Yes. You are judged you by how well you can write.

There’s nothing that is more frustrating (to me) than a “professional” who doesn’t have good written communication skills.  I’m sure you’ve seen this person before on your Facebook feed, in emails — and yes, even text messages. What’s the big deal, you might be asking yourself? I’ll tell you what the big deal is.

If you are a business owner, or someone who is aspiring to be a reputable business owner, then you are constantly being judged by how well you present yourself through written communication — which includes your presence via email, social media and text messaging. 

It’s super cute to tell your friend “Hey, how are u doing 2day?” Not so appropriate to ask your client in the same fashion. Has texting and social media given some people the false sense of security that you can be casual or sloppy with the way you write just because you’re not  sending  “official” correspondence to anyone? That brings me to wonder what business owners or other aspiring professionals consider to be “official” correspondence. Well, here’s my take — all of it. 

Did you get that? I said all of it. Everything you type, post, write — is immortalized for all of time in the minds of the people you are sharing content with. Every typo you make or shortcut you decide to take is a reflection of you. When you post something on social media and it’s apparent you did not take the time to re-read what you posted, because the errors would have been so blatantly obvious if you had re-read it out-loud to yourself, you are indicating to your audience that you simply don’t give a $%^&. Yes. I did just say that. When you can’t take the time to proof-read the material you write, I am judging you. And something tells me I’m not the minority opinion. If you don’t care, why should I? If you don’t care about your own professional image, then why should I care about you and your business? 

Successful people prefer to do business with others whom they perceive as successful. So….how does your audience perceive you? How do you want your audience to perceive you? 

Tonight’s business advice is this: Please consider carefully how the content that you publish affects people’s perception of you. It’s quite possible that you are holding yourself back from being perceived as the outstanding professional you truly are simply  because you can’t be bothered to use punctuation correctly.

So please, before you rant, ramble or decide to just casually send something into cyber space — stop and think: How does this affect the way that I am perceived by other professionals?

May your 1st grade teacher be with you. Always. 

 

Visit our new website – Dog and Puppy Training in Miami Florida

Visit us online at www.applauseyourpaws.com 

Dig Your Heart Out

My day starting off as it typically does. Alarm goes off, I hit sleep about 4 times, and an hour later I finally make it downstairs to let the dogs out for their morning pee pee. Marty acts as if he hasn’t seen me in a lifetime as usual, while Oxford hurries outside to start mosquito catching. Zoe, the worlds best dog, quickly and quietly does her business –hurrying back inside to sit politely in front of her food bowl.

I was pleasantly surprised upon arriving at my 9am appointment when not only was I met with owner enthusiasm but a dog who didn’t jump on me as much as he did the week prior upon my arrival. Good implementation of trainer recommendations at it’s finest! Since last week the dog mastered a verbal cue only “down,” and this morning during our power lesson (thirty minutes) began learning “place,” using a bath mat as a target spot.

Every now and again I realize that a majority of my clients are women, which doesn’t surprise me granted that woman are more reception to positive reinforcement training (stereotypically) than men. So nothing makes my day more than having two women back to back who are so enthusiastic and determined to train their dogs. There is a certain something, at least for me, about dog training that is empowering. It has little to do with being able to “control” another animal, but more about being so dedicated to something, so patient and steady that another animal willingly performs to please. You’ll often hear me say “you can’t teach a dog tricks with a prong collar.” At least, I don’t think you can. What motivation does an animal have to do something fun like a trick if when they get it wrong they are punished or feel discomfort? Part of the fun in teaching dogs tricks is watching them struggle, be a little frustrated, silly and wild…to then figure it out and win that tasty dog treat. That aha moment dogs experience is the best part of dog training, and why I love having new dogs to train.

So although it took nearly 30 minutes during my second lesson of the day to teach the “speak” command to the worlds sweetest yorkie mix, it was refreshing and exhilarating when he finally figured out what we wanted him to do!

My day continued on, and was filled with desk work, a trip to the bank and of course Starbucks. I took a nap on my “lunch break” to recharge for evening lessons, which is often necessary. The only bad thing about being a dog trainer is that you can’t even fool the dogs if you are tired and not into the training. There are days that even I feel exhausted, and need a little reboot in order to do my job effectively!

