taught to a dog, but service dog schools look through a string of dogs and see which one responds to someone behavior before the seizure or if the dog picks up anything more.

Having a service dog, guide dog for me, it makes life a lot easier. Guide dogs have the most stressful job out of all of the service dogs- so I am so happy to have him and am proud of him. He surprizes me a lot and I've had him for almost 5 years now.

Take care,
Crystal and her guide Umbro
Umbro barks hello to everyone :)
 
SD

While she is not great retrieve- she is great at watching out for me.I was very disoriented out in the store yesterday and like your pup- She won't move-
She wants me to stop and get down.I had to find a bench and just sit with her and wait a few times.But we got thru the grocery shopping. At home she knows the drill and stays right with me-It very comforting to know she is there.She very laid back and socialized so there isn't any issues.She isn't big like a lab but she is strong enough to pull me along if needed,to find the door.
And there is so much therapy in the Wrinkles.Just petting her is a calming feeling when your out of it.
She gets Great comments in public she only doesn't like to sit on tile floors(LOL) as her tail is always curled and her tush is exposed to the extremely cold air we have in Wi.I'd like to work on more public outings but not driving nor having public transportation here is a downer.
Glad to here Umbro is such a help for you as well.Big job for such a wonderful dog.
My prior Lab was a wash out from guide school but she would block as well when she didn't want the kids to cross the street.Good to know others have Dogs they trust as well.
 
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