What types of exposure did you do with your SDiT before going to their first medical appointment? My FREE and Low-Cost Training Resources 👇: 🦮 Service Dog 101 Course: courses.doggyu.com/p/service-dog-101 🐕🦺 Behavior Interruptions & Alerts Course: courses.doggyu.com/p/bia 👉🏽 Sign Up For my FREE Dog Training Foundations Mini-Course: www.doggyu.com/ 🎉 JOIN the DOGGY•U Community! (150+ Exclusive Training Videos!) patreon.com/doggyu
I am training, with a trainer, my son's dog. I have appointments that really are just medication checks, and I know are just going to be a short visit to confirm the meds work. I took Robin too those appointments when he was younger for exposure. Now that he's reached the "teenage" months I've pulled back a little, but will start taking hin to those types of visits again. Since I'm not the handler (Kiddo does as much as he can as handler) I don't need to worry so much about my need during the visit and can gage whether to take or not take Robin based on Kiddo's level, and I can bail with the dog if needed.
I really like how you said protect their puppyhood, and not to put on too much too soon. Before I brought my SD to the first appointment I made sure she could settle for a period of time at home, backyard, park, restaurant for just a snack, then for a meal, and took her to medical buildings to practice in hallways & waiting rooms.
I had a therapist who was against me bringing my SDiT. Even tho she was well behaved, the therapist thought it was counterproductive. I fired her and found one who not only accepted my girl, but gave me the time and space to train DPT.
OMG Luara, I absolutely loved this video for so many reasons! Thank you so much for being so authentic and transparent! I completely agree with everything you just talked about and have had similar experiences with doctors both in the military and civilian side. I went through several org that train veterans to train our dogs for service dog work, and none of them ever talked about the challenges of training your dog for ptsd when we get out in the public settings and our anxiety and triggers kick in. I think it's one of the biggest downfalls of so many nonprofits that work with vets and service dogs. I've been working with private trainers for the past 4 years to help me with these gaps that happened when I was a student with my service dog pup/red fox lab. He's 5 years old now. We are still in this journey and I'm learning sooooo much each and every day. Love watching your videos!
I agree - it isn't talked about enough! Training a psych dog has really unique challenges and many people are better off getting a fully trained dog if they have the resources, or at least one that's started by a neutral party.
I can definitely see where I probably went wrong in my training. I think I exposed Freja too much when she was younger. I feel bad sometimes with my Asperger’s syndrome how it can affect her because she is very sensitive to me. I try my best to stay calm and collective in stressful situations. That is why in our second year of public access training that I am going to do things a little bit different and get her out more and be more sensitive to building her confidence. Labs and golden retrievers are very sensitive breeds due to their activity. I am so proud of Freja every day of my life when she does overcome her fear and anxiety. We are a team.
Thank you for the video. It was very helpful and I feel reassured in the fact that because I can somewhat manage my episodes, I can still have a SD, which I want because most (if not all) of my panic attacks happen when I’m alone.
Giant cyber hug from Florida for sharing your story - thanks for being so vulnerable. In response to this comment, that’s where I am…from what I can tell, a lot of the time I’m okay (15 years of counseling to get there), but when I’m not, I’m REALLY not. And I’ll get stuck there for several days. Not sure if a SD is meant for that kind of PTSD, or if I am supposed have to have bad symptoms all the time to “qualify”?
@@szickef The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) defines a disability as a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities, such as walking, seeing, hearing, speaking, breathing, or learning. So if you have an impairment that limits a major life activity, which it sounds like you do, than you would qualify. One of the things to consider is that you'll have to have your dog practice tasking in between episodes to keep him working and sharp.
@@DoggyUhonestly! I tend to kinda power through ( such a counter productive coping tendency lol) and your reminder to take care, gave me that threshold to make a decision 💪🏻 a good model of being an ally for others snd yourself 💖
Fantastic video. This channel is amazing. I am working with professional trainers and I did months of research before starting the training process. Even so, I was so clueless when I started the journey and I thought my smart puppy could handle a lot. I’m realizing I need to slow way down and work on different exposures with less duration. Thank you for reinforcing this message to protect young prospect dogs and think of them first.
One thing I did incorrectly with my current service dog was introducing psychiatric tasking too early, he never got the chance to really be a puppy, and as a result he doesn't really have any "off time". He doesn't understand how to relax, he's constantly vigilant and watching me and monitoring my condition, and that's not fair to him and certainly not healthy. I've spent years trying to remedy this after realizing the extent of the mistake I made and the fallout thereof, and am really only now seeing him be able to relax and just be a dog, even if just a little. This is an incredibly important video for anyone training their own psychiatric service dog to see, thank you for always putting information like this out there for those who need it.
Another great video. I may have mentioned in previous video comments that my dog is for anxiety behavior disruption. She uses her paw when she sees me fiddling with my silicone bracelet or bouncing my knee. She also does it in bed when I bounce my foot. She gets pretty determined with it if I don't stop fast enough to suit her. She'll be 3 January 27th. She's been going to doctor visits and therapy visits since she was 1. She is amazingly patient and calm in any public situations. She has laid still in a corner, under a table or even in a crowded room for up to 2 hours without moving or complaining. I do very much appreciate your videos and the information you provide but your happy smiling personality helps when I'm having a bad day. Keep up the good work.
i was going to say bring cool whip but my reason was that when you are there you dont want to have to worry about training a service dog in training you just want to focus on what you are doing. Thats why cool whip is the better option so you can focus and not worry about a little puppy.
