It's hard to believe it's been one year since I moved to Texas! It's certainly been an exciting one!
Morey and I attended the Gone to Texas event welcoming new students to UT. Yes, that's right, I am heading back to school and will be working toward my MSSW from the School of Social Work at UT. So, in addition to being a staff member at UT, I will also be a student.
UT is big on tradition and school spirit, so a lot of the event focused on the history behind school traditions. The tower was orange in honor of the event and a huge Texas flag was displayed on the front of the main building.
It was 100 degrees at 8pm when the event started. They were providing ice water to everyone and I shared mine with Morey: I drank the water and he got the ice. Once that was gone we both got even more hot and miserable so I went back for some more. One of the girls working there asked if I wanted a cup of ice for Morey and I eagerly accepted. He enjoyed crunching on ice cubes the rest of the evening, which helped him stay somewhat cool.
Tons of students were taking pictures afterward and I decided to take some of my own. Several girls asked if they could have their pictures taken with Morey-he's such a celebrity!
Morey
Morey, My 2nd Service Dog
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
Gone to Texas!
Pictures from Gone to Texas event. Notice the tower in the background is lit with orange lights and the lights are lit with the number 15 to represent the Class of 2015
Morey's Trance
This is a picture of Morey getting put into a "trance" by Sabaa. He looks forward to this every day!
Sunday, August 21, 2011
Night on the Town
I am coming up on my one year anniversary of living in Austin and there are some important "Austin things" that I haven't done. So, the other night I crossed two of them off the list.
Austin is known for its food trailers. Scattered around town, they are similar to the carts/trucks at fairs that sell elephant ears, etc. Here, though, they sell everything from burgers to ice cream to cupcakes to different ethnic foods. In several places there are food trailer parks, with several trailers in the same lot so in a sense you can have a progressive dinner. I hadn't been to a food trailer yet, so after work Heather, Morey, and I headed out. We had Thai food and then I got green tea ice cream from another trailer. (I also tried a tiny spoonful of Wasabi ice and that was plenty!)
It's still 100+ degrees in Austin and as you may have figured, at food trailers you eat outside. We found a place in the shade but Morey was still hot. A man (wearing a cowboy hat with shorts and sandals-gotta love Texans and their cowboy hats!) was watering his grass with a hose and asked if we wanted some water for Morey. We had already gotten him a bowl filled with ice, but Heather asked if we could hose Morey down. The man laughed and agreed and so Morey got a nice cool down. Afterwards he shook and pranced around with a huge doggie smile on his face. You could tell he felt much better!
Our next stop of the evening was "Blues on the Green", an outdoor concert that happens weekly at a park during the summer. We have been meaning to go all summer and finally made it to the last one! It was extremely crowded and we had to park pretty far away. As with most outdoor events in Austin, lots of people brought their dogs and at first Morey was very distracted with everything. He wasn't wearing his vest, but even without that he is expected to behave and not pull on the leash. We had to do a lot of stop and gos at first, but then after a while he settled down. I'm glad he has gotten to the point where I can have him around other dogs without him getting overwhelmed or overexcited.
There were booths advertising and selling things around the edge of the concert area. We stopped by the Humane Society booth that had kiddie pools around it. I thought Morey might want to cool off again, but apparently he wasn't hot or the water was too dirty because he passed up that opportunity. We found a place in the grass to sit and I enjoyed my first outdoor live music concert in Austin. Sad that it took me almost a year and I now live in the live music capital of the world!
The rest of the evening was enjoyable and we stayed until after dark. After the concert was over we waited for some of the crowd to leave before we started back to my van. A man (who had probably had a few drinks before, during, and after the concert) stumbled by us and jumped back when he saw Morey. "I thought that was a rock! But it's not-it's a dog. A giant dog. Wow, he's huge!" (His sense of perception might have been a bit off!) He asked Morey's name and I told him and then he said "Well, big Morey, have a great evening!" And then he continued on his way. Heather and I had a good laugh about that and Morey's new nickname is Big Morey!
It's fun to give Morey opportunities to just be a dog. I always get a lot of compliments about his looks and his behavior-and of course I agree that in both areas he is pretty exceptional. He's a pretty special dog and it was fun to be able to have him join us for some Austin adventures!
