Day 7

I'm BAAAAAAAAAAACCKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Did anyone miss me?  Today's post may seem like I'm rambling...I am...


This morning, we worked on distractions with the dogs in sit, down, etc.  There were kids running all over the place yelling, toys being thrown, balls being bounced, puppies being puppies, etc.  Mostly the dogs all did very well.  You can tell we've been working with them at the hotels.  :-)  The most funny thing was when Jeremy brought out a plate of lasagna & put it down on the floor in front of each dog.

If only we could all relax this well, huh?

A week ago, I would have never believed that all the dogs would do this 
for us without us holding their leashed & making them stay in a "down".




















Peg had to leave to go back to Alaska, but we did get a few more minutes with her.

This afternoon, we worked on silent commands for sit, heel, down, etc. by pointing or other hand gestures.  Some of the dogs worked on lights on/off; picking things up, balance work, etc.  It's pretty impressive to watch the other dogs perform their work!  We're starting to loosen up a little with our classmates & tease or pick on each other a whole lot more.  We've kinda adopted each others' kids & watch out for them like we do our own.  :-)  

After class ended, Matthew, Omri & I went back to the hotel and got our dirty clothes.  We went to the laundromat close by the hotel & Omri got TONS of attention there.  All the little kids wanted to pet him & love on him.  From there, we went straight to the movies in Beavercreek.  We saw Journey 2 Mysterious Island in 3D.  It was a STUPENDOUS movie.  I give it 2 thumbs wayyyyyyyy  up!  Omri did really well.  When the movie was just getting started, after he laid down, he growled really deep in his throat & barked!  A real bark!  It really astounded me because he doesn't bark at ALL!  After I told him no, he basically went to sleep.  When we got back to the hotel, this is where I found him about 15 minutes later:

Apparently he is as tired as I am!  If only we could get Matthew to be tired, too!  These are pics from last night after I posted.  I just thought they were cute so here ya go!

Oh, the poor, long-suffering Service Dog!

Love,

Dea

Day 6

Every time Omri looks at me like this, I can't help but think he's looking at my thinking, HUH?  What on EARTH are you thinking you crazy woman???

Y'know, I'd read other moms' posts about training being exhausting & think...yeah, right!  Well, it IS!  I work 4 ten hour shifts at the hospital & it is very busy there, but NOTHING is as mentally and physically exhausting as training to be a handler for a Service Dog!  These dogs are very intelligent, and that means you have to be at the top of your game every minute.  Omri just keeps giving me these looks like...really?  UH.....you're the human, right?

Apparently, I'm not the only one getting worn out by training, huh?

For those who are interested, we are staying at the Ramada in Xenia.  They've been very nice, but the rooms are tiny!  I do not recommend it for anyone who has more than 2-3 people.  It's almost too small for Matthew, Omri and myself.  Jeremy gives you homework every night to practice with your Service Dog (SD), and it's really difficult to do some of them in the rooms with the beds.  There's another family here in our class & I think they feel the same way.  There is a pool outside, and they serve free breakfast every morning.  There are no laundry facilities in the hotel so you have to go to the laundromat.  It's not far...about 2 blocks, but for some people, that might not work very well.  It's ok for us, cause Matthew just brings his Nintendo DS & plays while I do laundry.  On the plus side, it's only a few blocks from 4 Paws (easily within walking distance!  0.5 miles!)

Omri is such a goofball when he is "free"!  When he's working, he's ALL business, but when he isn't, he's just a typical, goofy lab!  He is hilarious! When he lays down to rest or sleep, he lets out these little grunts (like a pig).  At first, Matthew & I looked at each other to make sure he was ok, but now we've just decided that's just something weird he does.

Moving on to what we worked on today, we worked on "special" tasks some of the dogs do like lap, touch, nuzzle, over, kisses.  These dogs are so sweet and sensitive, I find Omri doing these things with Matthew before I know Matt needs it!  After we worked on these things for a few hours, we headed to the mall to practice in public some more.  We made a "pit stop" at PetSmart to get more Potty bags, and oh, my goodness! I think I need a 5 hour energy drink before I attempt that again!  It was SOOOO hard to keep Omri's attention and Matthew's at the same time!  All the other dogs, toys, people, etc. were extremely distracting to all of us.  I know it CAN be done, I just have to figure out how to handle it better.  Once we got to the mall, Omri acted like the champ he is.  We practiced walking around with Matthew tethered to him.  When Matt would dig in his heels, Omri would just set his weight & pull until Matt gave in.  One time, Omri was pulling as hard as he could & he couldn't get Matthew loose so I reached back & gave a little tug on Matt's tether to "help" Omri.  Omri looked up at me as if to say, "Thanks, Mom!"  It was precious.

Omri and I are practicing "over".  This is used for deep pressure on kids who need it to calm down after meltdowns, seizures, etc.  Thanks, Peg for being the Photographer for this one!  :-)  He is such a happy dog!

Omri is also the designated parking spot for Matthew's trucks and cars as you can see by this picture.  He just lays there & lets Matthew do whatever he wants.  He might look to see what Matt's doing, but then he usually just puts his head on his paws & looks at me.  Tomorrow, we have more training at 4 Paws...I am seriously contemplating an "early to bed" night for all of us, whaddya think????

Love,
Dea

Day 5

This is Matt & Omri just before Omri fell off the bed.  He looked so startled when he fell off, I couldn't help but laugh when I saw he was Okay.

Today was nice!  It was a little cool outside but sunny.  This morning, we went around the room, like every morning, and Jeremy addressed questions, issues, etc. we may be having with the dogs at night and how to handle them.  We've been having a problem getting Omri to jump up into Mom's truck so today at lunch, Jeremy went outside with us & showed me what I was doing wrong.  Ever since then, Omri's jumped up into the truck like a pro.  I just hope it continues to work as well in the days to come!

Mom, I lost my ball....

There's my ball!

Jeremy & his German Shepherd 

Matthew & Omri in "place"

One of the other kids' sisters drew this.  I like it.

This is Omri under the table at supper.

This is my self-portrait...I know I look pasty & pale...We woke up late & I didn't put on any makeup or fix my hair.

I think Omri was less than impressed with our supper!

Poor Omri!  He was SO tired after supper & Barnes & Noble!

I think Omri is picking out his favorite one to "steal" when Matthew isn't looking, how about you?

I'm thinking Omri kinda liked having a roommate, don't you???

I'm still not entirely sure what possessed Matthew to get inside Omri's kennel, but they seem to be bonding okay.

2 boys in 1 kennel...hmmmmmmmm

After we went around the room asking questions, Jeremy introduced the class to some things like having the dogs do balance work, hit the silver Handicapped open door button, etc.  Next, we had a brief introduction to tethering.  This is going to be my lifesaver!  He demonstrated with Omri & Omri just stayed focused on Jeremy & then me.  He did SO good!  He stayed in a "down" and would just occasionally look at whomever was being tethered.  (This is the appropriate response.)
This afternoon, we went over problems at lunch, how to groom the dogs (Omri is pretty low-maintenance, but we're in a class that every other dog is a Golden Retriever.), how to pick the correct brushes, nail clippers, how to brush, how to bathe, what shampoo to use, etc.  We also went over the proper treats, toys,etc.  For those who haven't gotten their dogs yet, rawhides are NOT appropriate.  Jeremy will tell you why when you get here.  Omri is a strong chewer so we have to get him heavy duty chewing toys.  Jeremy recommends Kong and Nylabone. 
ON a side note, please pray for one of the other moms in our class.  She is really having a hard time with getting her toddlers to understand the service dog isn't for them & is feeling really guilty.


Love,
Dea