KIDS

Some are small, some are big, some are sticky, some are loud, but one thing’s for sure – I love kids! And kids love me!

So you know I go to work with Tammy; and you know Tammy works with kids sometimes. Well, last week we had a few kids come to her office as part of their youth philanthropy project for their high school socials class. They had to do research about Tammy’s organization, which included interviewing her about her work.

I quietly sat under the desk, even though those researchers were my favorite kind of people – young, energetic boys! I really wanted to play, but all I did was a polite paw-shake.

They came up and spent the day with us, cleaning the office, re-organizing stuff, and just generally learning how to be bossed around. It was fun to watch, and lots more interesting to see than the usual sitting around at a computer. For once, it wasn’t me being bossed around by Tammy!

They got pizza, though, and I don’t think that’s very fair. They didn’t even offer me any. I do more work around there than they do, and I don’t get offered pizza. Those boys were nice, and I bet they’d have given me a piece if Tammy hadn’t been there… I love pepperoni!

We see people all the time in our travels, and so I’ve gotten to know lots of people and they’ve gotten to know me and Tammy. (In fact I get the distinct impression that sometimes she wishes I was invisible, because I get so darned much attention! Well, that’s the price of celebrity, I guess.)

There’s this one little boy we meet just about every evening at Poo Corner: he’s only about one, just getting steady on his feet, and he rides a big Tonka truck along the path. I probably look scary to him, but that doesn’t stop him from babbling “doddie, doddie!” whenever he sees me, and when I go to say hi to him, (the official greeting) he tries to pet me. His hands are so little, and he’s not quite sure how to pet me yet, but he’s learning, and what he lacks in skill, he makes up for in enthusiasm.

So I’m a translator now, too, ‘cause even though his mom doesn’t speak English, she stops to talk to Tammy and me every night. And I can tell by the smiles on everybody’s faces that they’ve all gotten over the language barrier. Cool, eh? I don’t speak English, and I don’t speak Cantonese, but whenever I’m around, we all understand each other!

That’s really a bonus in Tammy’s other work, too. She works with disabled youth on the weekends, and some of them can hardly speak, but after a few weekends with me, they learn to communicate somehow! They all remember my name, and some kids that hardly participated at first are now helping out by giving me water in my travel dish. It’s one of their favourite activities.

Next week we’re taking them to the beach! That ought to be fun for them, but I have to stay out of the water. And I’m a golden retriever! You know what I was born for? Getting stuff out of the water! I shoulda been a lifeguard dog….

Coming and Going

Tammy’s lucky; she does some of her work from home, with me sitting comfortably under her desk, but even so I’m at the office with her several times a month for meetings, and stuff. “Off to work” means going on the train, and that means having other people want to pet me. It can also mean a substantial wait, so it would be nice to have a treat or smoky bone along to gnaw on.
Sometimes we take a bus, and Tammy has to think ahead to the bus stop: will there be a shelter, or will we be at the mercy of Vancouver’s mercurial elements? Tammy’s not very waterproof, but I love the rain! People should just learn to appreciate the smell of wet golden retriever…

Sometimes we go to the gym; and I can see people trying not to stare (at me or Tammy, I don’t really know which – maybe both of us!) but since we’re surrounded by mirrors, their efforts are both pitiful and funny. Sometimes I flirt with them in the mirrors, to see whether I can make them break their funny stretching poses, but usually I just ignore them and go about my own business. And sometimes Tammy gets to show up an ‘upright’, (her term for those of you who are able-bodied.) I think she likes to throw a monkey wrench into those preconceived notions of what a person with a disability can accomplish. It’s fun to see and I know she doesn’t gloat.

Tammy’s had 39 years to develop the sense of humour that helps her deal with the attitudinal and systemic barriers that still prevail. That sense of humour lets her get away with calling me the ‘fluffy blonde’ – even though I’m one of the tools that help her with those barriers! (Well, I am blonde, and after my bath, I’m fluffy, too. So I guess that’s ok.

Tour With A City Planner

So we took this city planner around town…

The idea was to show him first-hand some of the barriers faced by people with limited mobility. Since Tammy uses a wheelchair we figured it would help Mr. City Planner’s appreciation if he used one for the day, too.
Tammy borrowed an old manual chair from PADS compound. I remember that thing from my Puppy-in-Training days; it still smells like my old kennel mates! I know they use it to train dogs like my colleague who pulls his person’s chair, but it has seen better days. (It makes noises that would scare me if I was riding in it without a harness.)
The brakes worked, which was good because our city has some BIG hills.
But one of the foot pedals fell off and needed a quick duct-tape fix-up; we were all undaunted so we did the tour anyway. Mr. City Planner thought he’d try one of those hills but wisely reconsidered after giving it a shot.

