Category Archives: Texas

Cerebral Palsy, Medical Alert, Mobility, San Antonio, Texas

Travis and the AMAZING SDIT Teddy

From tireless trainer Beverly, who is working with 17 year-old Travis, who has CP and is confined to a wheelchair and cannot speak. He is AMAZING with SDIT Teddy!!!

“Worked with Travis (using the “voice commands” from his iPad) and Teddy on “stay” and “place” (for use at restaurants or other public locations when he needs to go to a specific spot.) Mother Meridan says that Teddy is doing fantastic waiting to get in and out of the van, heeling in public, going to Travis’s school, and attending hospital visits! The family is doing a fabulous job at training Teddy and Travis and Teddy are both amazingly intelligent. We reviewed what Teddy will need to know to pass the Public Access Test with Meridian and Travis.

The family will be on vacation for the next 2 weeks and will return to training once they come back. Teddy will be going with them and even has a “dog house” in their hotel room! We will discuss how it went and any issues that need to be addressed at that time.”

General, Military, PTSD, San Antonio, Texas, Veteran, Wounded Warrior

Wounded Warrior DJ and Tabitha

From trainer Beverly – she’s been hard at work!! A session with Wounded Warrior DJ, who suffers from PTSD, and his SDIT, Tabitha.

“We met at HEB. and had our first public session there to find treats for Tabitha. She did VERY well. She responded to “leave it” if she was getting too interested in others. She laid down at one point while we were looking at treats and DJ was “amazed” at her “non-reaction” to the people who were going by at that time!

Tabitha is proficient at Sit, Down, Stay (short 1-2 mins) Heel position (Walk, return, at stop), Watch Me, Wait, Leave it, Controlled entry (car, building, inside doors), Controlled Exit (car, building, inside door) and Walking in a Public Location. DJ has been doing great work with Tabitha.

We then went across the street to Lowes and practiced walking beside the shopping cart, and practiced remaining seated when being petted. Tabitha did VERY well on all of these new tasks.

DJ will continue to work with her and get her out more. He has her vest ordered and she should have that by next session and will be able to start taking her out all the time now that he is past the “first time” jitters!”

Air Force, Military, PTSD, San Antonio, Texas, Wounded Warrior

Meet and Greet – Robert and Crash

From trainer Beverly and her son, Andrew, also a trainer, who had the first meeting with Wounded Warrior, SMSgt Robert, who suffers from PTSD.

“We met in Selma for the initial meet and greet with Robert and Crash and Andrew reviewed what Crash had been learning previously – sit, down, watch me, heel, leave it, and short stay. We discussed what he had been eating, his routines and any habits that may require more work. Robert and Crash hit it off right away, and Robert decided he wanted to pick Crash up on Saturday (giving him time to get things for the Temporary Living Facility (TLF)  he is staying in.)

On Saturday afternoon, we met in Kingsbury, and Andrew and Bob took Crash to D&D feed to get food, and show Bob what they had been working on in public. The meeting went well and follow up phone calls have shown a few new things to work on (nothing totally unexpected for a major change) – but everyone is adjusting to their new life together. We will be scheduling a training session soon, since Bob is going to be having surgery and we need to make certain that Crash adjusts to the limitations ASAP.”

Anxiety, Austin, Depression, Fibromyalgia, PTSD, Texas

Meghan and Precious

An update from our trainer in Austin, who is working with Meghan, who unfortunately suffers from PTSD, severe anxiety/depression, and fibromyalgia. She says that most nights when she sleeps, she has severe nightmares and wakes up every few hours. The anxiety from the PTSD, nightmares, flashbacks causes severe panic attacks. The anxiety leads to depression which makes leaving the house difficult. At times, the fibromyalgia leaves her exhausted, affecting her ability to stand and her general ability to function or concentrate. She will collapse or have to sit down wherever she’s at. Her speech can even become slurred. We hope with the help of SDIT, Precious, she can find some peace and joy, along with balance relief. Our trainer writes:

“Hello Laurie!

