Category Archives: Mobility

Ankylosing Spondylitis, Mobility, San Antonio, Seizure, Texas

CONGRATS TO CHARLOTTE AND SERVICE DOG, “DAKOTA”!!!!!

CONGRATULATIONS TO CHARLOTTE AND HER NOW SERVICE DOG, “DAKOTA”!!!!!

Laurie is SO proud of all the amazing work 17 year-old Charlotte and her SD Dakota have done – they are both wise beyond their years!

Charlotte was diagnosed with Ankylosing Spondylitis at the tender age of 12. Is an inflammatory disease that can cause some of the vertebrae in your spine to fuse together. This fusing makes the spine less flexible and can result in a hunched-forward posture. Charlotte’s started in her hips, and has had increasing limited mobility in her spine due to AS. She also started developing seizures, and periods where she is very dizzy and loses her sight. She also experiences migraines about twice per week. These are all common in patients with AS. Ankylosing spondylitis has no known specific cause, though genetic factors seem to be involved. In particular, people who have a gene called HLA-B27 are at significantly increased risk of developing AS. Charlotte’s neurologist started her many months ago on a prescription medication especially for AS, but it can also cause side effects that often mimic problems directly from AS. Unfortunately, the medication did exacerbate all of Charlotte’s symptoms – the seizures, sight problems, dizziness – so now, she is off the medication, but it takes up to a year to get out of her system completely. At that point, any damage that has been done usually goes away – but there is a SMALL possibility that the damage from the drug might be permanent. I told Charlotte she will NOT be one of those who is affected permanently! Positive outlook always!!!! Her wonderful mother, Amy, is dedicated to following through with all Charlotte’s doctors looking for an answer and hoping for recovery – which I believe will happen just because Charlotte’s positivity and her dedication to keep moving and trying is the first step!!

Charlotte is a beautiful, gentle, kind, and always cheerful (at least when I see her, her mom says) young lady, who has an incredibly wonderful bond with her now Service Dog, Dakota – a lab mix. Charlotte currently uses a walker with a seat to help her keep stablized, and so that she can sit when she starts to get dizzy or tired. But she has pushed through every training session no matter how she is feeling – and Dakota has learned to do everything she needs to to help them pass the Public Access Test!

We held the test at Bass Pro Shop – my favorite place for PATs. They performed each and every part of the test flawlessly! Charlotte has a soft voice, but has learned to make it sound assertive when she is giving Dakota commands. Dakota did a wonderful sit/stay and down/stay even with all the activity around her! (I purposefully picked 5 pm to do the test hoping the store would be bustling – which it was). Dakota heels perfectly next to Charlotte’s walker, even when she did the “drop leash” portion! That was difficult for Charlotte because she has trouble bending over to pick up the leash, but she did it! We also played some hid and seek to make sure that if Dakota strayed for any reason, she would immediately come back to Charlotte.

We did several meet and greets with male and female adults and with children, and now Dakota can stay in a “sit” position (Charlotte makes sure Dakota is in a sit before any petting is allowed), and everyone just loved Dakota! It’s hard for Dakota to keep her wiggly little behind still when she meets people because she is so friendly, but she manages to keep it down for the meet and greets! They can navigate through tight aisles, around “obstacle courses” with Dakota in a maintained heel, and Dakota even loved the elevator! Charlotte knows how to enter and exit elevators with her walker making sure Dakota’s body and tail make it through the doors safely. Dakota watched the fish in the pond, did not startle at all by created distractions, and could walk right by dropped treats when Charlotte told her to “leave it”.

Dakota is wonderful at restaurants – one time they were seated right next to the kitchen door where waiters were constantly going by – and she stays in perfect position! One thing I wanted to work hard on that is not on the test is having Dakota walk up and down the stairs with Charlotte, because at home, Charlotte has to use whatever she can to stabilize her as she moves, and she has to come down the stairs backward so she doesn’t fall forward. So I first walked Dakota VERY slowly up the stairs with one hand on the railing – step, wait, step, wait – and Dakota stayed near my leg and patiently walked up the stairs. Then, we did the same coming down the stairs backward – step, wait, step, wait – trying to keep Dakota as close to my leg but not getting in the way so I could possibly trip over her. Then Charlotte practiced this, and they did so well!! They will continue to work on this at home, so that eventually, Dakota will act as a counterbalance next to Charlotte’s leg as she also holds onto the rail.

