How I miss my Guide Dogs ...
I have only gone through tactile fingerspelling
only when I had major seizures which resulted
temporary blindness (whether total or partial)
and deafness was involved --- it was the only
way to communicate with me after the seizure
was over. This was a rare event that only happens
once in a blue moon.
Moreover, I also had Hearing Guide Dogs, I will
upload those two in my album. The first one,
he became old; is a imported German Longhair
Shepherd; a reject due to defect - and became
disqualified because of hip problems and other
health problems. (Which are known for this
breed)
And the other one, the White Samoyed Husky,
also an AKC reject, due to flaws - her life span
was very, very short, she died young; had cancer
and she was taken away from us and we wanted
her to stay with us until she passed away.
But I never could qualify for another Guide Dog
again, I've put in applications for over a decade
and half, and have been repetitiously turned down
because I had 2 Guide Dogs previously. *sigh*
However, the Samoyed - she almost became
"disqualified", because she somehow became a
"epileptic dog" too; she just knew even when she
was in another room and how in the world would
she know was over everyone's heads! But if I had
a seizure, she would push me down to the couch
or floor, or if I am on the floor she would nudge
me over and stay with me ... this is where the problem
nearly got her in trouble when the paramedics
were attempting to treat me because of the
Tonic Clonic seizure and she was growling and
snapping at them. She wouldn't permit anyone
near me. (Only family members)
At first this was not understood, since she was
a certified hearing guide dog - however, they
began to review everything and it was determined
that she was able to discern seizures, so they
made a special exception and worked with her
so that she can permit people to help me.
But Seizure Response Dogs were unheard of
back then but she was not a "Service Dog"
as she could not be both a Hearing Guide dog
and a Service Guide dog - it had to be one or
the other. One of the things she was so wonder-
ful was to the fact when I would be coming out
of it, like getting up off the floor, she would be
there to help - being the work dog she was.
She would even lead me to the bedroom, and
even sleep with me on the bed, all curled up in
a snowball! My family missed her dearly.
She was totally different from the 1st Guide Dog,
but the 1st Guide Dog I had, he was also a
watch dog as well, so if I was home alone, do
not even "think" about trying to break into my
house or do anything funny because he would
come charging after you! He did just that with
one person and crashed through the window!
(Yup, go figure, he busted the window) and
kept the intruder at bay until the Police came to
arrest him!
He was even more protective especially at nights
when my son and I were alone (as my (ex) husband
was a truck driver and would be on the road) and
if there were anything odd, he would be there on
the spot! Only after waking up my little son first
and pulling him to me, and I would hide him in
the closet with his teddy bear and have the gun
out and the dog would lead me where it's coming
from and I would check it out. Sometimes it would
be just drunks wandering around, lost and confused,
or sometimes it would be some other reasons. But
once it was a fight outside, a stranger trying to
beat up the neighbor across the street's husband,
and I released the dog and he went off charging
after the fellow who was attacking him, unfortunately,
he got away, while my dog stayed put with them.
While the Police arrived, they had to call for the
ambulance, and they didn't know who the person
was but if I remembered correctly, the person
was trying to break into their car or cars (stealing
radios, sound system, vehicles - were hot back
then) and he heard it and went out after the
fellow with a night stick and it ended up in a
fight. The neighbors were ever so grateful for
my dog that they gave him a thick T-Bone steak
which he enjoyed every bit of it. He knew the
neighbors very well and was that protective of
"the street"....
I was the one who trained him further into K-9,
he responded to not only verbal commands, but
also leash, and hand signals as well. He looked
very mean and nasty, not the type of dog you
would want to mess around with, but he was
an exceptional Hearing Guide Dog ... he was at
an "old age" when he was trained, which was
very unusual; but he qualified. I had him for
nearly 5 or 6 years.
The Samoyed, we did not have her for very long,
and it really hurts ... as she was an adorable
ball of fluff who did her duty and beyond.
You will see them both in the photos in the
album when I upload it later on today...
op:
