Recertification Test

B and I woke up to six inches of fresh snow, and blizzard-like conditions. As I have to cross several summits, including Donner Summit, I was a little bit nervous about going, but figured I'd try and if it got bad, I'd just turn around and we'd go to Santa Rosa for our Recertification Test later on.

When we got to Truckee, the sun was shining through a small spot in the clouds, and there was a gorgeous rainbow, so I figured it'd be okay. 

The Donner Summit crossing went okay, just extremely slow, and it was really snowing hard, and I couldn't even see the edge of my hood at times. We went through three separate chain controls (where each vehicle is stopped and inspected by Cal Trans inspectors). Boreal ski area was on a wind hold, and it was pretty bad up there. You know it's really bad when the entire ski area goes on a wind hold (the chairlifts are dangerous in high winds). Incredible start to the first day of spring!

Then at the top of Donner Summit, I passed a bus with Japanese characters painted on the side of the bus that was stopped and 180° to the highway (facing opposite direction to traffic), so I guess they skidded even though they were fully chained up. Or maybe they threw some chains on the other side that I couldn't see, and skidded. There were quite a few wrecks up there.

I had to stop at the Gold Run rest stop to use the restroom, and brought B inside with me, as I was trying to hurry because it was getting really late. I thought it'd be faster for B to "hurry" in the designated dog area, then go inside with me to the bathroom, rather then to make two trips back and forth to the car. 

I thought I was alone as there were only two other cars at the rest stop, then all of a sudden I hear all these voices chattering away. B was sitting with her back to the door, so her tail was sticking out a little bit from under the stall. So I figured they were talking about her tail and a dog being in the bathroom. It only sounded like two or three women talking.

Then when I opened the door, to my shock, there was a long line of about 40 older women from Japan, and all these camera flashes going off in my face. They must have been from that bus up on top of the summit. I guess they will go back to Japan, and B and I will be featured in some of their vacation slide shows, where they might chuckle and comment something like, "those Americans sure love their dogs".
 
Gosh time flies! I can't believe it's been six months since I last saw K and my classmates and their partners. Everyone looked great, including the dogs. 

One part of the test was the food temptation test. I got very nervous because B loves food. B did very well on the food test. I was so nervous, I was like a deer in headlights. K had to remind me it was okay to praise B for not going for the food temptation. Shame on me, as I normally give her a lot of praise and love.

After we finished everything, K told us we passed the recertification. My two classmates and I had some questions. K answered our questions and concerns. 

The drive was a lot easier and quicker going back home even though it was raining the whole way and very foggy at the top of Donner Summit. We got home in two hours (instead of nearly the four hours it took us to get there).

Second Day of Class

Today started very foggy, which is typical for Santa Rosa at this time of year. Even though it's autumn, the flowers are all still blooming which amazes me. The grounds here are just impeccably gorgeous! CCI is very fortunate that Charles Schulz, creator of the Peanuts/Snoopy comic strip, and his wife Jean Schulz donated the 11 acres and funds to build this amazing campus, home of CCI's National Headquarters and home of CCI's Northwest Applicant Program. Even though Charles Schulz has passed away, his wife Jean Schulz has very generously continued to support CCI. Mrs. Schulz sends her personal gardener over twice a week to work on the grounds here at CCI, and everyone, dogs included, enjoy the various flowers and scenery.

Everyone was so excited at breakfast, as we all knew that we would have our pre-match this morning. I was excited, but also cautiously optimistic because we were constantly warned a few times that pre-matches can be changed during the rest of this week. I have seen matches changed before, but it's not common. K has been training here at CCI for many years, so I am confident in his and S's decisions on the matches.

I was pre-matched with a dog, but out of respect for CCI's wishes, I will keep the details quiet for now. Everyone seems delighted with their pre-match. Some of us are understandably nervous and unsure, but that is normal. I didn't like either one of my two previous Hearing Dogs at first, but of course grew to love them and am so thankful to have met two wonderful Hearing Dogs and shared my life with both of them. So I look forward to welcoming and loving a new successor Hearing Dog.

