The honor and the agony

 I've been working with him regarding off leash obedience. He's been learning today, even out of harness, to be with me outside our apartment with only vocal control. We have a leash law, and large dogs are forbidden in our rental agreement - so this is the cause of major curiosity and interference from neighbors. I've had to stop and talk to a lot of people I've not met before today that live in the complex. Working off leash is a skill I need from Charlie. He is not on leash with me when working, and is on leash when off duty - so obedience while "naked" reinforces obedience between the two personas he has to have. It's the little bit of blurred line Charlie needs. Other service dogs might not need it, but he does, because he has a tendency to think when he's off duty that he can do whatever he wants to, including misbehaving or destroying toys.

Working with vocal control off duty also reinforces that I am Charlie's Alpha, even though he is so much stronger than me. It discourages disrespect from him, and instills in him that no matter the situation, working or play, there are rules.

Anyway...I got kinda hung up there explaining why we were "breaking the leash law".

Here's the basic rundown I give when interrupted:

"yes, he's my service dog in training. We live in (#). Oh thank you! Yes, I think he's pretty too. No, he's not purebred. No, he's not a pit bull. No, I'm sorry, you can't pet him right now. He doesn't have his uniform on, but we're working on training right now. Yes, management knows he lives here. Yes, I have to clean up his poop. I will not leave anything behind him ever. No, he will not hurt you. You don't have to be afraid of us -Just think of him like you would a wheelchair - he's just an extension of me. No, you can't feed him your biscuit, he's on a vet controlled diet. Yes, you're right. It's offensive to talk to the dog and not the disabled person. That was awesome of you to not distract the working dog at the bar that time."

I think I'm going to invest in some caution tape and a fold out board with clear writing that says "service dog team is training right now. Please read about us at www.charlieisaservicedog.blogspot.com". I know I need to go print more business cards...I just don't have the cash right now to do that.

I got into a conversation on Facebook today with some friends of my mom's, as well as mutual friends regarding my civic duty as a disabled American working dog team. It's a great privilege and responsibility to educate everyone about service dog etiquette because Charlie and I might be the only working dog team people ever encounter. It's amazing and a great honor, but it can also be a huge burden. It's one of the things I didn't realize would be such a part of my new reality with a service dog. 

For over a year before getting Charlie I waffled between various pros and cons of getting help in the form of a dog. I'm a huge lover of animals, and I don't want to toot my own horn, but I'm pretty darn good with most animals (birds and reptiles being my exceptions - birds don't seem to like me, and I don't seem to care much for reptiles!).

I knew I would be responsible for vet bills, food, cleaning up after the dog and also responsible for daily caring for its gooming needs. There was a long drawn out process of deciding what breed would both fit my needs and also fit my desires. I knew I couldn't realistically maintain a poodle on my own, because of its grooming alone. So after deciding to do private training instead of fundraising and traveling for a trained dog, and after a failed adoption of a Samoyed and also a failed adoption of a husky, I was burnt out. I had done all this research and tried to find "The dog". After the miracle that happened last December of finding and adopting Charlie, the last thing on my mind was the fact that we would become lifelong advocates and educators of the needs of service dog teams. It's just a fact I completely overlooked in all of that process.

 Here I am 10 months later, learning through experience that I am a walking, talking representation of service dog teams the world over. I have to be polite and willing to talk about it even when I'm exhausted or bitchy. I have to be social and polite when I don't want to or feel like it. Charlie has to be at 100% at all times in harness not just for me and my health needs, but for everyone, because they will forget me, but not him. He's Charlie the wonder dog - the dog that will be talked about in front of us in hushed whispers by the curious or scared people. He's the dog that will be gossiped about by people that don't approve of service animals. He's "that service dog we saw that time", in the minds of the public.

It's a huge honor and a burden rolled into one.