Now, curb ramps are something most people – two legged and four legged- don’t even notice but Tammy has to, and so did I.
And there were lots of spots where the curb ramps were either non-existent or covered in gravel due to minor sidewalk repairs. Sidewalk repairs are not minor when you have to get a wheelchair across the street, and Mr. Planner soon found that out.

Then we went looking for some civic buildings, the kinds of places that need to be accessible to everybody, and guess what we found? It’s lucky I was along to protect Tammy (& Mr. Planner) because there’s no way she’d have gotten into the police station if she’d needed to in an emergency! They do have an elevator – but Tammy can’t operate it by herself, and neither could anybody else with limited hand or upper-body mobility. Not to mention, I couldn’t fit in there with her – I’d have needed to go on her lap! And I’m BIG!

So then we tried the train station – woof, that’s just crazy! Even I know that you don’t go east to travel west unless you’re piloting a 747! But I guess if you use a wheelchair in THIS town, you have to board at the only station with a working elevator – and you can only access the eastbound platform at that one. So, when Tammy and I go home, (which is west) we get on the east-bound train, ride it across the river into another zone, get off, cross the platform, and board the west-bound train. Only about 45 minutes wasted there… Luckily, Tammy hasn’t been Tasered yet for only having a 2 zone ticket in a 3 zone area…! Mr. Planner seemed to be pretty taken aback by the major pain-in-the-you-know-what our transit accessibility can be in his town.

We went into an old department store too, where in order to get upstairs we had to get someone to page the freight elevator and escort us up. Of course, we know that there are some buildings that probably won’t ever be accessible to people who use wheelchairs – 100-year-old heritage buildings simply weren’t built to accommodate everybody, and that’s a fact of life. But everybody should be able to get into the police station, the library, city hall, public transit, a washroom, city sidewalks…

It’s happening slowly, and I believe that more tours like the one Mr. Planner took are a terrific way to get things moving in the right direction.

RISE 'N SHINE

Tammy’s usually awake by 7:00am, but her day typically begins a bit later. So she has a couple of hours where she needs me to distract her from her full bladder… I do that by nuzzling her face from the side of her bed. She doesn’t let me up on the bed with her – even though that supercilious cat gets to sleep there every night, ahem! – but I get as close as I can. (Sometimes a little too close, I guess, and she growls at me! But I don’t have any more fleas than that cat Rocket! And I know I smell good!)

I can see Tammy planning our day as she lays there waiting for the attendant to get her up: sometimes she talks to herself!

“Are all of my arrangements in place? Transportation, meals, bathroom breaks, cell phone charged, water available…”

“Hey!” I growl, “What about the treat-bag!?”
“Oh yeah, gotta get more doggie treats…” Her list seems endless sometimes, but the day’s accoutrements all need to be ready, and I make it my responsibility to see that she remembers everything. (Even the poop bags, though I don’t see the point.)

Of course we don’t need a full two hours to get our day lined up; so Rocket helps with the distraction angle, too. He keeps her occupied, often by washing her face and hands, kitty style. That’s fine, but sometimes he also heads to the bathroom and flushes the toilet, which I bet really bugs Tammy. You’ve heard of Pavlov’s dog, no doubt: this is more like Tammy’s cat, but the same idea… Bell, food; flush, pee…

I like the attendant, she gets Tammy up so we can be together and do our day. I always answer the door with a big “Good morning!” growly. And she says “Good morning”, to me, too, with pats and hugs. It’s pretty short and sweet, though, because we’ve got to get our day going. And of course, once I’m dressed, it’s all business: no more pats. I don’t even wag my tail…
I watch while Tammy’s hoisted out of bed, and prepared for a shower. It’s part of my job to make sure everything’s done correctly!

Washing and dressing seems like an arduous process. I don’t know why she doesn’t just go with fur, like me, it’s a lot easier! Dressing Tammy is a unique experience each time; it seems her attendants still have difficulty understanding the concept of “left leg” and “right leg” when they’re helping her. I hope they get it soon, because sometimes she looks like a chicken being trussed for dinner.

Anyhow, after she’s dressed, she eats her breakfast, Rocket eats his breakfast, and I eat my breakfast. Then Tammy and I brush our teeth; I get chicken flavoured toothpaste for dogs – mmmmmm! She uses nasty minty stuff, and that cat, who’s thinks his hygiene is impeccable, never gets near a toothbrush! What’s the story there?! So then it’s work at the computer for an hour or so, then I get dressed too, and we all rush out the door.

And so begins another exciting day, and I hear tomorrow we're supposed to take a city planner on a wheelchair tour downtown. Sounds interesting, especially since he doesn't use a wheelchair for mobility...

How Much Is That Doggie In The Window?

Tammy works downtown, and I go to work with her. We take the same route most every day.

People stare at me on the Train, on the street, pretty much anywhere we go. Sometimes they try to pet me. I know they're admiring not only my good looks, but also the obvious dedication to my job.

