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</o:shapelayout></xml><![endif]--></head><body lang=EN-US link=blue vlink=purple><div class=WordSection1><p class=MsoNormal>You will probably appreciate this one as it is shorter than many of the others.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>Chapter 27<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>The Little Coyote<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'> <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'> In June of 2015, I was back at The Seeing Eye for 18 days of training. My instructor was once more Sue M. I am now matched with Enzo, a beautiful gentle German shepherd dog who thinks he should be allowed to sit on car seats. He loves his crate as a place of his own to retire from the hurly burly of our home. He doesn’t play with toys but is a power chewer. I left class early when he detoured up a flight of steps and I fell, bruising my right knee. I didn’t get to go to New York City for the first time in my nine trips to the Seeing Eye. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>As much as it hurts to lose a dog to illness or a need for a career change, Enzo has already begun to teach me that we must be ready to look forward and let the past stay in the past. We live in the now and that can be a pretty great place to be.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>Enzo has a lovely soft coat in the black and tan pattern. The tan portions of his coat are a reddish strawberry blonde color. His ears tilt outward giving him a somewhat cock-eyed headset. He is endlessly curious. If we are walking down a hallway of examination rooms at a dental or doctor appointment, he will pop his head around to look into all of the open doors we pass. If allowed, he would greet everyone we pass with a friendly sniff. He hates going the same direction he has gone before. My husband Curtis gave him the moniker of coyote, because he is mischievous. If I am not alert, he will purposely turn the opposite direction from the one I need to take. It isn’t because he doesn’t know where we should go, but his curiosity about what else might be out there. When I catch him out, he readily obeys my commands and takes the route I insist upon. He isn’t interested in toys, but will stealthily steal them from my husband’s large shepherd and hide them. Then he will lie down and wait for Keeno, Curt’s shepherd to begin franticly looking for the missing toy. He will look on innocently as Keeno races about looking for it.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>I retired three years ago, to care for my husband who now uses a wheelchair. We moved into town to what we call our aging in place home. Enzo likes to work and adapts well to any changes in our routines. He is always eager and ready to escort me out the door to catch a bus, ride a paratransit van or catch an airplane. I am now experiencing a bit of vertigo and he changes his pace and works hard to keep me safe. He moves across in front of me when we approach stairs and doesn’t allow me to step forward until he sees that I have my hand on the handrail of stairs or escalators. At age seventy, I don’t know if there will be a tenth dog in my life, but I can look back on fifty years of walking with friends at my side. Through times of trial and sadness, joy and laughter, I have had the pleasure of sharing my life with nine wonderful guide dogs. Were they perfect? Of course not! They were each different and performed their jobs in unique ways. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal>If my dogs could talk, they might explain their careers like this:<span style='font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>More Than A dog<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>When you see me walk by,<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>You might praise my good looks,<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>You might think that I am working too hard.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>Though my harness is heavy,<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>I wear it with pride.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>My duties are many.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>To alter our course<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>To go around things,<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>Those that move and remain still.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>To tell about steps,<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>Both up and those down.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>To watch out for traffic,<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>To look left and right,<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>And to also look up.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>Too remember the places we have been.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>To guide and protect.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>I am more than a dog.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>I am a friend a confidante,<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>A guardian, a pathfinder.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>I am a comforter, and a seeker<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>I am a guide dog.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-align:justify'>Since receiving my first guide dog Tammy in 1968, eight successor dogs have taken up their stations at my left side. Each dog shouldered the responsibility of guiding to the best of his or her ability. Each brought a savor and enjoyment to my life with their companionship. They walked beside me for a while, sharing my journey, helping me to meet and overcome the challenges inherent in being a blind woman. From each dog, I learned lessons that have enriched my life.<span style='font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'> They have been responsible for my being able to board planes <br>early, occasionally even being moved from the economy seating I can afford to first <br>class. They have given me the opportunity of meeting likeminded people who also<br>love dogs. They have kept me safe and made it possible for me to go where I want, when I want and added immeasurably to the quality of my journey by assuring I didn’t have to walk alone. </span> <b><o:p></o:p></b></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-align:justify'><span style='font-size:12.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-align:justify'><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>Two of my dogs had serious medical problems and two quit guiding due to stress. Because I entrust my safety to every canine partner, a bond of mutual respect and love has developed between me and each successor dog. Only by weighing the complex interactions between me as handler and my dog, can I determine when that moment has arrived to start looking for a retirement home for my partners. Because I form a very strong bond with my dogs, I try to allow myself plenty of time between dogs. This is partly so as not to make unfair comparisons between the new pup and the old experienced guide. I also want to get so frustrated by having to use a cane that I remember why I use a dog by choice. I am patient with my new friend as he learns the ropes of what I expect from him. I don't believe anyone makes these decisions lightly or frivolously. Like any other relationship, outsiders can’t readily judge the depth of the bond between blind person and dog guide. How and when to retire a dog is always a wrenching decision. The blind handler is the one who should make the decision. He or she can ask advice from vets and from the school's field staff if not sure of the dynamics of changes observed in how well the dog guides. Only the handler can decide whether to slow one’s lifestyle to accommodate an aging friend or when it is time to retire a loyal companion. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-align:justify;text-indent:.5in'><span style='font-size:12.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><div style='mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:dotted windowtext 3.0pt;padding:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in'><p class=MsoNormal style='text-align:justify;text-indent:.5in;border:none;padding:0in'><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>I hope you have enjoyed reading this book, sharing the journey I have walked with the companionship of nine unique dogs. Thanks to the puppy-raisers who gave a piece of their hearts to each puppy they prepared for a life of service, the trainers who work to impart the skills necessary to guide a blind person, to the dedication and intelligence of the dogs themselves, life as a partner in a guide dog team is possible. If you enjoyed getting to know my nine partners in crime, I will share a final gift of humor. Here are three additional sketches of life as a guide dog from the dog’s perspective, which I have written over the years.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-align:justify;text-indent:.5in;border:none;padding:0in'><span style='font-size:12.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></p></div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div></body></html>