Dogs Got Souls

08/12/2024

Update and Announcement Post!

Hello all,

I sincerely apologize for not having posted on our social media since last year. I do think I have a very good reason that, hopefully, y'all will agree with. I'll elaborate more in the announcement part.

Let us first congratulate Breeze and Coco, both service dogs in training, for passing the tests and earning their CGC, CGCA, as well as CGCU titles; and Lilith, service dog in training, Cider, therapy dog in training, as well as Takeshi who might just be a little pet dog but can do just as much as the big dogs, for earning their CGC titles! 👏🥳💯

By the way, I want to be clear that the CGC series is the BARE MINIMUM when it comes to service dog training standards. That is why you see Breeze and Lilith showing off higher skills than what was required by the tests in the videos. Note that in Lilith's recall video, a bunny 🐰 actually ran across the Plaza behind them.

Next, check out some of the dogs we worked with this year, including rescue dogs who still need furever homes (if you're interested in adopting, please visit HTX Dog Rescue 🙏), service dogs in training, and beloved pet dogs who are just as important (reminder: proceeds from pet dog services go towards helping train rescue dogs and service dogs).

Now, the announcement... *drumroll 🥁*:
Dogs Got Souls is temporarily pausing all operations until further notice (hopefully just until the end of this year or the beginning of next year 😬).

I feel very bittersweet, but also quite excited because... We are actually expecting a new family member's arrival, and it's not a new pup or cat this time! As most of you already know, I'm the only person who runs DGS full time, which has regrettably gotten a lot more difficult now that I'm in the third trimester of pregnancy on top of having Narcolepsy 😔 So we made the decision to temporarily not operate until I recover from birth and things settle down with a newborn.

It's been yet another wonderful year meeting and working with all y'all amazing people and dogs. I'm already looking forward to coming back to work 😅 Thank you all for your continuous support up to now! Take care, everyone, and see y'all again soon 🙏❤️

12/29/2023

For all our clients who need to hear this 😉

Back before I was a dog trainer…

When I had a dog that suffered from pretty much every behavioral problem in the book…

I remember feeling a little deflated when I worked with my trainer.

It seemed like every time I handed them the leash…

My dog instantly snapped to attention…

Like he’d been in obedience training his entire life.

And then the moment the leash was back in my grasp…

My dog seemed to develop selective hearing…

Pulling all over the place…

And acting like I didn’t exist.

It was frustrating.

And it made me feel like my dog had more respect for my trainer.

And I was nothing more to him than a free meal.

I mean, I paid his bills, gave him the best care, fed him the best food, and he could care less about me.

And you know what?

That hurt.

These days…

Now that I’ve learned a thing or two…

It’s rare that I take the leash from my clients.

But it’s not uncommon when I do for my students to say things like “He’s SOOOOO much better for you”…

And then make that mean the dog likes me better…

Or make it mean they are no good at this.

But the truth is…

Your dog SHOULD be better for your trainer.

They have more experience than you.

Doing this is (or at least, should be) second nature for them.

But you are just starting out…

Even if you’ve been at this a few months…or even a few years…

Your trainer has (or at leash SHOULD have) more experience than you, with more types of dogs.

I mean, personally, I’ve been doing this for almost 20 years. I’d better be a decent handler by now 😉

And just because they HANDLE your dog more effectively than you do (because that’s really what this is about)…

That doesn’t mean your dog doesn’t love you.

It doesn’t mean you won’t be good at this.

And it certainly doesn’t mean you are a bad dog owner.

It just means your trainer is a more experienced handler.

So don’t worry if your dog behaves better for your trainer.

Worry if they don’t.

(Of course, assuming your dog has a relationship with your trainer 😉)

12/26/2023

Merry Christmas everyone!! 🎄🎅

11/24/2023

I am 10 minutes late, but Happy Thanksgiving everyone! Thank you all for your support and choosing Dogs Got Souls 🥰

08/27/2023

I was just trying to record Shiner and Takeshi playing because they were being super cute. Then I realized this video actually perfectly captures each personality of the 4 dogs.

So here are the 4 dogs of Dogs Got Souls:

Shiner always gives his best and goes hard at everything, including laying his head on the floor. He was not treated well and needed some rehabilitation, showed me his high intelligence as soon as he got here, was supposed to be sold as a service dog in training (before we became a nonprofit), and ended up staying for good.

His new best friend, Takeshi, who's about the same age, is the smallest but fiestiest and never passes up an opportunity to have fun; even though he is a rescue who was a scared little mess and barked his head off at me from his foster mom's arms the very first time he saw me. When I adopted him, my narcolepsy was acting up at its worst and I couldn't stay asleep for 2-3 hours for months. That first night after he settled down in my room, I slept for 4 hours straight.

