puppies inside: FLD GeeGee

Showing posts with label FLD GeeGee. Show all posts

Sunday, May 3, 2015

Relaxation with a twist

Chippewa

March 30, 2015

This is only our second time back to the prisons together since September. Tammy and I still have our routine down. On the drive up we brainstormed how we'll execute Tammy's lesson plan:

puppy presentation
paperwork (Tammy) / meet & greets, handler's exams, questions (me)
group discussion
relaxation protocol
exercises with treat delivery and impulse control using a ground tether
obedience practice for all and In-For-Training (IFT) assessments for FLDs Bandit, Andie, Adell and Teysen
rally course, ladder and distractions exercise (teams) / finish IFTs (Tammy and I)
"blind" touch
musical chairs
Bandit's good-bye

It always amazes me that we manage to get through the entire list.

After the puppy presentation Tammy takes care of the paperwork with Rial. I circle the room to practice meet and greets and handler's exams. I ask each team, "Tell me something good about your puppy and then tell me something you are struggling with." Their answers should drive the group discussion, but there are no big issues.

Everyone in the room is interested in hearing an update on FLD Ashley. The black lab returned to Leader Dogs for the Blind in December for formal training and now she's ready to move into an "advanced" level. At the next step she'll be matched with her new partner. (No one knows it yet, but Ashley is destined to be matched at the end of April.)

Tammy starts off with a twist on the standard relaxtaion protocol. Normally the puppies sit, down or stand in heel position with the handler standing during the exercise. Tammy instructs the handlers to stay seated. "Tell your puppy under," she says, "or have your puppy lie down at your side."

A light colored golden retriever and a yellow lab are lying on a tile floor in between the legs of two men. The first man with the golden is weraing green pants and the second man is wearing maroon pants. Both puppies are looking up at their handlers (who are mostly out of view).

FLDs Andie and Diesel look at their handlers like they are thinking, "What are you doing? We usually do this with you standing up!" The idea of trying this while sitting is to simulate situations where their handlers are sitting, like at restaurants or meetings.

Four men are seated on lunchroom stools. The man on the far left is sitting up and looking at the other three, who are bent over at the waist and touching their toes. There are three puppies lying on a tile floor beneath the men. The puppy on the far left is a yellow lab and is looking back at his handler, the next puppy is a german shepherd and his facing out, the third puppy is a light colored golden retriever and he is facing out too. Three of the men are wearing with t-shirts, the third man is wearing a maroon sweatshirt.

The seated relaxation protocol has the handlers do things like touch their toes, turn to the right or left, stamp their feet, or cross their legs. The puppies stay in position throughout the entire exercise.

With the relaxation protocol finished, Tammy puts me to work demonstrating the treat delivery and ground tether exercises, and helping her with the IFT assessments. I'm too busy to get any photos, but once the music starts for musical chairs I am free to shoot away.

In this game, there are chairs for everyone. When the music stops, the men must sit with their puppies "under" the chairs...last puppy down is out!

A group of men and their puppies cirlce around two lines of light blue plastic chairs. A woman wearing a grey t-shirt and blue jeans is on the far left.

Tammy's CD has dog-themed songs, like "Who Let the Dogs Out?" and "How Much is that Puppy in the Window?"

A low shot of a golden retriever/lab mix puppy walking toward the camera with a loose leash and looking up toward his handler. The man handling the puppy is only visible from the waist down and he is wearing the blue prison uniform. There are a few men sitting down on the right side.

FLD Henry keeps a nice loose leash and a keen focus on his temporary handler.

Now the men are sitting on the chairs with their puppies "under" the chairs facing out. The woman is in the background on the left side.

The music stops...who is out?

A low, close up shot of a small stuffed weiner dog in the foreground and a larger black lab puppy walking by trying to sniff the stuffed dog. In the background on the right side is a german shepherd puppy also looking at the stuffed dog, being held back by a man wearing a white t-shirt and blue prison pants. The black lab is being held back by a man wearing a white t-shirt and blue prison pants. The lab is wearing the blue Future Leader Dog bandana.

I set a distraction down for the puppies. FLD GeeGee is very interested in "Travel Deacon," as is FLD Chance in the background.


We have a winner! FLD GeeGee is under her handler Ro before FLD Chance hits the tile under his handler Eric.

Wednesday, February 11, 2015

Raising thinkers

Chippewa

October 23, 2014

Before getting the teams up to work, Deb has lots to share. She reports on the kennel project that is under construction at Leader Dogs for the Blind; she talks about the breeding program and what happens to the puppies when they return to Rochester Hills; she describes guide work and what it means when the blind or visually impaired handler cannot support the decisions the dog has to make.