I gave Dakota extra points for behaving perfectly in the handicapped bathroom stall with Charlotte, where she stayed still and wasn’t fazed by the air dryer!!

I am SO, SO proud of this wonderful team. Charlotte will be attending college when she graduates from her special high school, and her mother’s biggest fear is that Charlotte might have a seizure when in the shower and hurt herself. So, even though we finished the PAT, we will continue to work on things like seizure alerts (Charlotte laughed when I told her she is going to have to fake them so I can teach Dakota to respond properly!)

In one remarkable twist of fate, when we were getting off the elevator, we met a Wounded Warrior who had the same type of walker as Charlotte. He had suffered severe TBIs and had 3 brain surgeries. The woman that was with him saw how his eyes lit up when he saw Charlotte and Dakota together, and the woman with him told us how much he would love a Service Dog – but that he had been told by another organization he was not eligible because he had a walker! We talked extensively to them about this, and although he had difficulty speaking, he was able to communicate how much he would love to have a Service Dog, especially one that was as hypoallergenic as possible, and he was able to speak some slow but clear sentences. The woman with him said that this was the most clearly she had heard him speak for a long time! He was so gentle and smiled so much petting Dakota. It was a truly beautiful moment. They happened to be going to a meeting for Wounded Warriors on the top floor of the Bass Pro Shop, and the woman asked for as many business cards as I could give her so that she could talk about what she witnessed with Charlotte to the other Wounded Warriors!

Again, congratulations to this beautiful team. They are truly an inspiration to me and to everyone who meets them!

ADA Rights, Equipment, Experience, Military, Mobility, PTSD, San Antonio, Texas, Veteran, Wounded Warrior

Update from Denise, a Vietnam Era Wounded Warrior

It’s truly wonderful to hear news from our clients about how their Service Dogs continue to help them in ways they didn’t even expect – this is a result of consistent training even after they have passed the Public Access Test and BONDING!!!!

From our client, Denise, a Wounded Warrior from the Vietnam Era who passed her Public Access Test with the help of trainer, Brenda, and her Service Dog, Sandy! Denise is wheelchair-bound, and that does not inhibit her!!! This also highlights the importance of letting Laurie contact the airlines for you when you are traveling.

“Good Afternoon Laurie! Sandy and I are doing well also. As you can tell Sandy and I are on the road again. We are on our way to Houston for our family reunion, so I need your help again with arrangements for our trip. Whenever you contact the airport for me things run so much smoother, and I really appreciate that help from you. So I am sending you our itinerary for our trip and I would appreciate your help again.

I wanted to tell you something about the training I received for Sandy. I know Sandy was trained to help me with my PTSD, but I had no idea how well she understood her role until I got back from California. About two weeks after I returned, for some reason I had a meltdown. I was hysterically crying and unable to stop. All of a sudden, I started calling for Sandy; the next thing I knew I heard her jump out of her chair, come running through the apartment, jumped and flew through the air, jumped on top of me and pressed herself on me and held me down to calm me down, and she didn’t leave until I calmed down enough to fall asleep. It happened a second time and she did the same thing again. So I want to thank you again for your training course! Thank you so much for your help and understanding.”

Doesn’t something like that just fill your heart with joy?

Depression, Medical Alert, Mobility, Pain Management, Panic Attack, Rheumatoid Arthritis, San Antonio, Texas

Update on Natalie

Laurie is training with dear Natalie, who suffers from multiple disabilities including extreme rheumatoid arthritis, heart conditions, has had over 20 surgeries in her young life for various conditions, and must use a cane, walker, or wheelchair even in the house. But she and her father, who himself suffers from deafness and early onset Alzheimer’s, have saved five dogs that have shown up over the years on their front steps – despite their fragile financial issues. They both often say that once the dogs are taken care of, whatever money is left, they use for food, to pay medical co-pays, and to keep their electricity on. It’s just a joy to be around people who care so deeply about all God’s creatures.

