Dekker Tells His Story, part 1
Many people ask me (Dekker) what it takes to be a service dog. I could talk to them about the one to two years of training which I guess is why we service dogs are so expensive, but really, the important thing is something a dog is born with.
You would call it temperament. I call it dogness.
Dogness can range from running in a pack over frozen tundra to barking at visitors and loud noises. Any of this kind of dogness is fine for being a pet but not necessarily for serving humans.
Humans are a special breed that we dogs are still trying to figure out. From my point of view, they are very difficult to train. Always pulling at the leash and barking commands as if we dogs are hard of hearing.
Actually, our hearing is very good…almost as good as our nose for checking out what’s going on. Sometimes I hear my person when I would rather follow the scent in the grass.
I hear her say ‘good dog’ a lot. I think that’s a compliment. I wonder if people say ‘good person’ to their friends. I don’t hear that much.
So back to being a service dog…my training began the moment I was born.
I know some service dogs come from rescue shelters. It has to be so hard for them. There was nothing I had to unlearn.
When I was a few months old I went to a place called a prison. From what I can tell, this is a place where people go to unlearn things.
My handler, Randy, taught me to be obedient to the sound of his voice and the movement of his hands. But mostly I watched his eyes to know what he expected of me.
Many people don’t realize that we dogs get more information from eyes and hand signals than we do from words. I hear people raise their voices when their pooch isn’t doing exactly what they want.
I suppose their dog could be deaf but I don’t think so. What I do think is that people get agitated at what they can’t control.
If I were to bark at humans the way I have heard them bark at some of my dog friends I would be told to ‘be quiet’ and probably get my leash yanked. How does a dog tell a person to ‘be quiet?’
I was with Randy day and night at the prison. Sometimes they would play a game called soccer and I would get a chance to run and chase the ball.
Couldn’t get my teeth into it but I could sure keep that ball in motion. There was a lot laughter. If there is one human trait I wish I had it would be the capacity to laugh. The best I can do when I am delighted at something is wiggle my butt.
On Fridays Susan would come with her two sons Charlie and Willie to pick me up for the weekend. A big part of my training was learning how to behave in public places.
I never understood why some people live in prison and some in fine houses with big lawns. But Susan and her family gave me as much love as Randy did during the week. I guess love is love wherever you find it.
I was told that it would be important for me to learn to ride on buses and trains. They often took me to the mall where packs of people swarmed everywhere and I learned not to chase them.
That was OK…but there was no soccer ball at the mall. I thought it would be a great place to play soccer but not to these people, I guess.
I loved playing fetch with Charlie and Wille and their dad and at night I got to sleep in a comfy bed with a soft cover right at the foot of my people’s bed.
A little secret between you and me is service dogs love people-beds but we aren’t often allowed on them. Something about bad habits and shedding.
That rule gets lifted occasionally. Like when my person was in the hospital. I got to stay with her right on the bed for a whole week. She really is a bed hog!
Shedding is something that people don’t have to think about much. I noticed Willie’s dad had shed all of his hair. I wonder if it all came out in bed as mine does.
I love getting brushed and I do my best to release as much of my coat as I can. I don’t understand why that isn’t appreciated more.
At the end of the weekends, Susan would take me back to Randy at the prison. I loved to hear him greet me with “Come here, you beautiful Velvet Moose.”
That is what he called me. The Velvet Moose.
I didn’t know if that was a breed of animal or a drink. People name their drinks funny names too.
As you can see, I spent a lot of my time getting to know the ways and woofs of people in many different places. I didn’t yet understand what I was being trained for.
I only knew that the people I met in the world were all very nice. Later I would learn from meeting other dogs in the park and at the vet that not all dogs are so lucky.
Some don’t have any bed to sleep on, or even a person to scratch their ears. Some are treated pretty rotten.
I know a rottweiler that was chained outside no matter how hot in the summer or cold in the winter. He barked and cried.
He got screamed at.
A lot.
If I could, I would adopt all the dogs that didn’t have the privilege I had, but I have observed that only people get to adopt dogs so until I get better at writing I may not be able to help.
But you could.
This is a neat place to go to get something for a dog you love, so a dog that hasn’t found a person yet will get something nice. WOOF!
Dekker is a British black lab who was trained to serve at NEADS, a ‘prep school’ for service dogs. They are always happy to receive donations to help with their mission of matching well-suited dogs with just the right people. He helps Ardis, who has MS in many ways, visible and invisible.
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