We have to walk a few blocks from the Train station to Tammy's office, and we usually meet a few other dogs on the way.

Some are working dogs, like the Beagle whose job it is to look both cute and hungry for his panhandler human. I think he's got a pretty good gig...

And there's a guard dog lying on the floor at a high-end jewelry store: we've never actually met, but we've eyeballed each other enough to be acquainted. I feel sorry for him - he looks so sad and bored. I almost want to try a heist, just to give him something to do. I won't, though - I'm a PADS dog.

There's another dog we meet: it lives in an upscale furniture store right by Tammy's office. I say 'lives', but it doesn't really. I think it's supposed to be 'ART'. Now, I know what you're thinking, what does a dog know about art? Well, I know cute from ugly, and this ain't cute!

In the first place, it's got no eyes! It's got no fur; it's made of spun glass or something, and it's a lamp. It has an electrical cord for a leash, but I've never heard of a leash coming out of there before!!! Ouch!

It just stands there, and for $630.00 it will light up a corner for you. That's including the 15% discount...

I can light up the whole room for you for nothing; and if you still want the overhead fixture on, I can do that, too. (I might do it faster for a treat!)

And when I have my uniform off, you can get a free cuddle, too.

Look at that basket of puppies: which would you rather have, a nasty old overpriced lamp, or one of these cuties?!

On The Job With Link

Back in April, Tammy and I were asked to do another presentation - this one for PADS. But this wasn't just a standard look-at-what-the-wonder-dog-can-do show; this time I was introducing PADS Puppy-in-Training Link, from the IBM Litter.

He is 4 months old, and so cute he could probably get away with anything, even stealing a chicken salad sandwich. Maybe I'll get a chance to show him some day...

But he was pretty good. Even though he's more professional cutie than anything else, I could see the serious service dog waiting to grow into the blue and gold cape. There's no doubt in my mind that PADS Puppy-in-Training Link will be a fine assistance dog one day.

He wasn't too polished or dignified in showing off his skills yet - after all he's just getting "down" mastered - but he sure had the right attitude! He settled right down while the humans finished talking about PADS. I was so proud of him, even though he's so cute the kids hardly paid any attention to me. (Ouch!)

We talked to a whole bunch of kids, from kindergarten right on up, plus parents and teachers. They heard all about PADS - how we dogs are specially trained to help people who have disabilities live more independently.

Of course, since we're dogs - ahem, man's best friend! - we enrich their lives just by being who we are: loyal, friendly, cute, loving, helpful, cute, cuddly, mischievous, cute, furry, adorable - you get the picture...

Anyhow, back to the presentation: so, PADS needs Puppy Raisers, people who will help rear and socialize babes like PADS Puppy-in-Training Link.

Puppies need people; people need puppies. PADS needs YOU! Yes, you! Don't you have room in your home, in your heart, for somebody like PADS Puppy-in-Training Link?

Think about it!

GIRL GUIDES PRESENTATION: A NEW YEAR'S STORY

In January, Tammy and I met with the Girl Guides at an Elementary School where the Guides and their leaders invited us to talk about disability issues.

I really enjoy doing these kinds of educational presentations, as they give me an opportunity to show off some of my skills as a PADS Assistance Dog and also give our audience a glimpse of how a person with a disability lives. I am certainly the most interesting example of Tammy’s adaptive equipment!

Tammy starts by introducing herself, her human personal assistant – and me – I sit pretty until it’s my time to shine - and then she shares some of her experiences about what it is like to live with a disability. I like it when she tells the funny stories. She also talks to the kids about how important it is to see the person with a disability as a PERSON first and to be aware first of common humanity, and the things shared by people everywhere. She talks about differences too, but shows disability as yet another aspect of diversity.

Then she educates the children about cerebral palsy, and the some of the challenges it can bring. She demonstrates this by showing how she uses her adapted cup holder and camera tripod to enjoy her favorite activities of drinking a cup of hot chocolate at Starbucks and photography. Then it’s my time to shine. I demonstrate how I am used as an adaptive tool to assist Tammy retrieve an item from the floor and help her take off her sweater. The kids are always so amazed.

After this demonstration, Tammy gives the audience the opportunity to experience what it might be like to live with a disability through empathy building exercises. She gives the children oven mitts to wear which restricts their ability to use their hands and fingers and then has them do an activity that requires finger dexterity such as writing, buttoning up their jacket, or operating their ipod within a time limit. After this activity, Tammy asks questions about the task and whether they found it easy or hard. She also generates discussion around other ways in which we adapt and perform activities in our daily lives and in what ways we can support people with disabilities at school and in the community.

Finally Tammy gives the children an opportunity to ask questions about the presentation. The kids want to know about me and the PADS program as well as more questions about Tammy and her experiences living with cp. It is always so much fun!