Laurie writes:

I initially went to their home to help train Natalie’s father’s little buddy to help with hearing as a Service Dog. But he saw how much Natalie was suffering just walking, and he suggested we focus on training Pearl, a gorgeous, gentle, and extremely intelligent Yellow Labrador for mobility for Natalie. I asked him many times if that was what he wanted – but he wanted his daughter taken care of first. Just beautiful people.

We have already had two sessions with Pearl. Our second session was at a very busy Walmart. Thanks to the generous donations of individuals through the GoFundMe account I set up for Natalie (she is too prideful to ask for help, so I did it for her!), Pearl now has a beautiful blue vest with a handle that Natalie can use to help stabilize herself if she needs extra help when her cane or walker are not readily available. Pearl did exquisitely!!!! Pearl just heels alongside Natalie no matter what assistive device she is using. Pearl never pulls, doesn’t react at all to distractions (created or accidental), keeps her focus on Natalie, is both treat and love-motivated, and does meets and greets with adult males and females and children in the most beautifully gentle way I could imagine. She will go into an automatic sit, and just let everyone love on her – and boy, do the people she meets get such joy from being able to hug her!!

After only two sessions, Pearl can “sit”, “down”, “sit/stay”, “down/stay”, “leave it”, “meet and greet”, “navigate through tight corners with Natalie’s walker”, walk in a perfect “heel” next to a shopping cart, will “leave” snacks set down before her when told to, “let another person take her as she heels”, do beautiful “meet and greets” with any other dog and remain completely non-reactive – it’s just amazing. I am so proud of both of them. The key to this amazing work is undoubtedly the love Pearl feels from Natalie. That’s the thing about rescue dogs – they are so grateful to have been saved – and if given the proper amount of bonding time and unconditional love, they will give back tenfold. That’s Pearl and Natalie.

Here are some pictures. I didn’t have my camera on me at the last session, but Natalie’s dad took some pictures yesterday with his shaky hands of the two of them – so although they are blurry, you can see the love. That’s all that matters.

Mobility, San Antonio, Texas

Regina and SDIT, “Baby”

From our trainer, Beverli, who is working with Regina and her SDIT, “Baby”, a Chocolate Labrador. Regina has severe mobility issues and is usually in a wheelchair.

Beverli writes:

“Regina and I worked on desensitizing Baby to other animals in Petsmart, including other dogs, cats, birds and small mammals. We purposely encountered dogs that were not friendly, and taught Baby to ignore them and continue working/walking. She is getting better at that, but we will still need to work on desensitizing Baby to other dogs.

Baby seems to have improved greatly heeling next to Regina’s wheelchair and maneuvering around objects and in tight spaces.
Between now and the next session, Regina and Baby need to visit Petsmart/Petco several times to work on ignoring other dogs, and redirecting Baby into “work mode”. At our next session, we will also working on retrieval commands to help Baby pick up items that Regina might drop.”

Mobility, Pain Management, PTSD, San Antonio, TBI, Texas, Veteran, Wounded Warrior

2 Wounded Warriors – Father and Son

Laurie writes:

I had two sessions with Dale, who is a Wounded Warrior from the Vietnam Era, and Dale’s son, Sean, who just retired from active duty after 20 years. They both have dogs that they would like to be trained as Service Dogs. This was very interesting – and challenging – training two clients at once! But it was beautiful, because Sean is so tuned in to his father’s needs that he helps with the training.

Dale suffers from PTSD, two TBIs with neck and shoulder damage, bulged cervical discs, low back disc damage with radicular pain through his right leg from the back to his foot. He also suffers from chronic migraines and many other TBI symptoms, including memory loss. He recently moved from his hometown in Oregon to be with his son due to his condition. His SDIT is a rescue named “Piper”. He would like Piper to help with retrieving items off the floor, mobility, balance, stability when a migraine hits, and PTSD including bereavement after recently losing his wife of many years. Unfortunately, Piper, whom Dale chose from the shelter, is not large enough to help a lot with mobility – but we will do the best we can.