The last client of the evening was a bouncy-go-jumpy labrador. I think my favorite part of working with labrador retriever clients is their misconception that labs are the best family dog, which they interpret to mean “the easiest dog to keep.” ::buzzer sounds:: My friend, you are incorrect! I’ll take “labs are some of the craziest most  hyper dogs on the planet” for $200. Well, at least until they’re adults. And even then your lab may still be a raging goofball whose otter tail still knocks things off your coffee table. Yet another glass of Chardonnay, macaroni, and/or pudding on the floor. The fun never ends.

I think what people mean to say about the Labrador is that they are the best family dogs BECAUSE of their genuine love of people, life, and inanimate objects. Even when not socialized a lot, labs are likely to still love people, other dogs, kids, grandma, whoever. Hell, labs love rocks, frogs, pools. Labs are just loving dogs. I think that is where the confusion in.

So to that note, bouncy-go-jumpy labrador is digging holes along the fence line. He’s also unaltered, young, and has zero play with other dogs. Because of allergies in the family, he lives primarily outdoors or in the A/C’d garage. So far in two sessions we’ve upped his backyard enrichment with appropriate chew toys and started some “no jump” training with the young kids in the family to help teach leapy labradoo that running up to people and stopping is preferable to running up to people and bulldozing them over. Oh the memories of my young labby. This week’s recommendations to curb the digging include getting him his own sandbox and installing some chicken wire below the dirt line near the fence. I can only hope that when I return next week I continue to see improvement, because overall he’s just a lab. A really, really good lab. Just labby!. And there’s nothing wrong with that.

"I will do whatever you want to do as long as I'm with you!" - Our Labrador Oxford

“My dog sits or lays down and refuses to go for a walk.”

Ok, firstly, let’s try something new here. Since I can’t seem to want, or have the energy some days, to get emotionally involved in a post about my prison pups (who are doing GREAT and are only a few weeks from graduation!!!), I decided I would blog about dog training in general when I actually felt like writing. Wish me luck!

One of my cases today included a four-month old french bulldog puppy who puts on the brakes when his owners want to take him out for a walk. First things first, he’s  a four-month old puppy. Meaning, he is just BARELY a puppy, but closer to the ever so obnoxious stage of adolescence. Secondly, he’s a Frenchie — characterized by strong will and “stubbornness.” Stubborn, although a human characteristic, is often a word that is used to describe dogs. But remember that dogs don’t rationalize the way we do. They either like to do something, or don’t like to do something. And, there are specific things that cause them to either desire or not desire to do those things. Using my super canine training detective skills, here’s what I think regarding the little frenchie that just wont budge:

– he’s recently  moved from a cooler climate to Miami

– he’s a brachycephalic breed. Or, a “push face” dog, meaning that breathing is already difficult. Try breathing on a hot day.

-dogs are already over 100 degrees at their normal operating temperature. You think it’s hot? Try being a dog on a 90degree summer day in Miami.

-his coat is black

Just these things alone lead me to guess that his desire to go for a walk has nothing to do with whether or not he’ll have the opportunity to greet a friendly stranger or meet a new puppy friend, but instead whether or not he’ll overheat, his paw pads will hurt him on the hot pavement and if there will be access to water when, not if, he needs it. He WILL need it.

And then, I come to learn that he only does the doggie pancake or donkey planting move when he’s in the neighborhood. If he’s taken somewhere new, fun and novel, he walks like an angel. So, it all make sense! His desire to stay cool outweighs his desire to walk in the every day “boring” area he has already sniffed around in. But, put him somewhere new and novel with new sights, sounds, and smells, and suddenly being hot is just something he’s going to have to put up with in order to enjoy the new and exciting environment. Not to say that he won’t get tired quickly, but he’s more likely to suck it up and go. Makes sense, yes?