Thank you for sharing your experience! Back when my SD was still an SDiT, I waited until my SD could keep a reliable stay in a busy environment, would not have any reaction to any kind of equipment or noises, and could be handled by someone else if I needed him to be. I let my siblings, friends, or parents have a part in training, we took trips to pet friendly places and after he could somewhat task and preform basic skills, we moved into grocery stores and our local mall, I used the construction sights nearby to expose to sounds and equipment, and made sure that he could handle any kind of every day noises, for example, someone knocking on the door, and it helped when my mom used to work at the hospital, I could bring him on visits to see her and spend 10 - 15 minutes in the waiting area, walking down the halls, and even spending some time in a patients room (after consent of course).
Ah yes, the backwards knee at rest. As someone with joint hypermobility Spectrum Disorder I know that all too well. And the pain of wearing the wrong shoes, the anterior pelvic tilt, getting up wrong and having your knee give out on you, or having to readjust the bones in your feet when you stand up. I had a feeling the answer was going to be Whip for that reason. Cause until you set up this puppy series there's so much conflicting evidence about proper socialization for puppies, but especially service dog puppies.
Our breeder was willing to keep Piper and do a whole lot of socialization and obedience, and we didn’t bring her home till she was 4 months old. She must have been a year old when I started taking her to special therapy appointments that were just dog training. She was 2 1/2 and working as a full SD before I started taking her to physical doctor appointments.
Great content! I think its easy to forget that our service dog puppies are still babies in a mental/emotional sense. It would be like a 5 year old watching someone have a panic attack
I had no idea you had HEDS!! I am between a HSD and HEDS diagnosis. Also Fibro. I am training a Great Dane/St Bernard mix. Thank you for sharing your stories!!
First of all thank you for sharing it’s tough to share things like that and people need to know that ptsd isn’t just military related mine was because of work and few other things but I really appreciate how you talk about the dog taking on our emotions my poodle does that she is a guide dog and diabetic alert dog with a few autism related sprinkled tasks for me and it’s important to remember that while our dogs our amazing they are dogs
The informations you give are so important! I wish we would have known this before! And about what happened to you, sadly, like in any other things, some doctors are shit. I’m sorry that you had to experience that, it must have been really traumatizing. And thank you for sharing that with us. 💖💖💖💖💖
That’s absolutely inexcusable and totally ridiculous that the doctors would’ve treated you like that. I hope that the complaint you filed resulted in some serious legal action against them and their hospital and I’m very sorry you experienced that trauma. It definitely makes sense what you mentioned about how when puppies are so young it is important to protect them from overloading emotions and overwhelming situation. We need to put their needs first so that they can help us with ours and of course be happy confident well rounded dogs.
I've come to the realization that they often put the worst doctors on E.R. duty, especially at night. I have to drive and extra hour to go to the E.R. because my local hospitals E.R. doctors and nurses are so bad, that I'm better off riaking an extra hour than go there. Even the local paramedics have talked to me about how bad they are. Unfortunatly nothing gets done about this. Not enough doctors to replace the bad ones, so nothing is done unless they commit a heinous crime that can't be ignored, or mess up with someone wealthy enough to go after the hospital over it.
Laura so glad you do these videos they are so helpful . I was at a hospital I go into often but last time someone asked me what my dog is used for, because I had never been asked, it caught me off guard, thankfully my husband was there, he of course didn’t skip a bit and said TBI, I need to remember to keep it together I’m usually by myself. Keeping thoughts together is a major challenge for me, again THANK YOU you have helped more than you know.
Hey Carole! One thing that can be really helpful is to practice, as silly as it sounds. Like if you're out with your husband, as soon as you walk into a building, have him ask you the legally allowed questions so you have lots of muscle-memory responding to them. Alternatively, you can make a card that you can either read, or hand to the person if that is an easier solution. But practice practice practice and then it will be second nature just like your phone number.
thank you for sharing your experience Laura! I've been in your shoes medically, time and time again throughout my childhood and teen years with doctors (and family) overriding my consent and anxiety just because 'something was necessary' or thinking i was faking something. people really don't realize how even a single minute of a bad experience leaves lasting scars that can be really hard to work with or ruin your trust in doctors overall. I'm glad you found a way to deal with the aftermath going forwards. visibility is so important. you also made so many good points throughout this video! overloading puppies can happen when you have such big expectations for them, especially if your dog is a teen who LOOKS mature but isn't. it's super good to remind ourselves puppies are building how they see the world in the first few months of their lives and seeing a panic attack or otherwise can change it all in the blink of an eye.
Yes! That adolescent period where they look like adults but still have baby brains is definitely so important to constantly remember that they're still growing mentally physically and emotionally!
Cool Whip would be the better option in taking your service dog to therapy. I have faith that Denver would do great with the skills that he knows so far, but I do not think he is mature enough and ready enough to handle a new environment. I made the big mistake during my service dog training with Freja that I overwhelmed her, not realizing that she was still an adolescent with a maturing brain. Now that Freja is turning twoand we are getting back into our second year of public access training. It is really important to know what we need to work on in environments when we are assessing situations. You do not want to overwhelm a puppy at Denver’s age.
Thank you for sharing your experience and for the trigger warnings 💕 I’m bringing my puppy home next month and this is super helpful information, thank you!
I would have putt coolwhip in with you as well as it wasnt just a medical checkup kind of situation. Any situation where you are getting serious tings addressed is where you would want a seasoned dog to be there to assist you. You need to focus on you and your conditions and not have to also worry about having to train at the same time. Also its so beneficial to have your medical pro have a connection with you on a personal level which can be hard to be in. BTW.. mid video.. coolwhip looking at you 'momma.. i know you are talking about me' lol.