Dale’s son, Sean, suffers from PTSD and TBI. His SDIT is an absolutely gorgeous German Shepherd name “Calvin”. Calvin already knows many commands, so when we had our second session at PetSmart, we focused more on Dale and Piper. I suggested that Dale use a shopping cart to balance when walking with Piper instead of using his cane. This seemed to help him. Piper knows some commands, such as “sit”, “down”, “stay”, and is learning to heel and “leave it”. Piper is an extremely curious dog, so focusing on the “leave it” part will be essential.

Sean and Calvin did a wonderful job. Calvin was not heeling well on a regular collar, so we switched to a different collar and very soon, Calvin was heeling perfectly! Calvin knows several commands, such as “sit”, “down”, “stay”, “leave it”, and makes wonderful eye contact with Sean. We did several meet and greets, and Piper was excited and friendly, so we must work on his ability to stay still. Calvin is a very, very calm German Shepherd who doesn’t get rattled or excited easily. In fact, he likes to do a few commands then just lay down on the floor and rest!

Our next session will be at a Walmart. I want Piper to get used to Dale in a motorized wheelchair. We will continue to work on Calvin’s commands at Walmart as well.

We owe so much gratitude to this family who for generations has dedicated their lives to serving our country!

ADA Rights, Experience, Military, Mobility, PTSD, San Antonio, Texas, Veteran, Wounded Warrior

Update from Vietnam Vet – Denise

It’s truly wonderful to hear news from our clients about how their Service Dogs continue to help them in ways they didn’t even expect – this is a result of consistent training even after they have passed the Public Access Test and BONDING!

From our client, Denise, a Wounded Warrior from the Vietnam Era who passed her Public Access Test with the help of trainer, Brenda, and her Service Dog, Sandy! Denise is wheelchair-bound, but she tries not to let that inhibit her!!! This also highlights the importance of letting Laurie contact the airlines for you when you are traveling.

“Good Afternoon Laurie! Sandy and I are doing well also. As you can tell Sandy and I are on the road again. We are on our way to Houston for our family reunion, so I need your help again with arrangements for our trip. Whenever you contact the airport for me things run so much smoother, and I really appreciate that help from you. So I am sending you our itinerary for our trip and I would appreciate your help again.

I wanted to tell you something about the training I received for Sandy. I know Sandy was trained to help me with my PTSD, but I had no idea how well she understood her role until I got back from California. About two weeks after I returned, for some reason I had a meltdown. I was hysterically crying and unable to stop. All of a sudden, I started calling for Sandy; the next thing I knew I heard her jump out of her chair, come running through the apartment, jumped and flew through the air, jumped on top of me and pressed herself on me and held me down to calm me down, and she didn’t leave until I calmed down enough to fall asleep. It happened a second time and she did the same thing again. So I want to thank you again for your training course! Thank you so much for your help and understanding.”

Doesn’t something like that just fill your heart with joy?

Anxiety, Experience, Fibromyalgia, Mobility, San Antonio, Texas

Natalie and Pearl

Laurie had her first training session with Natalie, and her yellow Labrador, “Pearl”. Natalie is barely 30, but has endured over 20 surgeries in her lifetime. She has severe Rheumatoid Arthritis, and has many other autoimmune diseases that keep her in constant pain. She has to get bi-monthly infusions that have side effects similar to chemotherapy, so she is always feeling quite ill. However, she manages to take care of her dear father, who is deaf and has the beginnings of Alzheimer’s. They live off of meager disability payments each month despite their severe illnesses, but they have a passion for stray dogs – they have six right now that have over the years just shown up at their door. They pay for the dogs and all their shots and upkeep before they pay for their own food. It’s a sad situation, but somehow, they’ve made it work so far.