Trust me, there’s nothing I hate more than telling a dog owner that I think there’s nothing wrong with their dog and that the dog is just hot, but it’s the truth! Not to mention that he’s a young boy with an attitude, and is more likely to exhibit “i don’t wanna” type behaviors at this age than when he was just a month younger. Puppies under 16 weeks are so compliant, unbothered, and jolly. Puppies merging with adolescence? Try getting a teenage girl to talk to her mom. It’s about the same sort of struggle. Then again this isn’t a good comparison for me because I happened to be one of those girls that always loved talking to her mom. I digress.

So what’s the solutions if your dog is like Mr. Frenchie?

-Walk your dog at dawn and dusk. Other trips outside should just be for potty, ideally not too far away from shade, water and access to air conditioning. You will be surprised to learn that your dog doesn’t exhibit the same behaviors when the temperature is significantly cooler

-Allow your dog to walk in the shade, even if you have to go out of your way to ensure his paw pads stay cool. Remember that dogs don’t have heat receptors like we do. This means they don’t sense “hot.” By the time they feel pain it’s already too late…their paws are literally scalding.

-Take water with you and offer it to your pooch frequently

-If your dog puts on the breaks do not hesitate, keep walking! After all, you DO need to get to wherever it was that you’re going right? And, he is attached to you, right? So realistically, you’re either the one who is allowing him to stop and shut down or keep moving. If we look at the principles of negative reinforcement they tell us this:

A tight leash = bad dog

A loose leash = good dog

So, when our dog puts on the breaks and we slow down to accommodate and loosen the leash we are essentially reinforcing the “bad” (although bad is subjective because I don’t think wanting to stop because you’re hot is bad at all!) behavior. Instead, if your dog puts on the breaks, do your best to keep some tension in the leash. Gently pull  or tug forward until your doggie starts moving and THEN create slack in the leash. This way you’re reinforcing your doggie for moving forward. This should be coupled with LOTS of praise, and maybe water too! If you have a brachycephalic breed like a bulldog, boxer, pug, etc, I would strongly suggest you only be walking your dog with a harness, especially when it’s hot out. My favorite for summer are harnesses with a metal ring in the front so that you can use it LIKE an Easy Walk front clip harness, or something like a pupia harness which is very comfortable and can be left on your dog for extended periods of time. The reason I say “like” and Easy Walk harness is because not all breeds, depending on the size of their chest, fit comfortably into an Easy Walk.

If you have a donkey for a dog, I look forward to hearing from you :) And remember, you don’t have to be rough (RUFF!) to teach your dog stuff.

xo, Doggie Deeva

The truth about love & affection

So I’m listening to Celine Dion’s Falling Into You album (old school!) right now. I put it on while I was showering and doing my make up, hair, etc. Sam and I are about ready to go out on a date to Carrabas. I know, fancy right? Ha. While I was doing my mascara I couldn’t help but notice that baby Trooper, the Australian Shepherd puppy that I am raising for my parents, was sleeping quietly at my feet. Oxford was in the doorway watching me and the other two dogs were downstairs, likely chewing on their bones or lounging in their doggie beds. But here’s baby Trooper, just 18 weeks old, on his best behavior. In fact, he is always on his best behavior. Well, except for when he poops in the house but that’s just bound to happen at his age! After all, he is IS a puppy! And puppies will be puppies, and humans will make mistakes when it comes to house training. Even I’m not perfect.

That’s where I got to thinking about the biggest mistake that puppy owners make and how without really realizing it until this evening I have managed to train the perfect puppy thus far. Mid mascara I paused to bend down and give Trooper a pet on the head and a scratch along his collar line (which he LOVES!), and it hit me:

Puppy owners love too much.

Simply put, puppy owners spend more time loving, playing, kissing, baby talking, touching and giving affection to their new best friends then enforcing manners, doing training and teaching puppy etiquette. As I reached down to pet Trooper it occurred to me that I can count the number of times I’ve been affectionate with him on one hand. That’s right, ONE hand! Obviously the number of times I’ve touched him or scratched him as praise isn’t included in this number. I’m talking flat out affection just “because.” Low and behold, I have a 18 week old puppy who is equally as well mannered as my 7, 5.5 and 2yr old dogs. The only difference is he acts silly, is still learning he’s not allowed to chew shoes and slowly but surely is getting better at holding his pee pee until he’s given access to go outside.

