New Pets :-)

[ditchdwellers]

So cute! What breed is she?

[KizzyKazaer]

I have deliberately chosen a smaller breed so that I can hold and cuddle her and be more tactile with her than my previous large dogs.

She looks fantastically cuddlesome too, how could you resist...

...my emotional health is as important as my physical health.

I'll drink to that

[Fiz]

She's a cocker spaniel. Absolutely gorgeous! Can't believe it's only 9 days till she arrives.

[Sunny Clouds]

I'm a cat person rather than a dog person, but I do think that there's something lovely about a good dog-human relationship.

[Fiz]

I've emailed a local organisation that trains emotional support dogs in the hope that she can be trained. Apparently they normally train their own dogs to loan to people in the same way that guide dogs are trained and loaned so I don't know if they will agree to it. 

I'm so fatigued at the moment and there are a few important tasks that need doing before she arrives too.

[Sunny Clouds]

I hope they can help, or if not, maybe experienced dog-owners will have tips to offer.

Personally, I think what dogs need most is to be clear in their minds what is wanted of them.  I'm going to contrast between a dog doing that in a way that isn't wanted, and trained dogs that do it in ways that are wanted.

I've had a mixed relationship with dogs because when I was small, two dogs unexpectedly attacked me.  In neither case was I misbehaving, running around or anywhere I shouldn't have been.  One was a guard dog with its owner but not where it usually was, so was doing what it thought it was trained to do, and the other was the family dog of a child I was visiting but who didn't know me and freaked out when I closed the door to a playhouse the other child and I were in.  That left me wary.  I'm still wary and if a dog suddenly appears in my field of vision, I've been known to leap out in front of traffic to get away.

Yet whilst still a child, I took a neighbour's dog for walks.  I also looked after a different neighbour's dog as an adult and as a student au pair walked the family dog.  And there's a slobbery thing that's moved in with a neighbour that insists upon fussing me.

I'm aware that people that deal professionally with dogs that attack say that almost every time it happens, the natural response of their owner is "But s/he's  never done that before!"

Ah, but yes, the dog has done something like it before - it's protected its owner.

So why am I going on about dogs attacking?  No, not to worry you.  You see, dogs naturally protect their owners, but why go to all the hard work of attacking if your owner's given you a pleasanter way to do it?  Look how dogs love to do all sorts of work. 

I picture it as the difference between a dog that thinks the way to defend its owner is to move towards the 'threat' and a dog that thinks the way to defend its owner is to move towards the owner and provide a safe barrier between the owner and whoever or whatever is causing concern/difficulty.

It may sound a bit potty, but I think I can relate to the "Yes, but what precisely is required of me?" aspect of many dogs.  It's the aspect of me, from my upbringing, that has left me with a desperate need to explain, explain, explain.

For me the beauty of this is you can channel "What is required of me?" into "Looking after Fiz." and "Yes, but what precisely is required of me?" into what you need from an emotional support dog.

Then you have happy dog.  And a happier Fiz than otherwise.

[Fiz]

I think the temperament is largely in the breed. I've never heard of a Golden Retriever ever attacking anyone even to defend their owner for example. My Golden would have wagged her tail to greet a burglar and rolled over for her tummy to be tickled. The breed is never chosen as a guard animal. I've owned dogs all my life and have trained mine in normal obedience and housetraining. I'd been attracted to this emotional assistance dog training because they can be trained to calm you when you have been triggered, to lie and press against your chest when you're highly anxious, to wake you if you have hypersomnia, to bring you drinks and medication etc and even to stop people self harming. But it appears the dog therapy training organisation only cover the postcodes covered by the nearby city mental health services so almost certainly receive funding from that section of the mental health trust but it doesn't cover my postcode so it won't happen. Had I lived 2 miles away it could have. As so much within health services nowadays, it is literally a postcode lottery.

[Sunny Clouds]

I agree that it's rare for golden retrievers to attack people, which is why it hits the headlines when it does, whereas another pitbull attacks someone story is boring, although personally I believe that the majority of instances (not all) where dogs from 'aggressive' breeds live up to their reputation come down to training.  Forgive my stereotype, but macho lad plus potentially agressive dog can equal dog behaving like macho lad does when drunk on Saturday night.  

And the impression I get is that you're the right sort of person to make sure their dog is well-trained and behaving appropriately.  Something amiss suddenly happening?  It will know what to do. 

It annoys me though that you can't get the funded professional training for the dog.  Even if one were unpleasantly miserly about it, surely training a support dog is cheaper than sorting out the problems if you have an accident trying to do something for yourelf when not up to it?

Ah, but then we're back to the 'who pays for the care' stuff.  Aargh.

C'mon doggie, you've a lovely human waiting for you when you arrive.  She'll fuss you and explain to you what to do so you can satisfy your need to be a good dog.

[ditchdwellers]

Postcode lotteries are so cruel. 

You are going to make a great puppy parent Fiz.   You are an experienced owner and clearly understand what you are doing with obedience training. All you need is some extra help and support to turn your lovely puppy from an ordinary pet into a dog with extra special powers!
Is there a support group or online forum with like minded people also independently training support dogs? That's the only way forward I can think of. Have you asked your vet for advice? They may have some contacts locally that you haven't heard of. 

Whatever happens, I know that having a dog is such a wonderful thing and the bond you develop is precious and something to be treasured. May your puppy bring you much comfort, joy, laughter, and companionship. 

[Fiz]

I think the main benefit to me of her being trained as a therapy dog is that I could have taken her almost anywhere with her wearing her therapy dog band which I would have found comforting. And that's not something that I could do or provide myself.

[ditchdwellers]

I understand what you mean. It's such a shame there's no way round that.

[Fiz]

Slight delay in Rosena arriving. As I am at the hospital all day on Saturday having my wisdom tooth out under general anaesthetic I am now going to collect her on Monday 5th which will give me Sunday to recover from the general anaesthetic. Collecting her this Wednesday would have been a nightmare with her home alone all day on Saturday. I'm going to attempt to remove my kitchen door today. I never ever close it and taking it off will leave enough space in the hallway for a shoe cabinet bench seat and I aim to put a stair gate in the kitchen doorway for the puppy to have the run of the kitchen when she's housetrained. 

Yesterday I managed to saw some wood and do two weeks worth of meal preps, a very productive day for me! It's so rare that I can do that much. Feeling a bit more meh today though.

[Sunny Clouds]

I hope you did ok with the door and hope you're not crashing too much after.