“When clients do their homework, it really shows; and Lauren and Goldendoodle Decker showed off today how far they have come!
Taking Decker everywhere Lauren needs to go is very important to Lauren, so public behavior has been high on our list as it is with every dog seeking its Public Access Test
Decker was originally scared of walking past refrigerators/freezers in stores because of the noise they made, and the swishing employees double doors at the supermarket. I explained to Lauren that as she approached these places, I noticed she would look down at Decker expecting him to be afraid, so he fed on her nervousness and became afraid.
So, I taught her how to walk confidently past these obstacles and not respond to Decker; just keep walking as if nothing is wrong. Decker responded beautifully and walked past all the things he’s been afraid of before. I explained how your expectations of a dog’s fear can in fact create it.
I told Lauren how proud I am of her that she has listened to everything she has been taught, not only about training but about dog psychology and how dogs think. Understanding how a dog’s mind works can help one to use them to be the best they can be.
Decker lays on Lauren’s back on command, as the deep pressure helps with her pain, fetches her medications, and watches Lauren on command; the three tasks they have mastered beautifully.
There is nothing so beautiful as a dog trainer like myself seeing such a connection and results with determination and practice.
Update: They did it! What a great team! Lauren and Decker passed their PAT with flying colors!
This team have come a long way in such a short space of time. Decker was originally nervous of large doorways and buzzing machines and even TV’s blaring loudly in the stores, but with the right training, he now passes them all without a single reaction!
Load, unload, walking calmly around traffic, sit, stay, wait, leave it, heel, polite with strangers and ignoring loud noises – he did them all like he’d been doing it forever!
This is mainly because of Decker’s 19 year-old handler, Lauren, who wanted her dog to be her Service Dog so badly that she put 100% into her homework and practiced hard. The result is a very well-trained and well-behaved dog!
Lauren’s mom Shari has been a huge support throughout so I insisted she got in on the picture!
I will still be a source of support and info for Lauren if she needs me, which after today’s performance I doubt will be very often!
Congratulations Lauren and Decker!!
Well, Daniel was understandably devastated by losing his Battle Buddy – especially at such a young age (in fact, I had just recently seen them and Ivan seemed so happy). Daniel became housebound with grief for awhile, but managed to pull himself up by his bootstraps and start the SD training again – this time, with Ivan’s brother, Stubby. Stubby was 3. Stubby always developed a cough during the winter, but Daniel attributed it to allergies, since Stubby never exhibited other symptoms. Little did Daniel know – Stubby had inherited the same genetic mutation for cardiomegaly as his littermate, Ivan.
They had only had one training session when Daniel started noticing the cough becoming worse. Then, two mornings ago, Stubby threw up blood and his gums were white. The wonderful Dr. Bauml at St. Francis agreed to see Stubby on his lunchbreak – and the news was bad – very bad. Ultrasounds and x-rays revealed that Stubby’s heart was 82% larger than it should have been. I completely encompassed his chest cavity, compressing his lungs and making it almost impossible to breath.
Last night, at approximately 8:30 pm, Stubby’s throat became so swollen, he was almost lifeless. Daniel took him to the ER, and made the grueling but humane decision once again to put Stubby to rest.
If you wish to personally express your condolences to Daniel, his FB page is 
“I had lesson #5 with Mark and Pongo today, and I want to say how thrilling it is to see this man push his personal limits to 
Perhaps more impactful for Mark (I hope) was he was able to observe how I handled public inquiries about him and his dog. I have been coaching him about that since day one, knowing his challenge about being in public. He said he was more comfortable with Pongo with him, so I’m hoping I am giving him the tools he needs to cope. He is a lovely man, and I’m praying that Pongo gives him comfort and freedom he has been missing for many years.
We received these adorable pictures from our longtime client and friend, John, a Navy Veteran, who suffers from the after-effects of strokes and a heart attack, and his “partner in crime”, SD Sancho. John’s caregiver, Mary wrote:
It’s wonderful to hear that John was happy – he has been through so much – but he never lets his disability keep him from keeping up with training his SD, Chesapeake Bay Retriever 8 year-old Sancho. They have a bond that is truly inexplicable.