Thank you for sharing the details of your disabilities and your medical horror story with us ❤ I have PTSD and definitely wouldn’t take my SD to my therapy sessions, I’m lucky enough to only live a couple of blocks away from my therapist though so I’m blessed with being able to get home really fast. I’ve noticed lately that my SD has picked up some bad habits from from my PTSD and has some hypervigilance as well as not liking anyone coming into our home or car. These are very recent behaviours from him and are based in fear, they’ve gotten a lot worse since I was physically assaulted just before Christmas last year and I’ve had to pull him from working until I can fix the issues. If you can afford to have a puppy raiser for the first few months then I totally recommend doing it, even though you miss out on a lot of new puppy stuff, you can always schedule time each week to check in and build a bond with the pup as well. Sending lots of love from Australia and I hope everyone has a great holiday season 😊
Just to clarify, when it comes to not training psychiatric tasks until they’re older, I’m assuming that doesn’t include the action, I guess, in some cases? (Like, for example, when I’m anxious I tend to bounce my leg and a dog putting its chin on my knee/thigh to almost be like “hey, stop that”, would really help me. And while I wouldn’t want to expose a young puppy to me being super anxious, I’d probably train them to target their chin to my knee/thigh in a non-anxiety-inducing situation when they’re big enough to reach? Which I’m hoping wouldn’t be a bad idea? Same with the actions for DPT, but without linking it to Me Being Super Anxious?). Please correct me if I’m wrong though. (Also, omg, I’m so excited to potentially find out whether or not I’m allowed to get/train an assistance dog within the next 2 weeks!!!!)
I would love if you could do an in-depth video on service dog breeds. I know you highly recommend a labrador. But if you could talk about which breeds fit which line of work (psychiatric, mobility), that would be fantastic 😊 Also herding breeds vs retrieving breeds 😊❤
@DoggyU lol! Amazing! What about picking between a labrador and golden retriever for a service dog prospect? Is the difference mostly the fur in your experience? Thank you again for sharing your knowledge!!! 🥰
@@Em-jt7im Depends on the line. Yes that is a huge difference obviously. I find Golden's *can* be softer, they can also have resource guarding in the lines. I think what's helpful is picking a line of lab or golden you vibe with vs. the whole of the breed as they really can vary quite a bit. Going to dog shows and sporting events with both breeds can be really helpful here to check out each breed and line!
Came to see your van, but got so many good points. I have the same knee issue since I was a kid. Yes, I still talk to my therapist about all those doc visits. The pain and unable to stretch are so real. I have PTSD and a Service Dog.
Each of us have different therapy sessions. We are each unique in our medical needs. Not knowing your disability/diagnosis I answered using my own experiences. I agree overloading our puppies with our emotions is not a good way to help them develop
uh... oh sh!t... im 1:23 into the video and i think you just perfectly described what i have, i have been diagnosed with hypermobility and have been in physio for twoo years due to my joints and lots of them, dislocating (i cant even take my shirt off without one or both my shoulders and something else dislocating) thank you so much i will go see a doctor as soon as i can about this!!!
Another good point of this video is that you’re not taking your new dog to where you might have big emotion. We are conditioning our Service Dog to attune to our emotions. They are very sensitive to our emotion and body language.
I thought the therapy was physical therapy. I have had 30 minute PT and OT sessions back when I couldn't handle longer sessions. Even short, I wouldn't bring a dog to those sessions unless I could reliably tether them and needed them before/after. Plus, my physical therapist could help me in the ways that I would need my doggo then anyway. She has heavy weights for my lap and has helped me during POTS episodes. She also can show me ways to do things that might be less convenient, but necessary ways to do things if my dog wasn't feeling well and needed a rest day.
This is exactly why I struggle so much with training my dog by myself. My dog is a pretty confident and happy adult, but only because I protect him from everything that I'm not sure he can handle. Teaching my dog to approach someone who is crying uncontrollably and possibly being really loud is something that I don't have the skillset to do safely, it just needs to be handled by a professional, and 1000% not the person who is crying and not able to function. And in Canada you can't take a SDIT just anywhere, pretty much only places that are really hard for my dog, like the pet store, or really hard for me with autism, like the hardware store. There's just no chance. And to get help with service dog training costs like 10 000$+, so someone on disability benefits like me is never going to be able to afford it in a million years. My next plan is I'm going to save up for a therapy dog class for him, which is only 350$, so I could potentially afford it in a few months of saving. I'm hoping they have that kind of psychiatric service dog training experience to help me teach my dog to do tasks, then he can be enough support to me that we can help each other through the public access training steps. And if he can task but not go in public access, that's better than nothing by a long shot. I'm also going to ask service dog trainers if I can volunteer to help with their classes too, I like dog training and I want to give back, and it might give me the skillset I need. That's another good thing about getting my dog to be a therapy dog, we could go volunteer places, which would be very good for my mental health haha.