"We need forward-thinking, independent-thinking dogs," she said.

Many of the men express interest in continuing to raise puppies once they get out. Deb leads a discussion about what raising a puppy on the outside entails, how they will have to deal with veterinarian and food expenses, and transportation when picking up and returning a puppy.

The men nod their heads when she suggests they take time to get their lives in order first. These inmate raisers are thinking, too.

Three men sit on stools and are leaning forward and looking at the two black lab puppies and one chocolate lab puppy lying on the floor between their legs. The man on the left is wearing a long sleeve white shirt and peach sweat pants, his hands are massaging the black lab's shoulders. The puppy is looking at the camera. The man in the middle is wearing the blue prison uniform and is reaching down to the black lab puppy at his feet with his left hand, which is holding an antler. His right arm is resting on his right knee. The african american man on the right is wearing the blue prison uniform and is bent over with his left forearm on his left knee. He is reaching down with his right hand and holding the left front paw of a small black lab at his feet. The labe is lying on her right side facing the camear.

Three puppies and their raisers share a moment. Ro, on the right, is handling FLD GeeGee's front paw. GeeGee is Ro's second puppy; he raised FLD Sammy, who, at the time of this post. is in training at Leader Dog. Ro says that even though he thinks Sammy was the best, GeeGee has stolen his heart.

Time to work. Deb has a fun exercise planned. She recreates an outside puppy outing she and FLD Jedi attended at Detroit Metro Airport. The puppies will practice sit or down/stays, recalls, handling, and settling.

We set two chairs at one end of the room to simulate a metal detector. One at a time, each inmate raiser puts his puppy in a sit or down stay in the middle of the room. Here he removes his shoes and the puppy's collar and leash.

A man dressed in maroon sweats is standing in the middel of a room, he is taking his shoes off. In front of him is sitting a golden retriever puppy. The puppy is facing him and wearing the blue Future Leader Dog puppy. On the floor by the man's shoes is the puppy's leash. In the background three other men are sitting on stools and facing the man that is standing.

Abe removes his shoes while FLD Andie holds a sit/stay.

The raiser leaves the puppy to walk through the chair-metal-detector, then turns and calls his puppy to come.

A yellow lab/golden retriever puppy wearing the blue Future Leader Dog jacket is walking away from the camera toward two light blue plastic chairs. Just beyond the chairs is a man wearing a white t-shirt and maroon pants. The man is facing the puppy and looking down at him. In the background are three men and three women sitting or standing and watching the puppy.

FLD Henry comes readily to Matt, who is waiting on the other side of the "metal detector."

Another inmate, posing as a NSA agent, pats them both down. Once cleared, the inmate puts his shoes and the puppy's collar and leash back on and is shuffled into the corner to wait.

Two men in the foregrond are running their hands on a black lab puppy. The man on the left of the puppy is kneeling on the tile floor, he is wearing a white t-shirt and blue prison pants and a blue ball cap. the man on the right of the puppy is wearing a green sweatshirt and the blue prison pants, he is bent over at the waits over the puppy. There are two men and one woman along the wall on the far left side, standing with puppies, and three men and two women in the far background.

"NSA agent" Eric checks out FLD Dylan while Dave, the pup's handler, rehooks his leash.

A low shot of two men patting down a black lab puppy. The man on the left is standing and leaning over the puppy, he is wearing a white t-shirt and blue prison pants; you cannot see his head but his arm is covered with tatooes. The man on the right is kneeling on his right knee and his left hand is feeling the puppy's throat. He is wearing a white t-shirt and blue prison pants and a blue ball cap. There is a man in the background standing against the wall with a german shepherd on his left side.

FLD Ashley gets checked over.

A man is standing on the left with his arms stretched out, facing a group of men (and one woman) and their puppies. Several of the men are bending over to settle their puppies, they are in a tight corner of a room, with a glass wall and door on the left and a white brick wall on the right.

"NSA agent' Eric keeps the group sequestered in the corner.

Sunday, January 11, 2015

Sit, down, stay, play

September 25, 2014

Chippewa

RELAXATION PROTOCOL

In three positions...

A woman wearing blue jeans and a teal t-shirt is standing on the right side with an orange piece of paper in her hands. She is reading from the paper. Three men are standing on the left, each are wearing white t-shirts, the one on the far left and the one in the middle are wearing orange shorts, the third man is wearing blue prison pants and is standing with his arms folded at his chest. The middle man is looking down at a small yellow lab/golden retriever puppy that is lying on the tile floor looking up at him.

Tammy gets started on the relaxation protocol. She asks the teams to have their puppies in the "down" position to start.

