dog

Our Education Begins!

Two aspects of Nigel have become immediately apparent.

1. He loves physical contact. His preference seems to be caressing under his chin, but this is closely followed by the top of his head; any neck area, shoulders and along his spine. The only area which he does not invite is his tummy area. He has no problem with a tummy rub, but does not roll over and invite such.

He also gives as readily as he receives. He has met a few people for the first time (who were clearly dog lovers), and had no reservations about reaching up to lick their faces! In our case, he so readily also licks hands and pretty much anything else within reach of his gentle tongue.

2. When we are sitting down and he wants to chill out, it is invariably on the floor at our feet. There does appear to be a strategy here in that he will place his head on (or up against) one of our feet. Any slight movement on our part triggers an alert on his part.

This could be simply him making sure that wherever we go, he has the chance to decide what he wants to do, but I rather suspect that this is trained into him. It would seem very important that a guide dog be always in contact with its owner and, while we know that Nigel was deemed to need a “Career Change”, I have to wonder whether that constant contact was in fact trained into him. Regardless, it is a positive boon because we always know where he is. (Memories of the opposite personality …. “Have you seen Ray lately? Did you leave any food on the counter in the kitchen?”).

“You think these front legs are long? You should see my back ones!”

So who is Nigel?

Nigel was born just over two years ago, and was taken into a training programme offered by our local Dog Guides training facility.  Unfortunately, while he apparently did respond quite well to the training, he did not meet the necessary minimum performance expectations of a future service dog. He was therefore deemed to be a “Career Change” dog and was posted on their website as available for adoption.

We met with the Dog Guides representative this afternoon, during which time his shortcomings were discussed, and it was ultimately agreed that we could foster him for a month. At the end of that time, we could either return him …. or proceed with a formal adoption of him.

He has only been here a very short time but his personality is starting to show already and, unless he really surprises us in a negative way, I think it is pretty safe to assume that he will be living with us for many years to come!

Some memory!

“Some memory” could be a facetious statement about my memory, which is showing distinct challenges as a result of aging, but my memory was not on my mind when I started this Post … but rather Ray’s memory!

When Ray moved into our home in 2013, we needed a way for him to tell us when he wanted to go outside (for body function reasons!).  He had no issue with using the garden as necessary,  but we were not always out there on his timing. Our solution was to hang a small bell on the handle of the back door, and showed him that when the bell rings … the door is opened. He caught on to that very fast and everything was fine until ……………………………..!

Ray decided that he wanted to go outside at around 1:00am one night and so he rang the bell. The door was opened for him and, with flashlight in hand (must look out for skunks, raccoons and foxes), he was lead out into the garden. If all was clear, then he was unclipped from his leash and allowed to do whatever he needed to do. After a number of “early hours” bell ringing, we realized that he simply wanted to be outside. He then started to resist coming back inside and, as we both needed our sleep, we had a decision to make.

Ray was estimated at 2 years old when he adopted us from our local shelter, so he was old enough to establish a routine for his body. He would relieve himself completely on his daily walks, so we thought that he should be encouraged to do the same before we go to bed.

A few days later, he rang the bell in the early hours, and he was ignored! His solution was to keep hitting the bell with his nose until somebody got up and took him outside ….. where he did nothing but lay down on the grass. The bell was subsequently removed from the door handle.

Ray, once again, adapted very well to his new circumstances. Now fast forward to August 2021, and Ray is now around 11 years old.

Carol was out shopping and I was sitting in our general kitchen area (the back of our home), so Ray would normally be curled up on one of his beds, or on “his” chair, or stretched out on the floor in front of the refrigerator! We now have a small flashlight hanging on the door handle.

I suddenly sensed some movement, and looked up just in time to see Ray side-swipe the small flashlight which went flying across the room. He then stood facing the back door, but with his head turned and looking at me. I can only conclude that he remembered  the bell routine from long ago!

Ray had a developed a single “Woof!” routine for when he wanted attention, so I can only assume that I did not hear him that time. Perhaps I was dozing?  🙂

Way to go Ray! You have always been one very special dog.

The Night Shift!

Due to some ongoing sleep issues, I tend to wake up around 5:00am totally “wired”, so I boot up the computer and get some work done. As a result, I am usually in bed by 10:00pm however, Carol is usually awake for another hour or two and so gets Ray’s undivided attention! Continue reading →

Let Sleeping Dogs … Part III

Ray has a rectangular cushioned bed in the end of our kitchen which he uses most nights and sometimes during the day. He could curl up on it quite easily, if he wanted to, but he often chooses not to. Instead he stretches out to his full length which dictates part of him is off the bed. Continue reading →