😮Laura, THANK YOU so much. This, for me, is the best video you, have ever made. I say that for a few important reasons. Number one, I find it VERY helpful to find out why and what the creator is TRULY about. Because you are always so darn cheerful I could not put together why you had a Service Dog, and it being a psychiatric service dog at that. Not knowing anything makes the creator in a sense not real. I am definitely not happy to know about you having EDS. I am more pissed about how you were treated by the medical system and how you became traumatized. I have severe Complex PTSD and the Doctors I have seen over the many years have been absolutely horrible. I have right now 3 medical malpractice cases I would win, but I am not able mentally or physically to take that on. I DO understand how much betrayals are there when those that are there to help, HARM. I am so sorry. Number 2, that was so IMPORTANT, is you explaining how Psychiatric SDs can't handle mass amounts of very painful things we may go to through mental health wise. Unfortunately I have severe issues that cause meltdowns, crying, difficulty regulating strong emotions. I expected my SD to always run to me to help. I ALWAYS have wondered if that is what they are supposed to do. Today was the first time I have heard any trainer explain that our dogs can't handle A LOT of breakdowns. I so wish this was discussed at more length, and what is the best way for our psych SDs to be trained to handle strong emotions when it is very frequent. I think I blew it, by not having the correct information regarding what is the healthiest way for our dogs to do tasks when its highly emotional. I am so thrilled you shared about it in this video. I am crying because for the recent 4 month stay at an Independent living facility, I was highly abused and traumatized. It was all because of me having Finn there. In over 100 years the hard policy was NO, NEVER are guests allowed to have any animal of any kind. So when I got the call that they were going to try an experiment and allow me to bring Finn. Well the 24 women that live there, some more than 15 years, saw Finn they went OFF. They kept complaining to the women who said to me, let's go ahead and try it so now she's getting all of this heat and she is thinking how do I get rid of Kavita I cannot handle all these women coming to me saying I want an animal too. Let me just say those four months were the worst 4 months of my life and Adult Protective Services were called nine times because of so much abuse so much traumatizing me and then unfortunately was there the whole time and it was all about him the final straw was that they accused him of mauling a 2 year old boy and tearing up his face. Animal Control came out and she spoke to me in my room and said you know I saw the boy and there's not a thing on that little boy's face not one mark. So I'm going to tell you the truth that lady is crazy she told me to take your dog away from you and euthanize him because he's so aggressive. Well after we left their sin has never been the same Laura never. It was way too much and he imploded. Now when I am in pain he is not into helping at all. He still does some awesome tasks but my buddy got traumatized. I WISH I KNEW what you shared about today. Again, I am grateful you opened up about your lssues a little today. Please share about this more, so we don't ruin our best friend and SD. 😢❤️🩹😢❤️🩹
I actually made an entire course on how to train a nose boop/alert behavior with step-by-step instructions and troubleshooting. You can find out more here: courses.doggyu.com/p/bia
@@Highjinx1 Teaching a thorough alert is more than a 10 minute videos worth which is why I made a course that outlines the entire process. Plus, gotta put a roof over my head, and making free TH-cam videos certainly doesn't do that ;) Everyone who has taken the course has found it well worth the investment.
Question for the Van, what insulate and cooling measures do you use during Summers for the dogs to stay cool in the van. I don’t bring my Service Dog to every place that I go. There are places that I need Service Dog, and places that I feel safe. Dogs need lots of resting.
I'm actually doing a tour of the van in a few weeks! But the insulation is Havalock Wool, there's a maxxair fan, and I'm considering putting in a rooftop AC.
Thank you❤❤❤ Would be grateful to have van climate control guide for dog, cuz I don’t want to bring my dog to some places with lots of kids and off leash dogs.
Im having a weird situation with my SDiT, and I was hoping for advice! (I have a 4 month old swiss mountain dog) we were doing a short socialization trip in walmart ( she was doing awesome) when I had an medical episode. (When that happens I have to stop moving and I usually ask for DPT) we were in an isle, when a man ( clearlh rushing) with a cart truned the corner and his me straight on ( he was very apologetic) it was hard enough to knock me over and push her off my lap. She has never been the most confident dog, but this rattled her. Now when ever we go in public, she tries to bulk and hide from any man or cart. She was doing so well and is such an attentive dog that I don't want to wash her, but i'm not sure of the next steps! I am currently looking looking for a trainer, but am having bad luck!
super importnt question where id love an answer to; ive been diagnosed with ADHD, (C)PTSD, depression, general anxiety, hyperflexibility and arthritis (im 24F)... i have tried therapy and many MANY other things since i was 10 years old... i have recently decided with my ADHD and (C)PTSD diagnosis (literally this year but i always knew something was off but i was on a 5 year waiting list) that a service dog would be right for me as in the past 6-8 years i dropped out of school and have no job since and i can barely do the groceries withut having a panic attack. i have good days but im extremely limited. i was considering a belgian malinois as a service dog for primarily (C)PTSD, physical challenges and my social anxiety, what are your thoughts on the dog of choice? thank you so much for the reply although i doubt you will see it in these thousands of comments. i just moved to the uk and would be training the dog myself as dog training is a hobby of mine. thank you so much
I generally do not recommend herding dogs for psychiatric task goals. They tend to take on the emotions of the handler. On top of that, very few Mals are a good fit for service work, and most would rather not do the work. If you can find an adult that is a good fit and have it evaluated by a trainer, than maybe, but I've never once recommended a Mal to a client for a variety of reasons. Instead I'd get a nice bench bred lab. Here's why: th-cam.com/video/rnPUGGzciBQ/w-d-xo.html
@@DoggyU thank you so much for your answer! i really dont want a lab, they just i dunno i just dont like them for some reason, do you have other suggestions or a video with suggested breeds? thank you so much!