As the day went on, everyone started becoming more at ease and more confident in their own dog handling skills. We practiced commands such as "no/don't", "sit", "down"; then we learned new commands such as "heel", "come", "stay" and "wait". We practiced on Fluffy (what we call the "invisible dog" that is actually a trainer) first, then we were able to start practicing on the dogs we were pre-matched with. We practiced inside at first with less distractions in a more controlled environment, then we got to go outdoors and walk around in two different sessions so that was nice to get outside for a bit, as the fog had lifted by then and it turned into a beautiful warm autumn day. 

Edited after Graduation to add this photo:

First time meeting B, during the pre-match

 

Finding a Hearing Dog Program

I was with one Hearing Dog Program for my first two Hearing Dogs. It was a wonderful program, but is no longer active. They still provide incredible and caring support to those who already have Hearing Dogs who graduated from their Hearing Dog Program before the program closed, but they are no longer training and placing new Hearing Dogs. I think it's so generous that they are still supporting the Hearing Dog graduates, and we all are very blessed that they are doing this. I have heard of other programs closing, disappearing and not supporting the Hearing Dogs they already placed. 

I am embarrassed to have to admit, even though I have had two Hearing Dogs, I wasn't thinking clearly due to grief when my second Hearing Dog passed away unexpectedly. I should have asked the amazing staff at my original Hearing Dog Program to recommend where I should apply. This could have saved me nearly a year of delay, but everything happens for a reason and is meant to be.

Most Service Dog programs are based on where you live. In the United States, some programs are state-wide, while other programs are by regions of the United States, such as the Pacific Northwest. You may be fortunate enough to have a few different programs to choose from in your area. Please, please, please do the research, and ask to visit the facility before you decide on a program to apply with.

I can not emphasize visiting the facility enough. It will enable you to get an excellent idea of what the program is like, what the staff is like, and if you are fortunate enough to have a few different programs to choose from, it will help you to make the best choice of which is the best fit for you. If a program declines your request to visit it, and doesn't have a good reason for refusing your visit, please think twice about applying there.

I am so excited about my new Hearing Dog program. They have an incredible campus as they place other dogs besides the Hearing Dogs, such as Mobility and Therapy dogs. They have a wonderful staff who all are very professional, enthusiastic and love their jobs, and who truly care about dogs and people. They have been around for many years, and they have placed thousands of dogs throughout the years. Even though I have not attended class yet, I cannot recommend this program highly enough, and I am extremely confident in the staff and the program. This program is also nationwide in the United States, and has several regional campuses.

I really hope to be given permission to link to the nationwide program from this blog, as this is the one program I'd recommend very highly. 

About Hearing Dogs

A Hearing Dog is a dog that is trained to assist hard-of-hearing and deaf people by alerting to sounds by making physical contact (such as nudging their person with their nose or paw).

They alert their person to sounds such as the doorbell, smoke alarm, alarm clock, timer, phone, and so on. Everyone is unique in their hearing loss and some may require being alerted to all sounds, or just a few sounds.

Hearing Dogs usually work in the home, so they are not as well known as Guide Dogs for the Blind, or a Mobility Dog (who is trained to assist their person in retrieving things, bringing items to the person, opening doors, etc.) or a Therapy Dog (who is trained to go into hospitals, convalescent homes and other medical settings, and to work directly with more than one person, such as several patients in the medical setting). 

Hearing Dogs provide such a valuable service, and have saved many lives.

For example, there are so many hard-of-hearing and deaf people who may be sleeping alone at night, and the smoke alarm could go off. Not every hard-of-hearing or deaf person can hear the smoke alarm without hearing aids or cochlear implants (all of which are supposed to come out of our ears at night). The person could easily sleep through the sound, and not wake up in time to be able to get out of the building safely in event of fire. Having a Hearing Dog would allow the person to be woken up and for them both to be able to get out of the building safely.

Besides the safety factor, Hearing Dogs often provide loving companionship to their person, and gives their person independence. This goes both ways, as the person usually is very loving and extremely attached to their Hearing Dog. It is not just a "working relationship", but a very loving and mutual relationship. Hearing Dogs don't work all the time, and have fun, such as walks and all other things that all dogs enjoy.

This blog is my personal opinion and is about my own experiences with two previous Hearing Dogs, and with a third Hearing Dog. I had my first Hearing Dog from 1987 - 2001; I had my second Hearing Dog from 2001 - 2011. At this time of writing this post, I have been approved to attend class for a new Hearing Dog in late September.