Today as Morey and I were coming back into our office building after taking an afternoon potty break Morey received the ultimate compliment. After jumping up and pushing the door button we went inside as usual. A man who was coming out and had seen Morey's door-opening/button pushing skill said "Wow, now that's as close to Lassie as I'm ever going to see!"
Morey, the humble service dog being compared to Lassie, who saved Timmy when he was stuck in the well and did many other heroic acts (too numerous to mention here). I'm not sure if Morey recognized the compliment he had received, but it certainly made me smile!
Morey
Morey, My 2nd Service Dog
Friday, December 9, 2011
Sunday, December 4, 2011
3 is a crowd
My mom and I have the same type of van. As a result, it gets humorous to watch Jessie, Morey, and Buddy compete with each other to share the same space they normally get to themselves. From these pictures, I think you will probably agree that Morey won that contest!
I love the expressions on all the dog's face! Buddy (the shih tzu) looks digusted, Jessie looks indignant, and Morey looks all innocence. As you can see from the next picture though, the arrangements didn't keep anyone from going right to sleep!
Morey's Grandma
Morey has a special connection with his "Grandma". If you remember, Morey has had a connection with her since he was born (and way before she was officially his grandma). Although she did much of his earliest training-starting when he was only a few days old- most recently visits with Grandma have meant all fun and games. When he is at Grandma's house he is pretty much "off duty" and get lots of treats, toys, and attention. However, Grandma is very good at respecting the boundary between Morey as a professional and Morey her granddog.
It's amazing to me how quickly dogs form habits and put together patterns and sequences of events. This Thanksgiving was only the second time Morey and I have flown home, although we have flown lots of other places together. However, as soon as we exited the airport and were on the curb waiting for Grandma's taxi, Morey started looking around, putting his nose in the air and getting excited. He has never done this when we have flown anywhere else, so he must have remembered that this is the place where fun things happen. I asked him if he was looking for "grandma" and he looked right at me. When Grandma arrived, he bounced up and down and did an entire body wag. (It works out well because while he is greeting Grandma, I am greeting Jessie. Then, once we have said hello to the important dogs in our loves, we say hi to each other).
I'm thankful Morey is such a beloved member of our family. He and Jessie get along well, although there is some competition for pets, treats, toys, and bed space. Morey's "aunts" also like it when he come home to visit. They also like it when I come to visit too ; )
It's amazing to me how quickly dogs form habits and put together patterns and sequences of events. This Thanksgiving was only the second time Morey and I have flown home, although we have flown lots of other places together. However, as soon as we exited the airport and were on the curb waiting for Grandma's taxi, Morey started looking around, putting his nose in the air and getting excited. He has never done this when we have flown anywhere else, so he must have remembered that this is the place where fun things happen. I asked him if he was looking for "grandma" and he looked right at me. When Grandma arrived, he bounced up and down and did an entire body wag. (It works out well because while he is greeting Grandma, I am greeting Jessie. Then, once we have said hello to the important dogs in our loves, we say hi to each other).
I'm thankful Morey is such a beloved member of our family. He and Jessie get along well, although there is some competition for pets, treats, toys, and bed space. Morey's "aunts" also like it when he come home to visit. They also like it when I come to visit too ; )
The Price of Fame
When you have a service dog, it's hard not to be noticed or recognized. It seems like at least once a week, usually when I am on campus, I will have someone say "Oh, I saw you at the gym/library/parking lot the other day". I would be a very bad criminal-people tend to remember when they see a person with a dog someplace where they aren't expecting it. Sometimes it comes from someone I know, and sometimes it's a relative stranger-a student who has seen me in my office (we have over 1,800 students registered with the Services for Students with Disabilities office at UT so although I try, I still don't recognize all of them) or a staff member who attended a presentation I gave. Each time it happens I am reminded that whenever Morey and I go out we are ambassadors for all people with service dogs. No pressure there!