@AutumnVulpes369 I didn't want a lab either, and then I made it my job to go out and see how cool (and really appropriate for the work) labs are. I can't in good faith recommend other breeds outside of labs and goldens because there isn't another breed with a temperament as an entire group that is consistent enough with service dog work to make that kind of recommendation. Maybe check out some different events with labs or goldens at them and see if it changes your mind. It may be a matter of finding the right lines/breeder. I know I was so impressed after watching my breeder's dog compete in shed hunt, dock diving, agility, obedience, rally, and hunting. The versatility of the lines made me overlook the fact that aesthetically, labs weren't really my jam. And while, yes, you have to like the dog you choose, ultimately, my goal is to have a service dog as medical equipment to help me with my disabilities day to day. Using a breed that isn't as well suited doesn't make sense if that is my most important goal.
I would say the people taking the Xrays were NOT registered Xray techs. We all know you do NOT move a joint that might be fractured. You do a cross table or two angled views, or whatever you have to do to get the views the Radiologist needs to see what's going on. When my hubby broke his hip, the a**holes rolled him up on the broken hip to Xray it. That is a HUGE no-no. They could have severed his femoral artery or caused a compound fracture. I was furious. It hurt hubby so bad.
Are you effing kidding me??? Did you report them to the Board or just the hospital patient services (it was Social Services at my last hospital)? I have medical trauma as well that keeps compounding. I have refused treatment AMA, refused ambulance transport AMA, “threatened to discharge myself” AMA bc a resident doctor didn’t understand medication 101. I could go on. We absolutely need to advocate for ourselves. I hope whatever complaint you filed had a good outcome.
I hate that that happened to you, and I hope that if ever anyone tries such nonsense with you again, you'll press criminal charges. That was highly illegal, not just bad bedside manner. I've had doctors laugh at the symptoms of my hEDS ('collar bones can't move! That's not a thing' etc) but never had them try to forcibly reset any of my dislocations. That's next level. And they don't react that way to any of my other medical issues (schizoaffective, tumors, an occluded celiac artery depriving organs of bloodflow, etc). It's weird how little doctors know so far about EDS. On the happy side, I brought my SDIT to a doctor's appointment for the first time this month and he did wonderfully! It was a full 3 minutes into the interview with this new doctor before she realized there was a 90 pound dog under my chair, quietly watching her. She was thrilled and brought out dog treats. It was a really great interaction and I was super proud of him. He's 1.5 years old as of tomorrow, and just doing great! That's in large part thanks to YOUR videos so thank you for everything you do. You're amazing.
What types of exposure did you do with your SDiT before going to their first medical appointment?
My FREE and Low-Cost Training Resources 👇:
🦮 Service Dog 101 Course: courses.doggyu.com/p/service-dog-101
🐕🦺 Behavior Interruptions & Alerts Course: courses.doggyu.com/p/bia
👉🏽 Sign Up For my FREE Dog Training Foundations Mini-Course: www.doggyu.com/
🎉 JOIN the DOGGY•U Community! (150+ Exclusive Training Videos!) patreon.com/doggyu
I am training, with a trainer, my son's dog.
I have appointments that really are just medication checks, and I know are just going to be a short visit to confirm the meds work. I took Robin too those appointments when he was younger for exposure. Now that he's reached the "teenage" months I've pulled back a little, but will start taking hin to those types of visits again.
Since I'm not the handler (Kiddo does as much as he can as handler) I don't need to worry so much about my need during the visit and can gage whether to take or not take Robin based on Kiddo's level, and I can bail with the dog if needed.
I really like how you said protect their puppyhood, and not to put on too much too soon. Before I brought my SD to the first appointment I made sure she could settle for a period of time at home, backyard, park, restaurant for just a snack, then for a meal, and took her to medical buildings to practice in hallways & waiting rooms.
@@jk6919 yes the Teen Phase is Tough. Similar with human, you know they know what to do, they just choose not to do it.
What kind of SD do you have?
I love how transparent you are, Laura ❤ it is so important to let the world know about medical trauma, especially with an invisible disability
I had a therapist who was against me bringing my SDiT. Even tho she was well behaved, the therapist thought it was counterproductive. I fired her and found one who not only accepted my girl, but gave me the time and space to train DPT.
OMG Luara, I absolutely loved this video for so many reasons! Thank you so much for being so authentic and transparent! I completely agree with everything you just talked about and have had similar experiences with doctors both in the military and civilian side. I went through several org that train veterans to train our dogs for service dog work, and none of them ever talked about the challenges of training your dog for ptsd when we get out in the public settings and our anxiety and triggers kick in. I think it's one of the biggest downfalls of so many nonprofits that work with vets and service dogs. I've been working with private trainers for the past 4 years to help me with these gaps that happened when I was a student with my service dog pup/red fox lab. He's 5 years old now. We are still in this journey and I'm learning sooooo much each and every day. Love watching your videos!
I agree - it isn't talked about enough! Training a psych dog has really unique challenges and many people are better off getting a fully trained dog if they have the resources, or at least one that's started by a neutral party.
I can definitely see where I probably went wrong in my training. I think I exposed Freja too much when she was younger. I feel bad sometimes with my Asperger’s syndrome how it can affect her because she is very sensitive to me. I try my best to stay calm and collective in stressful situations. That is why in our second year of public access training that I am going to do things a little bit different and get her out more and be more sensitive to building her confidence. Labs and golden retrievers are very sensitive breeds due to their activity. I am so proud of Freja every day of my life when she does overcome her fear and anxiety. We are a team.
Thank you for the video. It was very helpful and I feel reassured in the fact that because I can somewhat manage my episodes, I can still have a SD, which I want because most (if not all) of my panic attacks happen when I’m alone.
