Day 10

Classes have been a little more casual: less lecture, more practicing and working with the dogs, and more problem solving situations we may encounter in public. We went through the practical test today as a group. This involved a series of typical tasks including picking objects up off the floor, turning light switches on and off, opening and closing doors, and dropping the leash and calling the dog toward you ("losing" control of the dog, then regaining control of the dog).  We feel that there will be no problem with the entire class passing the practical.

We also went through a series of distraction scenarios. The dogs were put through their paces with food on the floor for the entire series of exercises. We have to admit, our dog is pretty motivated by food, but seems to ignore it at CCI. A series of other distractions like the vacuum cleaner running, one of the staff members dressed as a construction worker walking around and calling the dogs, squeaky toys, umbrellas opening and closing, and a remote control car were presented to the dogs and handlers. The goal was for the dogs to ignore the distractions and stay focused. Some of the dogs reacted, but it was up to us to keep them under control. Next, our instructors set us up for one of the ultimate challenges, a field trip to the Columbus Zoo.

The zoo was filled with school children, families of all kinds, a variety of animals with their requisite odors and noises (even another dog that was with a zoo worker), food all over the ground, and general chaos and pandemonium. The instructors tested us by having the dogs do a series of commands in this very distraction-full environment. The thinking is, if our dogs can perform here, we can have every confidence that they will perform in less distracted situations. We avoided exhibits where the dogs would upset the animals (the large cats, the wolves, the kangaroos, and the monkeys). Even though service animals are allowed within the zoo, if they upset the zoo animals, we could be asked to leave. Needless to say, Miles had a great time! He liked the fish the best, but didn't really seem to be impressed by the manatees - they were huge!

We had another quiet evening. We took a trip to the pool, had a quiet dinner, and some relaxation. Our practical exam is at 10:20 tomorrow morning and our public access test is in the afternoon at a different mall from yesterday. We also have our written final to complete. I am sure that the instructors have given us all the tools we need to be a successful dog team. Miles is loving the interaction in the evenings and our dog chooses to be close to him most of the time.