Dogs Free Wheelchair Bound Owners
Another group changing people's lives for the better with dogs.
From WXIA.com in Georgia. Video on the Web site.
Dogs Free Wheelchair Bound Owners
A dog trains to help people
Posted By: Duffie Dixon
Last Modified: 4/14/2008 12:29:03 AM
Eddie, a 2-year-old Labrador retriever already seems besotted with his new companion 17-year-old Jaque Hill. After just four days of training together, Eddie is a bundle of loyal excitement as Hall instructs him to open a closed drawer and use his teeth to pull out a small purse. This is just one of 80 commands he has at his disposal to help Hall on a daily basis.
Earlier this year, Hall was driving home in her jeep down a rural road in Okalahoma when she crashed. The wreck left her paralyzed and the once star softball player is now learning to cope with life in a wheelchair. She says Eddie has helped show her how normal life can be again.
"I was thinking I can't do anything anymore, but you can do anything anyone walking can do," said Hall.
Eddie is one of three dogs in the midst of training with their future lifelong companions. They sit patiently in their crates until trainer Ramona Nichols instructs their new families to put a leash on them and lead them to the center of the room in a small warehouse in Woodstock. Each team goes through a series of handling scenarios. The dogs can not only open drawers, but also doors. They know commands to turn light switches on and off and can even deliver a wallet to the cashier on the other side of a grocery store counter.
Nichols and her husband came up with the non-profit Georgia Canines for Independence after training dogs for more than 20 years and some first hand experience.
"I grew up with a sister and a mother both of whom have epilepsy so I experienced through their eyes the emotional effects a disability can create. I know what a comfort our dogs were to us," said Nichols, "Canines for assistance also have psycho-social benefits such as increased self esteem, increased social interactions and decreased stress and loneliness."
Many of Nichol's students aren't even from Georgia. Hall lives in Oklahoma, but found out about service dogs while she was undergoing treatment at The Shepperd Center in Atlanta. It was a similar story for 21-year-old Kelly Goddu. She says while at the center she visited with one of Nichol's trained teams and was immediately interested. She barely survived a diving accident four years ago and is now wheelchair bound. While she can move her arms she does not have much mobility beyond that.
"Since I don't have use of my hands, reaching lights is a big thing. So is opening doors since I can't really reach and open the door," said Goddu.
Her new companion, Bettie, is a two year old golden Retriever.
Nichols is quick to say that both teams she's working with now are perfect matches–something she and her husband pride themselves on. They look very closely at both prospective owner and dog to see if they'll be compatible.
"We call it part science, part art," said Nichols. "So many factors go into it. We look at their personalities. You want a dog that's slightly less aggressive personality-wise than their handler. We also look at energy level and what sort of lifestyle they have because most of our dog owners tell us over time their dogs really do seem like an extension of themselves," said Nichols.
The Nichols raise all the dogs themselves from puppies to age two. New owners apply and are screened and there's usually a waiting list of about 50 people. Once chosen, the teams spend ten days of intensive training together and the owners also have to pass written and oral exams.
Each team celebrates with a graduation that Nichols says is the culmination of a lot of hard work but also a labor of love.
"It's very emotional for everyone in the charity when dogs leave. We love them. We raised them, but there's such a feeling of pride and accomplishment when we see these teams together. I see their smiling faces and see the dog looking at his person with total adoration and enjoying his work and that unconditional love that really makes their life more fulfilling and independent. That's what it's all about," said Nichols.
www.gcidogs.com