As a professional trainer, expectations for him and for any dog in my house for that matter, are high. Very high. So as I leaned down to give him a pet just “because,” it was as if I was looking into his eyes for the first time since he’s lived with us (just a little over a month). They are soft, light brown with almost a hint of grey. He is extreemly affectionate, attentive and hard working. This past month, he has worked very hard to finally earn his pet just “because.” Come to think of it, I’ve hardly talked to him at all if not in reference to training. And now that I think of it, I don’t really talk to any of my dogs conversationally!! I guess I make up for that with the amount of talking I do with humans ;)

Over this next month I fully intend to cuddle and pet Trooper more, and more. To scratch his tummy just because he likes it and to give him kisses on his muzzle simply for his pleasure. Yet, the truth of the matter is — we only have one chance to raise our dogs right from the start. To prevent bad habits, reward good behavior and set lifelong expectations of canine etiquette. So although some may call it cruel and unusual punishment to with hold affection, I call it necessary training and will power for the greater good and human-animal bond! What is a few months of doing it right in the grand scheme of having a forever companion? Just as I don’t intend for him to be crated forever, I don’t intend to strategically withhold affection forever. The truth is, by with holding affection thus preventing the creation of a spoiled dog, I’m guaranteeing a lifelong of happiness and joy without stress by ensuring training came first. He has the next 10-14 years to be hugged on. So until he’s finished learning all his basics, I’m using my love strategically.

Hot not bothered

Miami's finest service dog trainers

 

 

After a few hours of no power in my office yesterday I decided that I would give my guys a surprise visit. I often times wonder if, even a year later, they are on their best behavior when they anticipate my visits, or if in fact what I see is who they are each day of the week. To a certain extent one has to know that they do put on their smiling faces and courteous attitudes when I walk into the room. After all, to most of them I am the only visitor they will ever get. As the year came and went, there have been only two inmates in my program who have received a visitor. To Frankenberry’s dismay, Hallie Barry never did visit.

As I was escorted through the compound by a friendly female officer I could see a few dogs and their trainers out in the recreation yard, a few walking along the compound sidewalks at a perfect heel and one playing fetch in the play yard. I smiled thinking about how they had no idea I was watching –and for a moment, it was so nostalgic watching them go about their day unsuspecting of my presence. I entered the dorm through the back laundry door, per the usual, and adverted my eyes like always whenever I hear the showers running. Knowing that there might be inmates showering or in the bathroom –completely exposed — I’ve learned not to be embarrassed because it is what it is. I just walk in, and look the other oppositive direction. Always look the opposite direction!

Rease, Lee and Frankenberry were all inside lounging on their beds reading a newspaper or book. This is where Frankenberry confesses that he subscribes to Oprah magazine and loves it. Their dogs quietly greeted me with a tail wag and those super soft brown eyes. The guys’ faces lit up when they realized it was me and not another guard. My arrival always spreads like wildfire, so within a few minutes everyone had been alerted through the inmate grapevine and was back inside the dorm to say hello. Frankenberry was in one of the most cheerful and silly moods I’ve seen him in in a long time, and Mellor was strangely happy too. I’ve gotten used to Mellor’s unsettling demeanor, as he rarely smiles unless it’s slyly. For the first thirty minutes of my visit we all stood near the back windows where a warm breeze reliably flows through. Even on the hottest days of summer you can find relief standing in this drafty spot as the only inmate occupied building that is A/C is the chapel. We talked and caught up –discussed new articles from the APDT’s Chronicle of the Dog that they received last week. About three weeks ago they started attending group therapy sessions with a professional psychologist — a conflict management course. They reported that class has been going great and that together they are working out a lot of “superficial bullshit.” Maybe the therapy sessions with Dr. Gonzalez are the reason Frankenberry and Mellor were unusually cheerful. Whatever the reason, I hope to see more of it. It breaks my heart to see them sad. About a month ago Keitz had to have a front tooth removed. With cosmetic dentistry completely out of the question he was far from his warm and charismatic self for several weeks. Every week I’d assure him that tooth or no tooth, he was still the same and that his dog Schooner didn’t think any less of him. Maybe Schooner finally had a heart to heart with Keitz because he’s finally back to being himself and isn’t avoiding smiling anymore.

