Ok so Ive typed out my answers to send in to Reachout Australia for the article theyd like to do about me and Musa the Marvelous Service Dog, but Im feeling really nervous and I think Ive just blabbed on a bit too much. Can I get some input and help please? Heres the questions- Would you be able to answer these questions? Tell us a bit about yourself - who are you and what do you like to do? Tell us a bit about Musa, how did you guys end up together? Can you explain how Musa helps you out, day to day? Can you give us some tips on how to interact with a service dog? Are there things we should and shouldnt say or do? Questions that should/shouldnt be asked? Heres my reply- Im Robbi, 25, female and for the last year and a half Ive been dealing with getting my mental health back on track. Prior to that I was working towards being a teacher for special needs kids. After working as a support worker for almost a decade, I found myself with a one year contract at the school of one of the kids Id been working with the longest. I was just an educational assistant, but it was full time and I loved it. So I knew from them on, Id have a goal to aim towards. Working as a support worker with special needs kids was always a great love of mine, but the hours could be a bit tricky. So when I was suddenly offered a job to work full time at the school, I was over the moon. Sadly my mental health deteriorated a bit shortly before my contact expired and I knew it was time to take a bit of a break. Kids are so in tune, I dont think I would have pushed myself to really put everything I had into getting better without knowing Id have such a great goal to come back to. While I was on the path to help heal myself a little more, I realized after getting my second psychiatric Service Dog (also know as psychiatric Assistance Dog) that there was a huge lack of awareness for the incredible jobs these dogs can do. While I took the time to recover a little more myself, before going back to full time studies in hopes of being a teacher one day. I created Musas page. It was just small unheard of page at first, but with time it took of grew to have an incredible following and people where crying out from all different countries for help to raise awareness for mental health and psychiatric Service Dogs. I most definitely still plan on getting my teaching degree, but its been wonderful to be able to help so many in need. Even when I wasnt in the best of spaces myself. The page has just filled my life with hope, its been an incredibly journey. After watching a show one day, I stumbled across the idea of Service Dogs and suddenly found out there was a whole variety of options Id never considered. My first PSD was a Corgi x JRT that Id rescued and she started me down the path. Sadly she rather suddenly passed and I realized what a huge difference she had made in my world. So I set out to find a new dog to help me. It was shortly after my first stay in a psychiatric hospital, but I put in a lot of time and energy to research a variety of breeds and think long term about what my needs might be. I knew wouldnt be able to afford a pedigree pup. So I had a small list of breeds that Id picked based to have mixed in, didnt have to be a pedigree and would be happy for something else be mixed in. It came down to German Shepherds, Labradors or Mastiffs. Plus if it could be a solid chocolate colour, Id be more than happy, but that was just a personal choice bonus. I searched for a while in local rescues and finally found Musa. The chocolate Labrador x Mastiff. I called up, met him. Did a brief test (although its hard to be sure of tests when puppies are so young) of his temperament, drive, etc and fell in love. He was perfect and I took him home. I didnt at the time have a name picked out, but when I saw him he instant made me think of a friend Id made while in hospital. A man who always had a smile on his face, and even though being a psychiatric ward could be a bit stressful and tiring. This man made every day brighter. So I named him after the man who helped me get through the days in hospital with a smile on my face, Musa. Musa is in training to help with a whole variety of tasks. Thankfully hes a bigger dog and meets the requirements for weight and height to help support me with some mobility tasks as well. Although hes not yet got the all clear from his vet as he needed time to make sure his body matured enough to handle the work, very important to make sure the dog is physically able to handle mobility work and theyre of age (usually 2 years) before working them for those needs. So hes been trained to wake me from night terrors, hes currently learning to also turn on the lights so Im not so disoriented when I wake up. Hes learning to alert me to certain behaviours that are common signs of rising anxiety, such as scratching, rapid breathing, crying, and a few other things. He brings me items I cant reach or pick on days when Im having issues with pain. A bit of favourite task of mine is deep pressure therapy, which helps both for grounding me during high anxiety times and can also help relive pain. May seem a bit odd to a lot of people, but hell sit or lay on me in certain positions and the pressure and warmth of his body helps relax my muscles and slow my heart rate. Most certainly can help with this one. Biggest issue a lot of handlers struggle with is people trying to distract their dogs. A lot of people dont think about it and it can be hard. But making kissy sounds, trying to get the dogs attention, touching the dog, feeding the dog, even just staring at the dog can mean they loose focus on their handler and may miss an important cue. Service Dogs can help so many people, you just never know what the handlers disability may be. Theres autism assist dogs, guide dogs, mobility assist dogs, diabetic alert dogs, psychiatric dogs, hearing assistance dogs. So very many jobs a dog may have and by distracting them youre putting their handler at risk. We rely on our dogs to help us by alerting to certain things or providing guidance around obstacle or support when mobility is an issue. So please please do not try and talk to the dogs, touch them, feed them etc. When theyre working, they need to stay focused on the handler. Another important one, please dont ask handlers what their disability is. Im quite open about Musa and what his training is about, what my diagnosiss are. A lot of handlers dont like to be so open though. Its private information and no matter the breed or size of a Service Dog its best not to point and make comments or assumptions about the handlers need for them. Service Dogs can be almost can breed from Chihuahuas to Great Danes, and they can have so many different tasks. Its best just to treat the handler as you would anyone else and ignore the dog being there.
Posted on: Mon, 01 Dec 2014 12:21:41 +0000
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