Laurie writes:

I initially went over to train Natalie’s dad’s “buddy” first as a hearing dog, but they decided that Natalie needed a dog for mobility more importantly. Luckily, Pearl, who showed up at their door about 2 years ago all skin and bones, is tall and strong enough to offer that mobility.

We had our first session at PetSmart. Natalie was there with Pearl, and her father came with his pup. I could not believe how well-behaved Pearl was! They initially had her on a harness, but Pearl could still pull Natalie, who has to use a cane, walker, or wheelchair to get around do to her many leg surgeries. So, we put on the right collar for Pearl, and she began heeling perfectly! We went all through PetSmart – Pearl acted as if she had been doing this for years! Natalie had her walker, and Pearl learned to maneuver with it just perfectly. Pearl was kind and gentle with other dogs, with children (would go into an automatic “sit”), with male and female adults, and never barked once. Pearl was not distracted by any noises I created, and was not even distracted by the cats there or the birds. She can “sit”, “down”, “stay”, “heel”, “control load and unload” into and out of the car, “wait” at doors, “leave it” (although she really didn’t focus on anything but Natalie), and she was fine with me taking her for a walk, too.

I showed Natalie how to use Pearl’s shoulders to brace when Natalie was having difficulty getting up from sitting positions or sitting down. Pearl also started learning “covers”, and responded very well. I also showed Natalie how to walk with Pearl if she didn’t have access to a walker by using Pearl as a brace against her leg.

All in all, it was an incredible first session for a dog that had never done any training outside the home! The session lasted quite a while, but Natalie’s dad was very patient and just strolled around the store with his scruffy little buddy! This team will pass the Public Access Test soon. We will need to work on “sit/stay” and “down/stay” quite a bit more, as Pearl wants to be near Natalie, but I don’t think this will take long. We also practiced tying Pearl to a shopping cart and Natalie used that while I took her walker, and Pearl navigated forward and backward and around tight corners extremely well!

Fibromyalgia, Mobility, San Antonio, Texas

Natalie, and her yellow Labrador, “Pearl”

Laurie had her first training session with Natalie, and her yellow Labrador, “Pearl”. Natalie is barely 30, but has endured over 20 surgeries in her lifetime. She has severe Rheumatoid Arthritis, and has many other autoimmune diseases that keep her in constant pain. She has to get bi-monthly infusions that have side effects similar to chemotherapy, so she is always feeling quite ill. However, she manages to take care of her dear father, who is deaf and has the beginnings of Alzheimer’s. They live off of meager disability payments each month despite their severe illnesses, but they have a passion for stray dogs – they have six right now that have over the years just shown up at their door. They pay for the dogs and all their shots and upkeep before they pay for their own food. It’s a sad situation, but somehow, they’ve made it work so far.

Laurie writes:

I initially went over to train Natalie’s dad’s “buddy” first as a hearing dog, but they decided that Natalie needed a dog for mobility more importantly. Luckily, Pearl, who showed up at their door about 2 years ago all skin and bones, is tall and strong enough to offer that mobility.

We had our first session at PetSmart. Natalie was there with Pearl, and her father came with his pup. I could not believe how well-behaved Pearl was! They initially had her on a harness, but Pearl could still pull Natalie, who has to use a cane, walker, or wheelchair to get around do to her many leg surgeries. So, we put on the right collar for Pearl, and she began heeling perfectly! We went all through PetSmart – Pearl acted as if she had been doing this for years! Natalie had her walker, and Pearl learned to maneuver with it just perfectly. Pearl was kind and gentle with other dogs, with children (would go into an automatic “sit”), with male and female adults, and never barked once. Pearl was not distracted by any noises I created, and was not even distracted by the cats there or the birds. She can “sit”, “down”, “stay”, “heel”, “control load and unload” into and out of the car, “wait” at doors, “leave it” (although she really didn’t focus on anything but Natalie), and she was fine with me taking her for a walk, too.

I showed Natalie how to use Pearl’s shoulders to brace when Natalie was having difficulty getting up from sitting positions or sitting down. Pearl also started learning “covers”, and responded very well. I also showed Natalie how to walk with Pearl if she didn’t have access to a walker by using Pearl as a brace against her leg.

