We did a late night session with Meeko and were having a fun time with doing “Getting help & pawing” and “Retrieving”, items like keys, markers, her leash and water bottles. She was hesitant to pick up the water bottles at first, especially if they were full, so Kim started her on empty bottles and we will work on adding more and more water to the bottles. She was so cute and if she couldn’t lift the water bottle, she’d immediately pick up her leash and give that to you instead. Lol! Kim is an amazing service dog trainer and I am beyond grateful to have her on board to show me the world of service dog training. Yesterday on our public access outing, I told her that it’s honestly such an inconvenience to have to take your dog everywhere with you and I really feel for service dog teams. They need their dogs! But getting harassed by people wanting to touch them, loose dogs in stores (we had that happen in Home Depot the other day with a GSD off leash), barking, yapping dogs (had it happen in Home Goods) that don’t belong in stores to little kids trying to pet the dogs or people sneaking behind your back to pet your dog...it’s really annoying. And if you’re not feeling good and have to deal with an illness, plus protect your dog and all the training you put into it; I can honestly see why a lot of service dog owners would just rather not go out, when all they want is to have a normal life. So...if you see a service dog, please do not pet it. Please do not ask to pet it. Please do not make kissy noises. The dog is not there for your ego. The dog is there to save their human. And the big one, please don’t take your non-service dogs out to a store if it’s not dog friendly and your dog is reactive and keep your dog on leash. Please DO smile and admire from a distance. Please DO teach kids that the dog is working for their human to make their life better and as normal as possible! And please DO have respect for service dog teams and give them space.