Samesies! I've only had a few around my husband and the first one where he saw Whip working he was astounded at how amazing she was.
Giant cyber hug from Florida for sharing your story - thanks for being so vulnerable.
In response to this comment, that’s where I am…from what I can tell, a lot of the time I’m okay (15 years of counseling to get there), but when I’m not, I’m REALLY not. And I’ll get stuck there for several days. Not sure if a SD is meant for that kind of PTSD, or if I am supposed have to have bad symptoms all the time to “qualify”?
@@szickef The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) defines a disability as a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities, such as walking, seeing, hearing, speaking, breathing, or learning. So if you have an impairment that limits a major life activity, which it sounds like you do, than you would qualify. One of the things to consider is that you'll have to have your dog practice tasking in between episodes to keep him working and sharp.
I always appreciate your vulnerability! (And your trigger warnings)
Thanks Kristen
@@DoggyUhonestly!
I tend to kinda power through ( such a counter productive coping tendency lol) and your reminder to take care, gave me that threshold to make a decision 💪🏻 a good model of being an ally for others snd yourself 💖
Fantastic video. This channel is amazing. I am working with professional trainers and I did months of research before starting the training process. Even so, I was so clueless when I started the journey and I thought my smart puppy could handle a lot. I’m realizing I need to slow way down and work on different exposures with less duration. Thank you for reinforcing this message to protect young prospect dogs and think of them first.
One thing I did incorrectly with my current service dog was introducing psychiatric tasking too early, he never got the chance to really be a puppy, and as a result he doesn't really have any "off time". He doesn't understand how to relax, he's constantly vigilant and watching me and monitoring my condition, and that's not fair to him and certainly not healthy. I've spent years trying to remedy this after realizing the extent of the mistake I made and the fallout thereof, and am really only now seeing him be able to relax and just be a dog, even if just a little. This is an incredibly important video for anyone training their own psychiatric service dog to see, thank you for always putting information like this out there for those who need it.
Laura! You are the best!! I love your soul, your training expertise and your ability to teach! Thank you for sharing your talents and gifts!
Thank you Kim
Always great and accurate.
routine appointments are not always routine.
Another great video. I may have mentioned in previous video comments that my dog is for anxiety behavior disruption. She uses her paw when she sees me fiddling with my silicone bracelet or bouncing my knee. She also does it in bed when I bounce my foot. She gets pretty determined with it if I don't stop fast enough to suit her. She'll be 3 January 27th. She's been going to doctor visits and therapy visits since she was 1. She is amazingly patient and calm in any public situations. She has laid still in a corner, under a table or even in a crowded room for up to 2 hours without moving or complaining.
I do very much appreciate your videos and the information you provide but your happy smiling personality helps when I'm having a bad day. Keep up the good work.
i was going to say bring cool whip but my reason was that when you are there you dont want to have to worry about training a service dog in training you just want to focus on what you are doing. Thats why cool whip is the better option so you can focus and not worry about a little puppy.
Thank you for sharing your experience! Back when my SD was still an SDiT, I waited until my SD could keep a reliable stay in a busy environment, would not have any reaction to any kind of equipment or noises, and could be handled by someone else if I needed him to be. I let my siblings, friends, or parents have a part in training, we took trips to pet friendly places and after he could somewhat task and preform basic skills, we moved into grocery stores and our local mall, I used the construction sights nearby to expose to sounds and equipment, and made sure that he could handle any kind of every day noises, for example, someone knocking on the door, and it helped when my mom used to work at the hospital, I could bring him on visits to see her and spend 10 - 15 minutes in the waiting area, walking down the halls, and even spending some time in a patients room (after consent of course).
Ah yes, the backwards knee at rest. As someone with joint hypermobility Spectrum Disorder I know that all too well. And the pain of wearing the wrong shoes, the anterior pelvic tilt, getting up wrong and having your knee give out on you, or having to readjust the bones in your feet when you stand up.
I had a feeling the answer was going to be Whip for that reason. Cause until you set up this puppy series there's so much conflicting evidence about proper socialization for puppies, but especially service dog puppies.
Excellent points made, as always :)
Thank you
Our breeder was willing to keep Piper and do a whole lot of socialization and obedience, and we didn’t bring her home till she was 4 months old. She must have been a year old when I started taking her to special therapy appointments that were just dog training. She was 2 1/2 and working as a full SD before I started taking her to physical doctor appointments.
Great content! I think its easy to forget that our service dog puppies are still babies in a mental/emotional sense. It would be like a 5 year old watching someone have a panic attack
yep!
I had no idea you had HEDS!! I am between a HSD and HEDS diagnosis. Also Fibro. I am training a Great Dane/St Bernard mix. Thank you for sharing your stories!!
First of all thank you for sharing it’s tough to share things like that and people need to know that ptsd isn’t just military related mine was because of work and few other things but I really appreciate how you talk about the dog taking on our emotions my poodle does that she is a guide dog and diabetic alert dog with a few autism related sprinkled tasks for me and it’s important to remember that while our dogs our amazing they are dogs
The informations you give are so important! I wish we would have known this before!
And about what happened to you, sadly, like in any other things, some doctors are shit. I’m sorry that you had to experience that, it must have been really traumatizing. And thank you for sharing that with us. 💖💖💖💖💖
That’s absolutely inexcusable and totally ridiculous that the doctors would’ve treated you like that. I hope that the complaint you filed resulted in some serious legal action against them and their hospital and I’m very sorry you experienced that trauma. It definitely makes sense what you mentioned about how when puppies are so young it is important to protect them from overloading emotions and overwhelming situation. We need to put their needs first so that they can help us with ours and of course be happy confident well rounded dogs.