Sometimes these encounters happen in places where you would never expect. When I arrived at the Indianapolis airport at 11pm for my Thanksgiving visit, I was waiting at the curb for my mom to pick me up. All of a sudden a car pulls up in front of me and the person rolls down the window and says "I was at the ICAN golf outing this summer when you spoke. Enjoy your trip in Indiana!" Wow! I hadn't been in Indiana for more than 20 minutes and Morey and I were already recognized. I guess that is the price you pay for being "famous"!
: )
Sometimes these encounters happen in places where you would never expect. When I arrived at the Indianapolis airport at 11pm for my Thanksgiving visit, I was waiting at the curb for my mom to pick me up. All of a sudden a car pulls up in front of me and the person rolls down the window and says "I was at the ICAN golf outing this summer when you spoke. Enjoy your trip in Indiana!" Wow! I hadn't been in Indiana for more than 20 minutes and Morey and I were already recognized. I guess that is the price you pay for being "famous"!
: )
Bark in a Bag
Traveling with a dog never gets boring. Even though I would now consider both Morey and me to be experienced travelers, there are always new elements and adventures being thrown at us. Luckily we are both good at being flexible and rolling with whatever punches come our way!
We went home to Indiana for Thanksgiving and started out the trip by taking the bus to the airport. Morey tucked nicely under the seat and got several compliments from other passengers. Even though he can be a goof ball at home and sometimes even in the office, he is very good at snapping into official service dog mode.
In our flights over the past few months, I have noticed more people flying with little dogs. People will be walking the dogs, carrying them in their arms, or transporting them in soft-sided crates. through the airport. I'm not sure if these dogs are pets, emotional/psychiatric support animals or service dogs. (Under the Air Carrier Access Act, emotional/psychiatric support animals are allowed to fly with their partner, while under the Americans with Disabilities Act these types of animals are not granted public access).
Whatever the case, as Morey and I were making our way to our gate after going through security, we both were startled by several sharp yaps that quickly turned into incessant barking. I usually try to be aware of my surroundings and I hadn't seen a dog anywhere. Morey hadn't either and I could tell by the way his ears were pulled back and how he was glancing around that he was trying to find out where this piercing noise was coming from. Finally, I saw a woman bending down beside a bag on the floor next to her. Inside was an agitated fluffy white dog. The bag looked like a regular duffel bag but as I looked closer I could see that parts of it were mesh instead of solid cloth.
Neither Morey or I were expecting the barking to be coming from a bag. As we kept moving to our gate we could still hear the dog barking behind us. Now we know to look out for dogs in bags!
We went home to Indiana for Thanksgiving and started out the trip by taking the bus to the airport. Morey tucked nicely under the seat and got several compliments from other passengers. Even though he can be a goof ball at home and sometimes even in the office, he is very good at snapping into official service dog mode.
In our flights over the past few months, I have noticed more people flying with little dogs. People will be walking the dogs, carrying them in their arms, or transporting them in soft-sided crates. through the airport. I'm not sure if these dogs are pets, emotional/psychiatric support animals or service dogs. (Under the Air Carrier Access Act, emotional/psychiatric support animals are allowed to fly with their partner, while under the Americans with Disabilities Act these types of animals are not granted public access).
Whatever the case, as Morey and I were making our way to our gate after going through security, we both were startled by several sharp yaps that quickly turned into incessant barking. I usually try to be aware of my surroundings and I hadn't seen a dog anywhere. Morey hadn't either and I could tell by the way his ears were pulled back and how he was glancing around that he was trying to find out where this piercing noise was coming from. Finally, I saw a woman bending down beside a bag on the floor next to her. Inside was an agitated fluffy white dog. The bag looked like a regular duffel bag but as I looked closer I could see that parts of it were mesh instead of solid cloth.
Neither Morey or I were expecting the barking to be coming from a bag. As we kept moving to our gate we could still hear the dog barking behind us. Now we know to look out for dogs in bags!
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