After pow wow time was over I made myself available to  help anyone with specific training needs. I was really excited to have inmates Dennison & Dunn ask me for help! I get a big kick out of being able to do live training of their dogs for them since I am usually very hands off. Part of being the fabulous training instructor I am (haha!) is knowing how critical it is to TEACH and not just show students how to train their dogs. Although I absolutely do take credit for the success of the program, I will never deny my inmate handlers the credit they deserve because THEY trained their dogs 99.9%! I rarely ever touch a dog for more than 60 seconds during a demonstration. I have a very ‘hand you back the leash’ attitude when it comes to teaching my inmates and my students in the free world. But yesterday, for the first time in a long time, I got to do some actual training myself with eager eyes watching. It was truly rewarding for me to prove to my inmates that I don’t just make this stuff up —and that I actually do train dogs! Rainier has been refusing to pick up his dish from the ground, so using the principles of shaping behavior we had him first touching, then nudging, then grabbing, then lifting, then bringing the bowl to us. Zest, on the other hand, would not pick up the bowl on cue! He would only pick up the bowl when he felt like it to play it with it. So, again, using shaping we made it worth his effort to do it on cue for us for some tasty pupperoni –compliments of the Doggie Deeva.

“Well I’ll be damned” Relosky said as both Rainier and Zest were picking up their bowls by the end of our session. “You make it look so easy,” he laughed. Experience my friends, experience!

I received a small round of applause, and lots of wagging tails. I left yesterday feeling fantastic. Like I made a difference. Was definitely the right choice to visit them instead of sitting in my office with no A/C. If I was going to be hot, I might as well not have to be bothered too.

 

 

Nothing but Time

After receiving an inquiry today from a blog subscriber, I decided a blog entry was long past due. My apologies for being so absent. It is not because I have forgotten about you and your support of all that I do. So much has happened I don’t know where to begin now! All I remember is that the last time I sat down to blog I somehow managed to delete the post about Duvall eating the rubber ball and having to have it surgically removed….I was very annoyed at my deletion mishap that at that point I think I temporarily called it quits. But alas, I realize (again and again), that is not the quantity of words written but instead the regularity and quality of the posts. So here’s to me being a good girl and vowing to post EVERY thursday. If you don’t see one from me when I get home from the prison, someone, please, please harass me ;)

I was lucky enough to get to take my camera last week to SFRC. The “puppies” are far from puppies, now all over 60lbs. And the dogs are quickly approaching their 18 month training mark this August. A few months ago Cayenne was pulled from the program and placed with a private puppy raiser in West Palm Beach. In his place we received baby Cheddar who continues to impress us all as the weeks go by. Being our third “round” of service dogs he is absolutely perfect and excelling at a rate that was far beyond our wildest dreams. At just three months he does at least half of the advanced behaviors…obviously not to perfection, nor does he need to this early in the game! Yet, with his wild and sharp attitude he is eager to please and even more eager to eat, hence his affinity for picking up his bowl and carrying it QUICKLY to the yellow food container. Now, if only he was as tall as pride he could just get it himself! A few pictures below for your enjoyment. We new refer to Rainier, our original prodigy puppy as “the original” and Cheddar as “PP 2.0….prodigy puppy 2.o!”

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Happy Anniversary

This month, February, marks the one year anniversary of the prison program in Miami. It seems like just yesterday the puppies were 8 weeks old. Now with the lightest puppies over 50lbs, the adult dogs are just 6 months away from their prospective graduation date.

During our last lesson I stressed the importance of only giving verbal commands to the adult dogs from this point forward. The guys should be focusing on only training from the wheelchair and using as little luring/pointing as possible with their dogs. I realized that a lot of my guys are still cheating when they practice in the wheelchair –and made it mandatory that no one has their feet on the ground during training or the brakes on the wheelchair on. They have to get a realistic feel for their dogs. After a whole year of training, if they can’t trust their own dog how is a complete stranger going to trust their dog once it’s put into service?