Dia is true to her Newfoundland breed, the sweetest, most caring, natural nanny dog for both humans and pups alike. She may be 120 lbs and look intimidating to some, but she has one of the kindest temperament I've ever seen in a dog. She'll be 6 years old in about 3 months and I have never seen her get upset/mad about anything. She's helped me socialize many puppies and dogs who are reactive/scared of bigger dogs.

Last but definitely not the least, Dexter, my guardian angel, my heart, my soul, the awesomest service dog of all, the dog who's saved my life countless times, the best kind of dog anyone can have if they're lucky enough, always puts his job of taking care of me above all else. He is the reason I am the trainer I am today, the reason Dogs Got Souls can help other people and dogs.

Happy national dog day ❤️

P.S. I would also like to share the good news that Dogs Got Souls is now on the Fundraisers list of Facebook and Instagram, if any of our followers and supporters would like to utilize the function and help raise money for us to train service dogs for people with disabilities, and rehabilitate/train for local rescues so they could stay in foster homes and get adopted out sooner 🙏

08/11/2023

For those who haven't seen yet:
Texas service dog laws are updating!

The new laws will go into effect in September 1st.
The penalties of the misdemeanor for misrepresenting a service dog will be increased to a fine from $300 to $1000 and 30 hours of community service to a nonprofit or government agency service people with disabilities!

Why am I excited about this?

Well, thanks to:
1) the lack of education,
2) scam sites that sell service dog IDs and "registers service dogs" which has absolutely no legal standing (I know someone was actually able to register and get an ID for a jar of Nutella from one of those websites), and
3) people who brings their untrained dogs to non pet friendly places, claiming they're service dogs with one of those IDs;

Many people with disabilities and their trained service dogs have been wrongfully discriminated against and denied entry to many places that they have the legal rights to be in.

I myself have had to educate many places, especially restaurants, on the laws pertaining to service dogs:
1) You cannot request to see an ID or papers.
2) You can only ask the 2 questions: Is the dog a service dog that's required because of a disability? And what work or task is the dog trained to perform? (For the millionth time, the dog's presence providing comfort and emotional support does NOT count.)
3) If the dog is out of control, and the handler does not take effective actions to control it, or if it's not housebroken, you CAN and PLEASE DO kick them out, so that they don't disrupt or harm an actual service dog team (true horror events that happen more often than it should; multiple of my friends' and clients' service dogs have been attacked by untrained dogs in non pet friendly places).

I once was told by a restaurant "the last 'service dog' had an ID and it barked the whole entire dinner they were here. That's why we don't want to let your service dog in without an ID." Fortunately they finally listened, read the laws, saw how well Dexter was behaving, seated us, and thanked me when we were leaving.

Of course, how the laws will be enforced is yet to be seen.

Once, I went to a local restaurant where the manager refused to look at the laws and kicked us out for not having an ID, even though they didn't even see my service dog tucked under the table at first. I called the police non-emergency line, only to receive a call back from the dispatch officer telling me he's not coming because he's a veteran who uses a service dog, IDs are definitely required, and I shouldn't believe what the GOVERNMENT WEBSITE says because it's online 🤦‍♀️ I had to leave. I did later ask a recently retired police officer what to do, and he instructed me to call the sheriff to educate the officer, and informed me to call the dispatch line again next time because an officer should at least come document the case. It is also a misdemeanor to wrongly discriminate and deny a service dog under Texas state law.

Wanting to prevent this happening to other service dog handlers, I then reported the incident to the Department of Justice. The response I received was disheartening. They receive too many complaints like this and although they're not discrediting my case, they regretfully couldn't take every case and so cannot do anything unless others reported the restaurant as well. They provided me with a list of local legal aids, who then informed me that although I qualified for financial help, they also regretfully could not take every case.

That is why our missions at Dogs Got Souls include raising awareness and educating as many people as we can.

Thank you for reading this post. I have a favor to ask. If you notice a dog displaying inappropriate behaviors in a non pet friendly place and the handler doesn't try to keep the dog under control (such as barking at people, licking groceries that other customers might buy, riding in a grocery cart where customers put their food, or sitting on a chair at a table inside restaurants which are against FDA Food Code for obvious reasons), please inform the authorities to take actions! 🙏

If enough people voice their concerns for places to educate themselves on the law, and what is appropriate, I believe things will change. Not only will this make the lives of people who truly needs their trained service dog for their disabilities much easier, you'll also have the peace of mind that you're not buying something or eating somewhere that's unsanitary. Let's keep each other safe.

Here is the link to the Texas governor's website pertaining to Texas service dog laws:
https://gov.texas.gov/organization/disabilities/assistance_animals

- Sincerely, a service dog handler/trainer who is sick and tired of being told "the last dog had an ID," being discriminated against, being barked/lunged at by another pet dog, and hearing horror stories of how a service dog got attacked by a fake service dog.

Picture of Dexter tucked under the chair while we were waiting at a clinic. A service dog should be out of the way as much as possible, so this behavior is a must for all service dogs to learn.