A black lab (left) and a yellow lab (right) are lying on a tile floor, both are wearing the blue Future Leader Dog bandanas. The puppies are looking up to the left at their handlers, who are only visilbe from the waist down. The man on hte left is wearing maroon sweat pants and a white t-shirt, the other man is wearing orange shorts and a white t-shirt. Both puppies' leashes are lying on the floor.

FLDs Ashley and Adell keep an eye on their handlers.

A young chocolate lab is lying on a tile floor looking up at his handler that is standing on the left. The puppy is wearing the blue Future Leader Dog bandana and his leash is lying on the floor in front of him. Only the handler's lower legs and feet are in the frame. He is wearing maroon sweatpants and white shoes. The legs of another man are on the right, he is wearing orange shorts and white shoes.

FLD Bandit. Focused.

Three men are handling three puppies. The man on the left is wearing orange shorts and a white sleeveless t-shirt and he is holding the leash of a yellow lab puppy that is sitting on his left side looking up at him. The man is looking down at the puppy and reaching toward him with his left hand. The man in the middle is wearing orange shorts and the blue prison shirt; he is looking down at a yellow lab/golden retriever mix puppy that is lying on the tile floor facing the man, his leash draped on the floor. The man on the right is wearing the blue prison pants and a white t-shirt with his hand folded at his waist and looking down at a small black lab. The lab is sitting on the floor facing the man with its back to the camera. There is a fourth man in the background sitting on a lunchroom stool.

Now Tammy asks the handlers to have their puppies "sit." FLDs Adell (left) and GeeGee (right) jump right up, but FLD Henry (middle) has to think about it.

The picture is taken from a weird angle so everyone could get into the shot. There are four men standing in the lunchroom (tables line the walls behind them) and each has a puppy sitting at his left side.

FLDs Teysen and Bandit show how "sit" is done.

A man dressed in the prison blue pants and a maroon sweatshirt is standing facing the camera. He is looking down to his left at the young golden retriever puppy that is standing on his left side. The puppy is wearing the blue bandana and the man is holding his leash with his right hand, held up at his chest.

Abe with FLD Andie in the last position: "stand." Now that is a loose leash!

TESTING

With everyone relaxed, Tammy announced that she would do AKC S.T.A.R Puppy and CGC testing on those puppies that were eligible. The other puppies could practice. FLD Coda was ready to take her In-For-Training (IFT) assessment and Tammy asked me to do it away from the others. I was happy to oblidge. FLD Coda happened to be in heat and was a bit distracted. Her raiser, Jeremy, was patient with her and she did just fine away from all the boys.

YARD WORK

We went into the yard to practice a modified version of the distraction training that we did at the last furlough. Instead of tape on the ground, Tammy had the handlers stand on their puppies' leashes on the grass, just long enough so the puppies could move onto the sidewalk. No pictures here because Tammy put me (and others) to work offering distractions. Someone bounced a ball, one guy crawled up and down the sidewalk, I dragged the stuffed squirrel on a rope, wiggling it to simulate a real squirrel. Not one puppy budged. Either the pupies were great at ignoring distractions, or they were super-well trained to stay off the sidewalk. (The men did say they had trained the puppies not to go past the sidewlak into the gardens on the other side.)

PLAYTIME

Before we leave, we let the puppies play. Brothers Henry and Harley are well-matched. They were moving too fast for me to get a clear focused shot. A little help from Photoshop and you can see the fun they had.

Two small yellow lab/golden retriever puppies run toward the camera, the one on the left, slightly behind the one on the right, has his mouth open and is going for the right ear of the other puppy.

FLD Harley (left) has FLD Henry on the run. Big ears are easy to grab.

Now the two puppies are facing each other. The pup on the left is wearing a red collar and is standing up with his left front paw in the air. The puppy on the right is lying on the cement. His tongue is sticking part way out of his closed mouth like he is taunting the other puppy.

Nah, nah, na nah, nah! FLD Henry might be down, but he's not out!

Saturday, January 10, 2015

Just a couple more

September 25, 2014
Chippewa

Robert isn't the only one getting attached to his puppy...

A man wearing a white t-shirt and orange shorts is squatting on a tile floor, snuggling with a small yellow lab/golden retriever mix. The man is resting his chin on the puppy's head and has his arms wrapped around the puppy. The puppy is wearing the blue Future Leader Dog bandana.

John and FLD Harley.

A man wearing a light maroon sweatshirt and blue prison pants is outside. He is facing the camera and squatting down on cement and looking down at a young golden retriever puppy that is sitting down in front of him facing him. The puppy has a blue collar around its neck. The man is holding the puppy's head with his hands.