I've come to the realization that they often put the worst doctors on E.R. duty, especially at night.
I have to drive and extra hour to go to the E.R. because my local hospitals E.R. doctors and nurses are so bad, that I'm better off riaking an extra hour than go there. Even the local paramedics have talked to me about how bad they are.
Unfortunatly nothing gets done about this.
Not enough doctors to replace the bad ones, so nothing is done unless they commit a heinous crime that can't be ignored, or mess up with someone wealthy enough to go after the hospital over it.
Laura so glad you do these videos they are so helpful . I was at a hospital I go into often but last time someone asked me what my dog is used for, because I had never been asked, it caught me off guard,
thankfully my husband was there, he of course didn’t skip a bit and said TBI, I need to remember to keep it together I’m usually by myself. Keeping thoughts together is a major challenge for me, again THANK YOU you have helped more than you know.
Hey Carole!
One thing that can be really helpful is to practice, as silly as it sounds. Like if you're out with your husband, as soon as you walk into a building, have him ask you the legally allowed questions so you have lots of muscle-memory responding to them. Alternatively, you can make a card that you can either read, or hand to the person if that is an easier solution. But practice practice practice and then it will be second nature just like your phone number.
thank you for sharing your experience Laura! I've been in your shoes medically, time and time again throughout my childhood and teen years with doctors (and family) overriding my consent and anxiety just because 'something was necessary' or thinking i was faking something. people really don't realize how even a single minute of a bad experience leaves lasting scars that can be really hard to work with or ruin your trust in doctors overall. I'm glad you found a way to deal with the aftermath going forwards. visibility is so important. you also made so many good points throughout this video!
overloading puppies can happen when you have such big expectations for them, especially if your dog is a teen who LOOKS mature but isn't. it's super good to remind ourselves puppies are building how they see the world in the first few months of their lives and seeing a panic attack or otherwise can change it all in the blink of an eye.
Yes! That adolescent period where they look like adults but still have baby brains is definitely so important to constantly remember that they're still growing mentally physically and emotionally!
Cool Whip would be the better option in taking your service dog to therapy. I have faith that Denver would do great with the skills that he knows so far, but I do not think he is mature enough and ready enough to handle a new environment. I made the big mistake during my service dog training with Freja that I overwhelmed her, not realizing that she was still an adolescent with a maturing brain. Now that Freja is turning twoand we are getting back into our second year of public access training. It is really important to know what we need to work on in environments when we are assessing situations. You do not want to overwhelm a puppy at Denver’s age.
Thank you for sharing your experience and for the trigger warnings 💕 I’m bringing my puppy home next month and this is super helpful information, thank you!
Congrats on your new pup! Wishing you luck on your journey together. Patience and a sense of humor will serve you both well :)
I would have putt coolwhip in with you as well as it wasnt just a medical checkup kind of situation. Any situation where you are getting serious tings addressed is where you would want a seasoned dog to be there to assist you. You need to focus on you and your conditions and not have to also worry about having to train at the same time. Also its so beneficial to have your medical pro have a connection with you on a personal level which can be hard to be in. BTW.. mid video.. coolwhip looking at you 'momma.. i know you are talking about me' lol.
Thank you for sharing the details of your disabilities and your medical horror story with us ❤
I have PTSD and definitely wouldn’t take my SD to my therapy sessions, I’m lucky enough to only live a couple of blocks away from my therapist though so I’m blessed with being able to get home really fast.
I’ve noticed lately that my SD has picked up some bad habits from from my PTSD and has some hypervigilance as well as not liking anyone coming into our home or car.
These are very recent behaviours from him and are based in fear, they’ve gotten a lot worse since I was physically assaulted just before Christmas last year and I’ve had to pull him from working until I can fix the issues.
If you can afford to have a puppy raiser for the first few months then I totally recommend doing it, even though you miss out on a lot of new puppy stuff, you can always schedule time each week to check in and build a bond with the pup as well.
Sending lots of love from Australia and I hope everyone has a great holiday season 😊
I'm so sorry that happened to you Renee! Wishing you the best as you heal, especially during such a challenging time of year
I'm new ti having a service dog thanks so mush for posting those videos
Just to clarify, when it comes to not training psychiatric tasks until they’re older, I’m assuming that doesn’t include the action, I guess, in some cases? (Like, for example, when I’m anxious I tend to bounce my leg and a dog putting its chin on my knee/thigh to almost be like “hey, stop that”, would really help me. And while I wouldn’t want to expose a young puppy to me being super anxious, I’d probably train them to target their chin to my knee/thigh in a non-anxiety-inducing situation when they’re big enough to reach? Which I’m hoping wouldn’t be a bad idea? Same with the actions for DPT, but without linking it to Me Being Super Anxious?). Please correct me if I’m wrong though.
(Also, omg, I’m so excited to potentially find out whether or not I’m allowed to get/train an assistance dog within the next 2 weeks!!!!)
Yes - training the alert or interruption behavior is totally fine. Good luck!!🍀
Logical explanation.
I would love if you could do an in-depth video on service dog breeds. I know you highly recommend a labrador. But if you could talk about which breeds fit which line of work (psychiatric, mobility), that would be fantastic 😊 Also herding breeds vs retrieving breeds 😊❤
Labrador. Get a labrador lol They fit all the work.