Austin is known for its food trailers. Scattered around town, they are similar to the carts/trucks at fairs that sell elephant ears, etc. Here, though, they sell everything from burgers to ice cream to cupcakes to different ethnic foods. In several places there are food trailer parks, with several trailers in the same lot so in a sense you can have a progressive dinner. I hadn't been to a food trailer yet, so after work Heather, Morey, and I headed out. We had Thai food and then I got green tea ice cream from another trailer. (I also tried a tiny spoonful of Wasabi ice and that was plenty!)
It's still 100+ degrees in Austin and as you may have figured, at food trailers you eat outside. We found a place in the shade but Morey was still hot. A man (wearing a cowboy hat with shorts and sandals-gotta love Texans and their cowboy hats!) was watering his grass with a hose and asked if we wanted some water for Morey. We had already gotten him a bowl filled with ice, but Heather asked if we could hose Morey down. The man laughed and agreed and so Morey got a nice cool down. Afterwards he shook and pranced around with a huge doggie smile on his face. You could tell he felt much better!
Our next stop of the evening was "Blues on the Green", an outdoor concert that happens weekly at a park during the summer. We have been meaning to go all summer and finally made it to the last one! It was extremely crowded and we had to park pretty far away. As with most outdoor events in Austin, lots of people brought their dogs and at first Morey was very distracted with everything. He wasn't wearing his vest, but even without that he is expected to behave and not pull on the leash. We had to do a lot of stop and gos at first, but then after a while he settled down. I'm glad he has gotten to the point where I can have him around other dogs without him getting overwhelmed or overexcited.
There were booths advertising and selling things around the edge of the concert area. We stopped by the Humane Society booth that had kiddie pools around it. I thought Morey might want to cool off again, but apparently he wasn't hot or the water was too dirty because he passed up that opportunity. We found a place in the grass to sit and I enjoyed my first outdoor live music concert in Austin. Sad that it took me almost a year and I now live in the live music capital of the world!
The rest of the evening was enjoyable and we stayed until after dark. After the concert was over we waited for some of the crowd to leave before we started back to my van. A man (who had probably had a few drinks before, during, and after the concert) stumbled by us and jumped back when he saw Morey. "I thought that was a rock! But it's not-it's a dog. A giant dog. Wow, he's huge!" (His sense of perception might have been a bit off!) He asked Morey's name and I told him and then he said "Well, big Morey, have a great evening!" And then he continued on his way. Heather and I had a good laugh about that and Morey's new nickname is Big Morey!
It's fun to give Morey opportunities to just be a dog. I always get a lot of compliments about his looks and his behavior-and of course I agree that in both areas he is pretty exceptional. He's a pretty special dog and it was fun to be able to have him join us for some Austin adventures!
Office Rivalry
Morey is a well-loved by the staff at work. They are all very respectful of his role as a working service dog, but once the leash comes off it's all play time. In the past few weeks a friendly rivalry has popped up between three of our staff members about who is Morey's favorite (of course, they know that I am his real favorite, so it's really just a competition between the three of them).
The first contestant is Heather. She was Morey's first friend at the office and since she works at our front desk she sees him first thing in the morning and last at night. Morey greets her by turning around and offering her his butt, since he has learned that she gives really good butt scratches! This is not one of her favorite habits, but she's a good sport and always gives him a good rub. She'll come into my office sometimes with a question and Morey often comes out to say hello. We sometimes go out on lunch breaks together and she is willing to throw the ball again and again for Morey.
Contestant number 2 is Sabaa. She started working in our office full time in April. Ever since we moved into our new space she stops by almost every day to spend some time with Morey. She has figured out a way to scratch his belly when he is laying on his back that almost puts him in a trance. After the office closes she'll take his ball and play fetch or chase with him, which he loves! When I have a student come in with a guide or service dog, Morey goes and stays in Sabaa's office. She is quickly becoming a favorite in Morey's life!
Contestant number 3 is Justin. He is a late-comer to the game and is starting at a disadvantage. When he started working in our office he was living with 2 female dogs. His dogs got bitchy when he came home smelling like Morey, so he hasn't interacted much with him. However, Justin's living arrangements changed recently and now he doesn't have any dogs. So, he is much more interested in becoming Morey's friend. Morey, however, seems to have taken it personally that Justin ignored him for so many months and is now playing hard to get (Disclaimer-I may be attributing some human emotions/thinking into this post!). When Justin talks to him, Morey will just look at him and then walk away. Justin has vowed within a week Morey will be his best friends-even after I told him that food bribes are not allowed!