Last week we saw Cayenne leave the program. At 8 weeks old Cayenne was what we call a pancake puppy. Moving only a few feet on leash before “pancaking,” lying flat on the ground with all fours sprawled out Bambi style. As time went on,  Cayenne learned his obedience commands, how to do the light switch as well as heel on leash, retrieve and hold. But during his first few weekends out on furlough he absolutely freaked. Although I didn’t let on all that much, I am extremely disappointed to see Cayenne leave the prison. On the day he was picked up, last Tuesday, Ramos had watery eyes and Llontop was being aloof –most likely trying to keep his cool. If letting go of Cayenne after just four months was difficult, I can only image what the guys will be like in August when the big dogs are scheduled to graduate.

Yet Cayenne will go into a private puppy raisers home where he will have more personal attention and less commotion. I think there’s a misconception about the prison environment and how it affects the emotional state of dogs that are raised there. Just like in any society, there are lots of people, lots of commotion, noises….coming and going. There is a band room where the dogs and puppies learn to handle loud noises and instruments, there is a recreation yard where they learn to control their impulses to chase balls and running/playing people, there is a chow hall where they are required to lay quietly at food not begging for food. There is a chapel where they must be invisible during service and just like in the real world there are hundreds of people who think you’re adorable and are constantly trying (unintentionally) to undermine your no jump and distraction training!

Unfortunately for Cayenne the prison environment was limiting his development as a confident  puppy. Prison was simply too scary and stimulating. Although he was executing all his commands without hitch in the dorm, the littlest things would send him right back into pancake mode out on the compound. A few weeks ago it was a cone that fell over during rally. And before that, a cart being wheeled down a driveway in the yard. Terrified to “load” onto any surface, let alone into a car — I am keeping my fingers crossed that Cayenne will gain the confidence he needs in a private home and maybe, just maybe, come back to us.

The likelihood of that happening, however, is slim. I have already prepared Ramon and Llontop for the arrival of their new “baby,” a yellow labrador who will be delivered to SFRC when he is 8weeks old –in 3 weeks. There is a good chance Llontop will already be gone (he’s EOS….end of sentence), but Ramos will be there and I have high hopes for his training of the new baby.

During another visit, after returning from a vacation in Maryland and me missing my “usual” monday lesson with the guys, I had the opportunity to do a call out for two inmates who had been wanting to talk to me ( A call out is when inmates are called into someones office). While I was away, the staff at SFRC contacted me to let me know two of my guys were requesting to speak with me alone about something very important. All week I was so nervous to know what they had to share with me that couldn’t be shared amongst the rest of the inmates trainers.

So there we were. Me on one side of a long conference room table….Relosky (Captain’s handler) and Dennison (Rainier’s handler) on the other side facing me. I joked with Relosky as we entered the room “you’re looking older today.” He smiled, blue eyes smiling too. What they started to share with me was more wonderful than I could have ever imagined. Here I am thinking they are going to report abuse of yet another dog, complain about inmates in the program I should have removed –my mind went to every worst case scenario. My escort sat in the corner watching as they began.

Tomorrow will mark the first day of putting their suggestion –a mentorship program — into effect. Although I’m sure there will be some inmate strife, jealousy, and authority issues over certain inmates being chosen as mentors, I can’t think of a better solution to our problem of having new guys enter the program….only to find their way out because they just never “got it.” Looking back, I gave my original 12 inmates so much attention, personalized training, and feedback specific to their needs. As the program grew to 24 guys and 12 dogs, it became impossible for me to be intimately in tune to everyones needs only being there one time a week.

One thing I try to be really good at doing is making eye contact with each and every one of my guys during sessions. On days that I neglect connecting with a particular team and their dog, I notice that the next week that team is a little bit behind –isolated. Left out. Hurt. Discouraged.

Having mentors within the group will ensure that new guys entering the program (right now there are several open spots for second handlers) have a two week adjustment period to get a feel for the program before being assigned to work with a specific dog & partner.

As Dennison and Relosky finished their proposal, I  was so proud of them for taking initiative to approach me. I am still moved at the genuine concern they have for the well being of the program, instead of themselves. It’s amazing what dogs can do. They bring out the best in all of us. Even two inmates who four months ago could hardly stand each other. Their dogs brought them together. And together, they’re going to make a huge difference for the program. At least, that’s what I’m hoping for. 