All in all, it was an incredible first session for a dog that had never done any training outside the home! The session lasted quite a while, but Natalie’s dad was very patient and just strolled around the store with his scruffy little buddy! This team will pass the Public Access Test soon. We will need to work on “sit/stay” and “down/stay” quite a bit more, as Pearl wants to be near Natalie, but I don’t think this will take long. We also practiced tying Pearl to a shopping cart and Natalie used that while I took her walker, and Pearl navigated forward and backward and around tight corners extremely well!

Experience, Mobility, Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS), San Antonio, Texas

Lauren and Decker Update

From our lovely trainer, Cherry:

“Even though gorgeous Decker has passed his Public Access Test, Lauren likes to have follow-up training sessions and advice with new situations that might pop up. Young Lauren called for me to help her for when Lauren goes to Physical Therapy. Although her mother sits with Decker during the sessions, Lauren told me he whines and makes a fuss, and it doesn’t matter that he can clearly see Lauren just feet away. So I went along to their session to see what was happening and to try and help. Immediately I could see the problem. Lauren was handing the leash to her mother and then walking away with the Physical Therapist. What she wasn’t doing was letting Decker know what to do, and assuring Decker that all was fine. So I told her to tell Decker assertively to “Down” and “Stay”, which he did immediately and sat through the entire session without a peep!

Very often things like this really are just simple fixes, and now Lauren knows that when she goes for her Physical Therapy, she must let Decker know exactly what she wants from him.”

This is why it is SO important for clients to follow up with trainers for the life of the dog, as SDE promises in our contract, as does Cherry’s rescue, “In Dog We Trust” – Service Dog training never truly ends!

Mobility, San Antonio, Seizure, Texas

Charlotte and SDIT Dakota

Oh, what a joyous session once again as Laurie had the honor to train beautiful Charlotte and her SDIT, “Dakota”!!

Laurie writes:

As you might remember, 17 year-old Charlotte suffers from seizures, migraines, and severe Ankylosing Spondilitis (arthritis in back), which she has had since the age of 11. Charlotte has extremely limited mobility in her spine due to AS. Their neurologist is still trying to find a suitable medicine to help control her seizures, increasingly limited eyesight, and severe balance issues.

Charlotte’s twin sister, equally beautiful and brilliant, developed some arthritis a little later in age, and know suffers from Postural Orthostatic Tachycardic Syndrome (POTS). It’s definitely genetic. But Charlotte’s sister’s condition is not as extremely debilitating as Charlotte’s – and it’s so beautiful to watch how much she cares about her sister. She’s a little “jealous” of SDIT “Dakota”, because she wants a Service Dog, too! But she understands that Charlotte’s needs are imminent.

I just spoke with Charlotte’s mother, and poor Charlotte is currently at Methodist Children’s Hospital where they had to try FIVE times to bend her back properly for spinal taps! Can you imagine the pain? They ended up deciding to try it again later using fluoroscopy to try and get the needed fluid. She is scheduled for a two-hour MRI of her spine tomorrow, where she has to lie perfectly still to see if they see any lesions that might indicate MS. They tried doing the MRI today, but after 30 minutes, Charlotte could not stand the pain. So, tomorrow, when they have a special anesthetist on hand, they will sedate her so she can make it through the MRI. I am asking for prayers for dear Charlotte and her mother, who is taking such amazing care of her dear daughter (their father died in an accident a few years ago). PLEASE PRAY PRAY PRAY!!!

Anyway, Thursday, we had a very long session at Walmart, because the family will be travelling to Charlotte’s mother, Amy’s birthplace in England for a few weeks. I wanted to do a quite intensive session. SDIT Dakota will also be boarding at Petsmart, with the play days and all that fun stuff – but Amy was very keen and wrote a letter to Petsmart Boarding that I had permission to come and take Dakota out for training sessions regularly so that Dakota does not regress in her training. The socialization with other dogs will be wonderful for Dakota. She is almost 8 months, but she is improving so rapidly it’s unbelievable!!

