This past Saturday I attended a Pet Partners Workshop. In the process to become a registered team you either have to take a workshop or do an in-home kit. I decided to do the workshop so I could meet other people involved in the Delta Society and get a chance to see an example of the evaluation that Georgia and I will ultimately have to take together. This workshop was all day (9:00am-4:30pm) and I have to go again this coming Saturday. It was a long day for sure, but I think over all it was informative and I’m hoping this coming Saturday will be similar in that regard. I did realize how much I don’t miss being a student and sitting in a classroom setting!
The instructor was very nice and knowledgeable. She and her dog have been a Pet Partners team for 6 years. We did a lot of reading aloud from a textbook (not my favorite thing), but the really informative part was when a lady brought her 9 month old dog in to have a trial run at being evaluated by an actual Delta Society evaluator. A dog has to be at least a year old before it can be evaluated, so this wasn’t an actual test for them. It was good practice for them and it showed the rest of us what we’ll be expected to do when it’s time for our evaluations. The dog…well he’s still a puppy would not have passed had it been a real evaluation, but he was very close. The unique challenge for this future Pet Partners team is that the puppy is deaf. I have a hearing dog and it’s hard enough to train her, I can’t imagine throwing sign language into the mix. She’s taught her puppy sign language. It was really very neat to see. I was only around that dog for about an hour, but I could tell that he’s smart, calm and sweet and I’m sure with more training and as he gets a little older he’ll have no problem passing the evaluation. I did feel less nervous after watching the practice evaluation. I think with some more work it is something that Georgia and I could pass. She’s come a long way since we started training…maybe I have too.
Most of the things that Georgia still needs work on can be done at home, but we’re going to have to take some field trips out in public as well. She has to be able to approach another person with their dog while staying calm. She gets excited when she sees other dogs…so Petsmart may be a good place to try this. She also has to be able to walk through crowds calmly. In the evaluation the “crowd” consists of three people walking close to us. She did well at the Memory Walk in October with a very large crowd so that was a good sign. Petsmart may have to do as our crowd too…maybe on a Saturday? Still got a ways to go and I’ll be attempting to use the Dremel tonight on her nails ALONE – no trainer to help! Wish us luck!
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