 

Dog Trainer May Bite If Provoked

I picked Schooner up on Saturday morning from SFRC. When I arrived, I somehow wasn’t surprised that there was a communication error with the weekend staff who tend to give me a harder time than the usual officers who have gotten used to my kill them with kindness attitude every Monday. Let’s be honest, prison guards are not the easiest people to make smile (this is a generilaztion, mind you). Yet since started my work with New Horizons it’s been my own personal goal to get to know the officers, their names, their stations, and to make them smile. Like me? That’s way to ambitious of a goal seeing as how half of them don’t even like dogs. But smile I can do, or try to do.

Yet this Saturday I broke down and resorted to a smart ass attitude. There I am at control (control = front office/gate) to pick up. Not recognizing the officer on duty I walk up, smiling, hand them my ID through the mailbox sized safety vault and say “Hi, I’m the dog trainer here to pick up Schooner.” The response I received was “I know who you are,” laced with disdain and sarcasm. Well thank you captain obvious, of course you know who I freak’n am. Did the SUV with giant pawprints give it away? Or maybe the fact that I’m carrying a leash, or wait, I know, it’s the fact that I’m wearing a shirt that says DOG TRAINER on it, which I was.

Not to my surprise, but as per my expectation (sadly), I was told that Schooner was not on “the list” authorized to exit the prison. After an exchange of some polite words I finally snapped and said “I’m not sure you are understanding what I’m telling you. These are MY DOGS. I do not need authorization to take them out!” No I didn’t call ahead, no I didn’t request permission from the warden to take a dog — because they’re my dogs and I make the decisions of what they can and can’t do regarding exiting this facility. If I wanted to take an inmate out that would be your department, but my department IS the dogs.

Neeedless to say my attitude did not help. The rules are the rules, and without Schooner’s name on the list he wasn’t coming out. Not to mention that when I asked the Major to be called I was told they didn’t have his cell phone number. Let me get this straight…. so if an inmate escapes in the night, you’re telling me that you wouldn’t know how to reach the Major? Because last time I checked it’s right there on that sheet sitting by your phone. What you really mean is that you’re not willing to call the Major because the dogs are not important to you. Sixty minutes and some text messages to the Major later, the angry robots handed over Schooner.

During my sixty minute stay I did spend time in the dorm with Teddy, one of Schooner’s handlers. I have never seen Schooner, or any of the dogs for that matter, as clean and well groomed as I found Schooner! Apparently he had three baths followed by lot of air drying in the form of jogging with intermittent brush breaks to ensure his coat fluffled and dried beautifully for his trip out with me. Some teachers get apples, I get well groomed dogs! I could tell that Teddy was a little anxious about my taking Schooner out for a whole week. He put his vest on for me, showed me that Schooner’s ID was still in excellent condition and tucked away in his vest and handed me the clear bred bag of food that he had prepared to send out with me. He apologized for not having a stronger bag, as he only had access to the left over bred bag a friend gave him from the kitchen. I told him I’d be careful and not to worry as I had some stronger bags in the car.

He informed me that Mitch was up in the visotirs park and had asked that I would pass through with Schooner. I could tell the officer that was escorting me did not like that I was going to insist on passing through the visitors park (VP) but I wasn’t about to not let Mitch wish Schooner safe travels. Schooner was desperately dragging me towards the VP as we got closer. It’s amazimg how strong the bond is between the dogs and their handlers. Upon entering the VP my heart was pounding. For the first time in a long time I felt really nervous and anxious. There were children running around, laughing, families members visiting inmates. I think it re-hit me that these people have families who love and miss them. Out of all of my guys, I’ve learned that Mitch is the only inmate that gets regular visitors. Some of them haven’t had a visitor in over 20 years. This explains how my arrival every Monday is always something to look forward to.

My eyes scanned the room looking for Mitch, who excitedly popped up from the crowd and came over beaming. After hugging Schooner, he looked into my eyes. Not just glanced, he really looked. It may have been my imagination but I swear his eyes were a little watery. He was grinning ear to ear looking directly into my eyes and told me thank you so much for bringing Schooner up to the VP. That it meant the world to him that I would do that. I didn’t know what to say, so I just sorted of stuttered your welcome. I felt like a fool standing there, like everyone was watching me (they weren’t), and all I wanted to do was leave.