I had a morning session with Meghan and Precious. It had been a couple of weeks since we got together. Today, we focused on distractions outside. As we walked outside of her apartment over to the dog park in the complex, I noticed that Precious heels very nicely alongside her. Meghan rarely had to redirect or tell Precious to stay by her side.

We got to the dog park and there was nobody there, which was perfect. So we sat down and waited for Precious to settle into a down, and had Precious make several eye contacts before letting him off leash. After she took him off leash, he continued to stay in a down even though he had the freedom to roam in his environment! As soon as Meghan got up, Precious then wandered off to smell the dog park and do his business. We used this as an opportunity to practice his recalls so he could be immersed in his environment but still listen to Meghan when she calls for him. He did very well considering how much there was to smell around him!

When we headed back to her apartment, I showed Meghan some tips on how to stop Precious from jumping onto the kitchen counter and grabbing food that is left up there. We made some good progress today! My favorite part is how nicely he heels by her side. That is a HUGE help for her stability!”

Bipolar, Depression, Military, PTSD, San Antonio, Texas, Veteran, Wounded Warrior

Wounded Warrior Nathan and Owen

An update from Beverly, who is working with Wounded Warrior Nathan, who suffers from PTSD, depression, and bipolar disorder due to childhood abuse and deployments, and his SDIT, “Owen”!

“We did our first training session at a public location. Although Nathan and Owen have been practicing, they hadn’t made any serious trips. Now that they have their own vest and ID, we wanted to give them practice. We started in the garden section and practiced basic behaviors and commands. Then, with the assistance of a sales person there, we had Owen practice staying seated while someone petted him. He did well for his first “petting” from a stranger. Then, we found a cart and practiced pushing the cart with Owen heeling right next to the cart through turns, tight spots, other people, etc. Owen did very well!

Owen was a little nervous with all the sounds and people, but he quickly adjusted and recovered very well from loud noises with very little startle. Good boy with heeling, with a cart, with sitting and watching out when we stopped and took a break. Good Boy Owen! Good Job Nathan! Owen brings Nathan a lot of joy.”

Autism, San Antonio, Texas

Brandi, Alex and SDiT Will

An update from our trainer Beverly, who is working with mom Brandi and her son, Alex, who has autism, and SDIT, Will!

“We walked around the whole apartment complex, around several people in passing and dogs barking from balconies. Will did great! There were no signs of any problems. Will growled for a short moment at the frenzied barking dogs, but walked on and ignored them when told “leave it.” Brandi will take treats on her walk and have random people feed treats to Will while he is in a sit position so he knows other people are okay (especially strollers and any unfamiliar objects.) She will also ensure he sits whenever they stop walking and is not allowed to pull on the leash while walking. I showed her how to give a proper leash correction with the flat collar and discussed the importance of not letting him get ahead and start any pulling. Will did GREAT on the walk around the whole complex and only needed to be reminded to heel a few times. Will knows sit, down, stay, watch me, and leave it.

Brandi says Will and Alex sleep together every night and they have a very tight bond. Alex loves to pet and hug Will, which can calm him if he gets upset.”

Alzheimer's Disease, Army, Diabetes, El Paso, Medical Alert, Military, PTSD, Texas, Veteran, Wounded Warrior

Beto and Osito

1 Comment
Another wonderful update from our trainer Michelle, in New Mexico, who is working with Beto, a Wounded Warrior who is in the early stages of Alzheimer’s and has diabetes, and his SDIT, Osito!

Michelle writes:

“I met with Beto and SDiT Osito. It was a good visit. However, Beto’s short term memory is quickly fading. He was not able to remember the things we talked about regarding commands. However, he was able to remember to check his blood sugar when Osito began kissing him and alerted to high sugar levels in excess of 250; scary!!! AWESOME JOB OSITO!!!!!!

We also worked on “leave it”, and by the end of the small session OSITO would not take it unless told he could have the treat!!!!!

Beto’s wife, Maribel, was out of town taking care of family, and was unable to help with the training these last 2 weeks. She reassured me these next two weeks she will help more.

We did get SDIT Osito to start wearing his vest, which came in the mail. Maribel will be doing some alterations so that it doesn’t hurt Osito when he wears his vest. The xs is still too large, and patches are being sewn on.