This rivalry is quite entertaining and I'm glad my co-workers have made Morey part of our team. I sometimes have to run interference and remind them that Morey has a lot of friends, he doesn't have favorites (well, maybe a few...) Morey could end up getting pretty spoiled if they continue to "one up" each other in terms of toys, attention, and sweet talk!
The first contestant is Heather. She was Morey's first friend at the office and since she works at our front desk she sees him first thing in the morning and last at night. Morey greets her by turning around and offering her his butt, since he has learned that she gives really good butt scratches! This is not one of her favorite habits, but she's a good sport and always gives him a good rub. She'll come into my office sometimes with a question and Morey often comes out to say hello. We sometimes go out on lunch breaks together and she is willing to throw the ball again and again for Morey.
Contestant number 2 is Sabaa. She started working in our office full time in April. Ever since we moved into our new space she stops by almost every day to spend some time with Morey. She has figured out a way to scratch his belly when he is laying on his back that almost puts him in a trance. After the office closes she'll take his ball and play fetch or chase with him, which he loves! When I have a student come in with a guide or service dog, Morey goes and stays in Sabaa's office. She is quickly becoming a favorite in Morey's life!
Contestant number 3 is Justin. He is a late-comer to the game and is starting at a disadvantage. When he started working in our office he was living with 2 female dogs. His dogs got bitchy when he came home smelling like Morey, so he hasn't interacted much with him. However, Justin's living arrangements changed recently and now he doesn't have any dogs. So, he is much more interested in becoming Morey's friend. Morey, however, seems to have taken it personally that Justin ignored him for so many months and is now playing hard to get (Disclaimer-I may be attributing some human emotions/thinking into this post!). When Justin talks to him, Morey will just look at him and then walk away. Justin has vowed within a week Morey will be his best friends-even after I told him that food bribes are not allowed!
This rivalry is quite entertaining and I'm glad my co-workers have made Morey part of our team. I sometimes have to run interference and remind them that Morey has a lot of friends, he doesn't have favorites (well, maybe a few...) Morey could end up getting pretty spoiled if they continue to "one up" each other in terms of toys, attention, and sweet talk!
Thursday, August 18, 2011
Beginner's Mistake
The other day I committed a beginning service dog partner mistake. I was at fault for being in a hurry and focusing on things besides the needs of my dog. Thankfully the consequences weren't really that bad, but it was a good reminder for me to slow down and pay attention to what Morey is telling me. I guess this is my confession....
Morey and I were on our way to a meeting on campus and for some ridiculous reason I decided it would be nice to push there instead of drive. I guess I forgot that it was 100+ degrees outside so my idea of a nice stroll for some exercise turned into a sweaty miserable experience. Oh well.
We were running a bit late and so I was going along at my extra-fast speed. Morey usually enjoys trotting along beside me, but for some reason he kept pulling on the leash. I assumed it was because the pavement was hot and he was trying not to burn his paws. There really wasn't any way to get him off of it except by moving forward so we just kept moving.
All of a sudden Morey stopped and with my momentum the leash was jerked from my hands. (That's why you never ever wrap the leash around your hand!) I turned around to see what had happened and saw poor Morey pooping on the sidewalk. Oops!
I had obviously misinterpreted the reason behind his forging. I thought it was because his paws were hot, but it was because he was trying to find some place to stop and "hurry". Poor guy! He is usually on a pretty regular schedule and so I was not expecting that to be one of the causes for his unusual behavior. Because it was outside and I had my trusty poop bags handy to clean up it wasn't too big of a deal. But, I was sufficiently shamed for not taking a moment to think about ALL the possibilities for why Morey was suddenly acting strange. Lesson learned!
Morey and I were on our way to a meeting on campus and for some ridiculous reason I decided it would be nice to push there instead of drive. I guess I forgot that it was 100+ degrees outside so my idea of a nice stroll for some exercise turned into a sweaty miserable experience. Oh well.
We were running a bit late and so I was going along at my extra-fast speed. Morey usually enjoys trotting along beside me, but for some reason he kept pulling on the leash. I assumed it was because the pavement was hot and he was trying not to burn his paws. There really wasn't any way to get him off of it except by moving forward so we just kept moving.
All of a sudden Morey stopped and with my momentum the leash was jerked from my hands. (That's why you never ever wrap the leash around your hand!) I turned around to see what had happened and saw poor Morey pooping on the sidewalk. Oops!