Abe and FLD Andie.

A man wearing the blue prison uniform is sitting on a lunchroom table stool and bending over toward a young golden retriever puppy that is lying on his back between the man's legs. The puppy's front paws are in the air and his mouth is open. The man is scratching the puppy's chest with both of his hands and looking down at the puppy. There is another man half our of view on the right also sitting - he is holding the leash of a small black lab that is asleep between his legs on the floor.

FLD Andie enjoys a scratch from Carlos. (FLD GeeGee is on the right.)

Wednesday, December 17, 2014

Supposed to do

September 11, 2014

Chippewa

What I was supposed to do while Tammy did the new puppy paperwork was greet all the teams and evaluate the puppies' weights. What I ended up doing (mostly) was field questions from the men. They wanted to know why there were changes, why Deb Donnelly would be coming next month instead of Tammy. (See my post 'On my pledge" from December 3.)

I explained how the prison puppy-raising program has grown, maybe too quickly. For it to be successful in its growth, it needs the oversight of a full-time paid employee. Leader Dogs for the Blind will be hiring someone in January, but for now Deb would be taking over to get a good sense of how things work.

A young chocolate lab is lying on a carpeted floor underneath a plastic chair facing the camera. The puppy is wearing the blue Future Leader Dog bandana and his leash is hanging free in front of him. A man dressed in the blue prison uniform is sitting on the chair with his legs on either side of the puppy. The man's hands are clasped with his forearms on his knees, but you cannot see his upper body. Another man is sitting next to him to the right, holding a leash. This man is mostly out of view.

FLD Bandit seems to be listening as intently as his handler.

"Are you two ever coming back?" the men asked.

That was a complicated question. Leader Dog pulled the volunteer puppy counselors from the prisons, but gave me permission to tag along with Deb so I could continue to document things. (Luckily, everyone agrees that telling the story is important.) As for the reinstatement of counselors, that is an unknown, and will likely depend on what the new hire decides to do. Tammy and I have always been aware that a change might occur in 2015. It just came a bit sooner, taking us by surprise.

The men weren't happy that we were being replaced. I reminded them that they would benefit from having "the best" (Deb) work with them. Ro said, "But we have a relationship with you guys."

An african american man with corn rows in his hair is cradling a small black lab puppy in his lap, holding her with both of his hands. The puppy is on her back with her legs sticking out. She is wearing the blue Future Leader Dog bandana. The man is looking down at the puppy with a scrinched up smile on his face.

Ro has a relationship with FLD GeeGee, too. She has captured his heart. "She's spoiled," he says. Ro says she was already housebroken when he got her. "She came to me already trained!"

I only managed to feel the ribs of FLDs Coda, Adell, Andie, Ashley and Harley (Henry's brother). Tammy rescued me and finished checking FLDs Teysen, GeeGee, Bandit and Chewy. She glanced at the clock. It was already ten minutes to five. There would be no time for training. She promised the guys we'd be back one more time before the end of September so we could do the work we didn't have time for today. Ro said, "I'll hold you to that!"

A woman wearing blue jeans and a royal blue windbreaker is squatting done in the middle of a room full of men inmates. She is facing the right and her hands are reaching down to a young yellow lab puppy lying on the carpeted floor in front of her. She is looking at the men seated behind the puppy.

Tammy talks to the men after helping me check the puppies' weights. She brought the 2014 Leader Dogs for the Blind poster to share.

Many of the men were concerned about the future of this blog. Would I still be able to write it? While they don't have access to my blog, their families do; one raiser said his wife reads it all the time. I assured them that I had Leader Dog's blessing to continue, that I'd do my best to return with Deb in the following months.

Tammy glanced up at the clock again. It was 5:30! So, we'd be late for dinner at the Antlers. Two outside raisers were meeting us there with their puppies, and two volunteers were handling FLDs Chewy and Andie on furlough. Afterwards, we would have a training session at a local school.

Two bald men are sitting next to each other, looking at the puppies in front of them. They are both wearing white t-shirts and glasses. The man on the left is holding a small chocolate lab puppy in his hands, dangling the puppy's legs in front of him. The puppy is facing left. The man on the right is stroking the head of a grown german shepherd that is sitting in front of him. The german shepherd is wearing the blue Future Leader Dog bandana and he is facing left looking at the chocolate lab.

Scott (left) is holding FLD Hershel (who will be going to Baraga) and Doug (right) is stroking the head of FLD Chewy. We say good-bye to Scott as he will be paroled before Tammy and I get back to Chippewa in two weeks.

Sunday, December 14, 2014

So little time...