Schooner and I were escorted off the compound, where he hesitating getting into my truck. I sat quietly for a few minutes waiting for my heart rate to slow… listening to the wind and the sound of the children laughing. I just stared out my window. Tracing razor wire with my eyes.

What joy the visitors must bring. What sadness they must leave in the hearts of the inmates when visiting hours are over. What love these dogs must provide the ones without visitors. What sadness is inevitably going to follow when they graduate. Not for one second do I forget that these men, my guys, are rightfully serving life sentences and that justice is truly served by their imprisonment. Yet they are still human. They are still people with hearts who need to be trained to love and feel emotions again. They are still people who miss their families and have to live with that heartache because of the decisions they made.

Durig a demonstration last week for visitors Mitch introduced himself and Schooner to the crowd “….not once has Schooner asked me why I’m in prison. He is always a good listener. He is always patient and understanding. His love and acceptance has done more for me than you can even imagine.”

xo, Doggie Deeva

Here’s What You Missed

Firstly, I can’t figure out how I have gotten away with not blogging for two months. Secondly, I’ve already broken my news year’s resolution which was to blog everyday even if it was only a short paragraph. That’s my tendency, you see, to skip blogging and then overblog (sigh). So, I’m about to do it Glee style with a here’s what you missed:

The prison pups are huge, and the dogs celebrated their first birthday. I’ve fired at least 3 trainers in the last two months, maybe four, and one quit because he decided the program was too much work. It’s come to light that Buffett, whose handlers were both removed from the program, was hit with a rolled up newspaper and other objects on several occasions. He is severely object shy, but thankfully not hand shy. Now that he’s paired with Schooner’s handlers (who volunteered and stepped up to the plate to re-train Buffett), he’s stopped flank sucking and biting the hair off of his legs. What was suspected as a skin irritation was actually stress. Everyone was retested and only one dog got a D. I’ve started teaching the inmates how to do Rally Obedience –they are LOVING it. We had a white board installed in the dorm so I could put up lesson plans and diagrams. If a trainer is awesome, I’ll let them use the marker to write on the board. Why does this remind you of kindergarten? Curry the puppy injured himself by running into a fence. Five weeks later his scratched cornea has completely healed and he is doing great. His handlers however, scare the crap out of me. I’m not sure why. A corrections offer that worked in the same dorm as the dogs was murdered while sleeping along with her little boy at their home in liberty city. I attended the funeral and it was one of the most uplifting and eye opening experiences I have ever had in my life. I was one of about five white people in the church. When walking back to my car from the service a few young men riding bikes shouted me to “whose funeral dat?”, and in a way it sounded as if they were asking “whose funeral is that TODAY,” as if funerals in liberty city are just a part of everyday life. I felt terrified and humbled. That next sunday, I had a very strong desire to go to church. I have a few new guys in the program who are doing great so far, but I’m still getting to know them. Oxford, my lab, is still acting aggressively towards other dogs. Sam had a great idea of taking out some shelter dogs for walks so that we could practice greet & retreat games with oxford to rebuild his confidence in meeting other dogs. I did, however, get my purse repaired at the cobbler and the strap is good as new. Just as if it was never used to beat down an 80lb dog. My goal for 2011 is to expand the new horizons program here in Miami to include shelter dogs that can be trained as a fundraiser for new horizons or for PTSD. Most days I love working at the prison and other days I am emotionally drained from dealing with the guys. December was a slow month for clients but now my phone won’t stop ringing. This is not a bad thing :) Every Monday I now wash my car because a colleague told me it was unprofessional to have it dirty. I’m adding a Kendall location to my group class offerings. My husband got me Donkey Kong Country returns for Wii for xmas and I have been playing on a daily basis. It’s safe to say I’m obsessed with the game. My apprentice, Mike Vick (the original, not the dog fighter) is learning a lot and I love having a new dog trainer to mentor that is actually willing to give back instead of just take.

And that’s what you missed on Dee.