I met them in a motorized cart, because I know that at times, that will be much easier for Charlotte to use instead of her walker in stores. We practiced with me scooting along aside Charlotte and Dakota at various paces, and Dakota quickly got used to having the cart beside her. Then, of course, I had Charlotte get into the motorized cart, showed her how to tie Dakota onto the handlebars so that Dakota had enough room to properly heel and sit if needed, but not enough where she could go in front of the cart. They did superbly!!! Charlotte was such a trooper!! I made her use the horn on the cart, go backward and have her trust that Dakota would find her proper footing, and soon, they were maneuvering in and out of small and large places, around “obstacle courses”, backing up, etc.

Dakota already knows “sit”, “down”, “sit/stay”, “down/stay”, “come”, “watch me”, “controlled load and unload”, is doing automatic “covers” for Charlotte, and has adjusted to her gait very well with the walker. We did several meet and greets with male and female adults, as well as children. Because Dakota is just a happy puppy still, she has trouble maintaining a “sit” position when meeting people, because she gets so excited. But when the do go to pet her, after asking permission, Dakota just gives them kisses and lets them pet all over her.

In one of these pictures, at the very end of the session, a Vietnamese mother and 4 year-old boy asked to pet Dakota. It was SO beautiful to watch. The little boy, who speaks only Vietnamese, was able to pronounce “Dakota”, and he petted her until she actually went into a down submissive position and it was just glorious to see.

One thing I wanted to practice with Dakota was what happens when Charlotte is walking without her walker at home. She has to use furniture, the walls, countertops, etc., to steady her as she tries to get to her destination. So, what I did is I took Dakota, made sure her plastic prong and leash were held tight enough and close enough to my legs so that she was always touching my legs. I chose an area in the grocery section of Walmart and practiced walking like Charlotte walks – with an extremely unsteady gait, using displays, the refrigerator section, and anything I could “bump” into (like I was drunk), making sure that Dakota was ALWAYS touching my legs – no matter how much I stumbled or if she had to switch sides to keep pressed against me. She did this perfectly. My goal – and their homework for the next session – is to have Charlotte practice walking without the walker at home but using Dakota as a brace against her legs to help steady her.

One other technique I thought about was when we practiced the sit/stay. Now, Dakota can do this perfectly when you put her in a sit/stay and walk away facing her or even if you turn your back to her and repeat “stay”. She does this at home beautifully. However, what I wanted to do was to have Dakota get into a “sit/stay”, walk away with my hand up for a long distance, and then, I flip my hand over and lower it and go BACK to Dakota while she stays in the sit/stay.

The reason I did this (I do it with every client, but there was a special need for this for Charlotte in my mind) is because when Charlotte walks up the stairs and puts Dakota in a sit/stay while she uses the railing for bracing, Dakota stays. However, when Charlotte comes back DOWN the stairs, backward, Dakota breaks her sit/stay – and I want Dakota to be able to maintain the sit/stay when Charlotte is coming toward Dakota so that if she ever has a seizure on the stairs, or needs Dakota to be there for extra support, Dakota will remain whether Charlotte is going away from Dakota or coming to Dakota. It’s a complicated process, and we will train at home with all of this next time, but I believe it will be essential for Charlotte’s safety as Dakota becomes her mobility dog.

We did have some fun – Dakota does NOT like hula hoops, so of course, I made her come as close to it as she could by pairing it with a treat literally on the top of the hoop. We also did this with a large red bouncing ball that scared Dakota. We put the treat on the ball as we advanced it slowly toward her, and by the end of this desensitization, Dakota loved the ball and they ended up buying it!!

Well, I know this has been a long write up, but it was a long, important session. I hope to hear some definitive results about the MRI tomorrow, and when they leave for England, the only concern they will have is if Charlotte has a seizure – but these airplanes are equipped to give Charlotte room to have the seizure which her mother and sister will control – and then Charlotte falls asleep.

Again, please ask for prayers.