September 11, 2014

Chippewa

Logistics for our trips to the UP prisons can be tricky. Tammy leaves from her house to travel about an hour to Leader Dogs for the Blind. Here she picks up the van and loads whatever she needs to deliver to the two correctional facilities. Usually that includes several 50-pound bags of Purina Pro Plan dog or puppy food.

This trip we are also delivering two puppies - a male black lab (Dylan) to Chippewa and a male chocolate lab (Hershel) to Baraga. Unfortunately, they aren't ready to leave Leader Dog until after 9 a.m. This means a late start, made a little later when Tammy tries to get sleepy Hershel to "park" before being tucked into his travel crate. No luck, so in he goes.

About an hour and 15 minutes from our meeting place on northbound I-75, I get a call. "Bring clean up material," Tammy says. "I was driving down the road in the van and smelled it and thought I should have given him more time." She stops to check and finds out "it wasn't even him!" Dylan was the poopy culprit.

We clean things up and head north. I brought sandwich makings so we only have to make pit stops for the puppies. Still, we don't get across the Mighty Mac until 3:30. We arrive at Chippewa after 4. Lots to do in little time.

PUPPY PRESENTATION

A man wearing a green sweatshirt and a blue ball cap and glasses is facing the camera on the left. On the right is a man wearing a white long sleeved tshrit. He is looking at the other man. Between them and behind them is a woman with short white hair and glasses, wearing a blue windbreaker. She is holding a small black lab puppy over the left shoulder of the man on the left. The puppy'es front paws are reaching over the man's shoulder.

Tammy lifts FLD Dylan over Dave's left shoulder as Eric looks on.

The man wearing the blue ball cap is holding the black lab puppy and giving the puppy a big smooch on its right cheek. The woman behind is out of focus and she is smiling.

Some puppy-lovin'.

Another close shot, this one of the man wearing the white t-shirt. He is holding the black lab puppy close to him and is smooching him on his left cheek.

FLD Dylan doesn't look too sure of the attention.

The two men stand together (the man in the ball cap on the left and the man in the white t-shirt on the right( and hold the black lab puppy between them.

Team FLD Dylan.

JUST RIGHT

As Tammy goes over the puppy contract with Dave, I am supposed to greet the teams and check the weight on each puppy. We use the Purina Body Condition chart as a guide and like to see a rating of 4 or 5. I ask each team to rate their puppy. It is interesting that the men rate each puppy at least one number lower than I do.

Because guide dogs will walk a lot during their career, it is imperative to keep their bodies lean. A lower-than-the-normal-pet-dog-weight will assure less wear and tear on the joints - and a longer working life. The men need to learn what a good Future Leader Dog physique looks like.

I like to tell people to use their own hand as a guide to compare how the puppy's ribs feel. If the puppy's ribs feel like your open palm at the base of your fingers, then the puppy is probably too heavy. If the puppy's ribs feel like your knuckles when you make a fist, then the puppy is likey too thin. The puppy is just right if its ribs feel like your knuckles when your hand is held open.

BANDANA-RAMA (just because it sounds fun)

A young golden retriever/lab mix puppy is sitting on a carpted floor, with his head turned away from the camera. His leash is hanging loose on the floor. He has the blue Future Leader Dog bandana around his neck, and a second blue Future Leader dog bandana over his head. In the background are the legs of several men sitting in chairs.

FLD Harley models his new bandana that was embroidered by a volunteer named Jean.

Now the same puppy has turned his head toward the camera. The bandana on his head has his ears pinned back.

"What?!"


Ro likes FLD GeeGee's new bandana. He named his puppy after his daughter. "She thinks every puppy I get will come home with me," he said.

A man weraing a long-sleeve white t-shirt is sitting down facing the camera. He is holding a blue bandana up between is outstreatched hands. Embroidered on the bandana is the outline of the Upper Peninsulat with the word "Chippewa" under it. There are two black dogs with a yellow dog between them embroidered on it. Under each dog are the names (from left to rigth) Tara, Granite and Coda. These are the three "finsihing" dogs the man has raised. Behind the man is another man who is holding up a poster facing away from the camera and reading it.

Jeremy holds up the bandana he received with the names of the three finishing dogs he raised. He said he likes getting the "rehomed" dogs because "they have character." He admitted that he enjoyed FLD Granite the best, but is very pleased with the progress he's made with FLD Coda.

Sunday, May 3, 2015

Relaxation with a twist

Wednesday, February 11, 2015

Raising thinkers

Sunday, January 11, 2015

Sit, down, stay, play

Saturday, January 10, 2015

Just a couple more

Wednesday, December 17, 2014

Supposed to do

Sunday, December 14, 2014

So little time...

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