I still have high hopes for this team, they just need reminders. We will work with things like sticky notes, writing pads, etc. Beto loves his Osito SO very much!”

 

Austin, Texas

Lily is truly inspiring

1 Comment

From our trainer in Austin, who continues to perfect the work with dear Lucia and her SD, Lily. The trainer writes:

“Hi! Lucia and Lily worked on distractions yesterday at Petco. Lucia and Lily passed their PAT last weekend but want to continue their training sessions, improving Lily’s focus on distractions.

Lily was able to get close enough to the cat! We also worked on squeaky toys as well!

Lucia is so dedicated to perfecting Lily’s training and focus that I have no doubt that Lily is just going to get better and better!”

I personally have to say that in talking to Lucia, her determination to excel beyond expectations with Lily is truly inspiring.

Lucia and Lily

Anxiety, Dallas-Fort Worth, PTSD, Texas

Heather, Marcus and SDiT Duke

From our trainer in Ft. Worth, Candace! She is working with wonderful mom, Heather, and her 7 1/2 year-old son, Marcus. Heather writes that Marcus suffers from PTSD and anxiety as a result of severe abuse and neglect he suffered prior to our adoption when he was 4 1/2. PTSD disrupts his life on a daily basis. He is a bright, compassionate, energetic young man who is being limited by the ghosts of his past. Poor Marcus’ PTSD seems to be most intense at school. The hustle and bustle of school can be overwhelming to him. His teacher reports a lot of hyper-vigilance behaviors that interfere with his ability to focus in class. He is constantly on the lookout for trouble and has to sit in a spot where he can see the whole classroom. . Often, he is afraid of sleeping in his room by himself because he has frequent nightmares / night terrors. His mother is completely committed to helping Marcus with the aid of a Service Dog.

“We’d like to give a warm welcome to Heather and her son Marcus! They just added Duke to the family and are beginning their journey. The only thing I did with Ms. Wilson this session is help assess the dogs, providing pros and cons. Duke really took to Marcus. They are both in the higher energy realm, so it looks like they will be great buddies! More than that, Duke will be a wonderful companion for Marcus. Ms. Wilson reports that they are doing well with leash training, but mostly they are working on the two bonding. They will start working on the easier commands sit and down, but more than that, play! It’s just wonderful to see Marcus happy! Here are some pictures of the two Marcus and Duke the day after they brought him home. Looks like a great match to me!!”

Diabetes, Experience, Military, Mobility, Navy, San Antonio, Texas, Veteran, Wounded Warrior

John and his wonderful SD Sancho

Veteran John and his wonderful SD Sancho are still going strong! Sancho is getting a few grey hairs – he’s 8 – but he still listens to every one of John’s commands and is as lovable as ever! John has been taking extra care of himself because they believe he is having mini-strokes, which sometimes affect his speech and memory along with his movement – but he’s a real trooper and tries not to let it get him down! Caretaker Mary takes John and Sancho to all their appointments at the VA and with specialists, and Sancho is still as helpful and devoted as ever. John just loves Sancho to pieces!

Mary wrote about their recent outing to the Garden Center on Bandera Rd, were they got 3 plants. John loves to garden, and at our last session, he and Mary had cleaned up all the vegetable and flower beds and it was beautiful! They also went to Walmart and got some cactus and hats for the sun protection. It is important for John and Sancho to get out the house and walk and just get away from things so that John does not have to stay at home and focus on his disabilities. Amazingly, even with the inability to use one arm, John volunteers at the Guide Dogs of Texas, washing drinking bowls, helping keep things clean, and being around other dogs. His volunteer work gives him something to make him feel purposeful. John and Sancho will also continue to do therapy dog work as they have been – they are so good at it, and John has a wonderful sense of humor that is infectious for those who are in need of uplifting.

Here are some pictures of me outside with Sancho – I love to brush him with the Furminator because he sheds so much and I know it feels good for him! You can also see from the pictures how much Sancho loves John. And Sancho does REALLY well in his booties!!!