I had obviously misinterpreted the reason behind his forging. I thought it was because his paws were hot, but it was because he was trying to find some place to stop and "hurry". Poor guy! He is usually on a pretty regular schedule and so I was not expecting that to be one of the causes for his unusual behavior. Because it was outside and I had my trusty poop bags handy to clean up it wasn't too big of a deal. But, I was sufficiently shamed for not taking a moment to think about ALL the possibilities for why Morey was suddenly acting strange. Lesson learned!
Saturday, August 13, 2011
Welcome Back!
I'm a little late in posting this picture, but I wanted to share the welcome back sign my co-workers had on my office door when we returned to work. Notice the picture of Morey at the bottom. : )
The Blue Line
When I first got Morey, I trained him to not leave my office unless he was given permission. This allows Morey to have free reign in my office while allowing me to leave my office door open. Win-win for everyone. In order to help him understand the rules, I put a strip of blue tape across the threshold of my office door to give Morey a visual of where his boundary is. I had a lot of people ask what the blue line meant and most of them were very impressed by the idea of Morey respecting an invisible boundary. To me, this is a simple thing to teach, but it's something that you have to be very diligent about the first few weeks so the dog never crosses the line without permission. It didn't take Morey long to learn it and soon I took the blue tape away.
While we were back home in Indiana, our office moved locations. Our department now has its own suite of offices which has been very nice. I set up my things and got Morey settled and that was that. Morey understood that he wasn't supposed to leave my old office and so he understood the same rules applied to the new office. Wrong! Morey is a wonder dog, but he is a dog and dogs do not generalize well. Expecting Morey to make the connection of boundary training from one office to another was unrealistic in my part. The first day that he ran out of my office and down the hall I realized my mistake. So, once again I have a blue line of tape across my door and am answering questions about boundary training. And, once again, I am reminded that when it comes to dog training, I am usually the one making the mistakes, not the dog!
While we were back home in Indiana, our office moved locations. Our department now has its own suite of offices which has been very nice. I set up my things and got Morey settled and that was that. Morey understood that he wasn't supposed to leave my old office and so he understood the same rules applied to the new office. Wrong! Morey is a wonder dog, but he is a dog and dogs do not generalize well. Expecting Morey to make the connection of boundary training from one office to another was unrealistic in my part. The first day that he ran out of my office and down the hall I realized my mistake. So, once again I have a blue line of tape across my door and am answering questions about boundary training. And, once again, I am reminded that when it comes to dog training, I am usually the one making the mistakes, not the dog!
Bobbing for Ice Cubes
Since playing fetch out in the heat isn't a safe option for Morey, I have had to get creative in coming up with other ways to keep Morey busy. One activity I discovered accidentally is bobbing for ice cubes. I was dropping Morey off at Norm's house before heading to Alabama for rugby camp. While I was getting Morey settled I filled up his water bowl. Norm suggested I add some ice cubes so I tossed a handful into the bowl.
Morey immediately went over and began bobbing for the ice cubes that were floating in his bowl. He would push one all the way to the bottom of the bowl with his nose (overflowing the water bowl in the process) and then grab it with his teeth. When he "surfaced" from the bowl (jowls slopping even more water on the floor-a trait he inherited from his father) he would crunch the ice cube, sneeze the water from his nose, and then go back under to catch another one.
It was highly entertaining to watch this game and I think Norm and I enjoyed watching it as much as Morey enjoyed doing it. However, this game is probably best played outside unless you don't mind a minor flood occurring on your floor!
Morey immediately went over and began bobbing for the ice cubes that were floating in his bowl. He would push one all the way to the bottom of the bowl with his nose (overflowing the water bowl in the process) and then grab it with his teeth. When he "surfaced" from the bowl (jowls slopping even more water on the floor-a trait he inherited from his father) he would crunch the ice cube, sneeze the water from his nose, and then go back under to catch another one.
It was highly entertaining to watch this game and I think Norm and I enjoyed watching it as much as Morey enjoyed doing it. However, this game is probably best played outside unless you don't mind a minor flood occurring on your floor!
Texas Summer
It's been too hot to do much of anything lately, unless it involves water or AC (or both!). We've had over more than 30 days of 100+ degree weather and over a week of 110+. In order to survive this intense heat, Morey and I have retreated indoors and limited our energy expenditure as much as possible. This has cut down on our normal adventures, which also means less blogging. Hopefully we will get a break from the heat soon so we can continue to entertain our growing fan base.
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