@DoggyU lol! Amazing! What about picking between a labrador and golden retriever for a service dog prospect? Is the difference mostly the fur in your experience? Thank you again for sharing your knowledge!!! 🥰
@@Em-jt7im Depends on the line. Yes that is a huge difference obviously. I find Golden's *can* be softer, they can also have resource guarding in the lines. I think what's helpful is picking a line of lab or golden you vibe with vs. the whole of the breed as they really can vary quite a bit. Going to dog shows and sporting events with both breeds can be really helpful here to check out each breed and line!
Came to see your van, but got so many good points. I have the same knee issue since I was a kid. Yes, I still talk to my therapist about all those doc visits. The pain and unable to stretch are so real. I have PTSD and a Service Dog.
If you came for the van, stay tuned for the new year because I've got a full tour scheduled ;)
Each of us have different therapy sessions. We are each unique in our medical needs. Not knowing your disability/diagnosis I answered using my own experiences.
I agree overloading our puppies with our emotions is not a good way to help them develop
This makes so much sense! Thanks
uh... oh sh!t... im 1:23 into the video and i think you just perfectly described what i have, i have been diagnosed with hypermobility and have been in physio for twoo years due to my joints and lots of them, dislocating (i cant even take my shirt off without one or both my shoulders and something else dislocating) thank you so much i will go see a doctor as soon as i can about this!!!
Another good point of this video is that you’re not taking your new dog to where you might have big emotion. We are conditioning our Service Dog to attune to our emotions. They are very sensitive to our emotion and body language.
This was really informative thank you so much
Thank you for sharing your medical trauma. I also have PTSD and agree visibility is important. I appreciate the courage.
I appreciate that
Good and interesting video.
Thank you
I thought the therapy was physical therapy. I have had 30 minute PT and OT sessions back when I couldn't handle longer sessions.
Even short, I wouldn't bring a dog to those sessions unless I could reliably tether them and needed them before/after.
Plus, my physical therapist could help me in the ways that I would need my doggo then anyway. She has heavy weights for my lap and has helped me during POTS episodes. She also can show me ways to do things that might be less convenient, but necessary ways to do things if my dog wasn't feeling well and needed a rest day.
Thank you this video ❤ I’m really enjoying following your training journey with little John Denver. He’s so cute
This is exactly why I struggle so much with training my dog by myself. My dog is a pretty confident and happy adult, but only because I protect him from everything that I'm not sure he can handle. Teaching my dog to approach someone who is crying uncontrollably and possibly being really loud is something that I don't have the skillset to do safely, it just needs to be handled by a professional, and 1000% not the person who is crying and not able to function. And in Canada you can't take a SDIT just anywhere, pretty much only places that are really hard for my dog, like the pet store, or really hard for me with autism, like the hardware store. There's just no chance. And to get help with service dog training costs like 10 000$+, so someone on disability benefits like me is never going to be able to afford it in a million years. My next plan is I'm going to save up for a therapy dog class for him, which is only 350$, so I could potentially afford it in a few months of saving. I'm hoping they have that kind of psychiatric service dog training experience to help me teach my dog to do tasks, then he can be enough support to me that we can help each other through the public access training steps. And if he can task but not go in public access, that's better than nothing by a long shot. I'm also going to ask service dog trainers if I can volunteer to help with their classes too, I like dog training and I want to give back, and it might give me the skillset I need. That's another good thing about getting my dog to be a therapy dog, we could go volunteer places, which would be very good for my mental health haha.
Apprenticing/helping with classes, as well as volunteering in other ways at service dog organizations can be a great way to learn more!
😮Laura, THANK YOU so much. This, for me, is the best video you, have ever made. I say that for a few important reasons. Number one, I find it VERY
helpful to find out why and what the creator is TRULY about. Because you are always so darn cheerful I could not put together why you had a Service Dog, and it being a psychiatric service dog at that. Not knowing anything makes the creator in a sense not real. I am definitely not happy to know about you having EDS. I am more pissed about how you were treated by the medical system and how you became traumatized. I have severe Complex PTSD and the Doctors I have seen over the many years have been absolutely horrible. I have right now 3 medical malpractice cases I would win, but I am not able mentally or physically to take that on. I DO understand how much betrayals are there when those that are there to help, HARM. I am so sorry.
Number 2, that was so IMPORTANT, is you explaining how Psychiatric SDs can't handle mass amounts of very painful things we may go to through mental health wise. Unfortunately I have severe issues that cause meltdowns, crying, difficulty regulating strong emotions. I expected my SD to always run to me to help. I ALWAYS have wondered if that is what they are supposed to do. Today was the first time I have heard any trainer
explain that our dogs can't handle A LOT of breakdowns. I so wish this was discussed at more length, and what is the best way for our psych SDs to be trained to handle strong emotions when it is very frequent. I think I blew it, by not having the correct information regarding what is the healthiest way for our dogs to do tasks when its highly emotional. I am so thrilled you shared about it in this video. I am crying because for the recent 4 month stay at an Independent living facility, I was highly abused and traumatized. It was all because of me having Finn there. In over 100 years the hard policy was NO, NEVER are guests allowed to have any animal of any kind. So when I got the call that they were going to try an experiment and allow me to bring Finn. Well the 24 women that live there, some more than 15 years, saw Finn they went OFF. They kept complaining to the women who said to me, let's go ahead and try it so now she's getting all of this heat and she is thinking how do I get rid of Kavita I cannot handle all these women coming to me saying I want an animal too. Let me just say those four months were the worst 4 months of my life and Adult Protective Services were called nine times because of so much abuse so much traumatizing me and then unfortunately was there the whole time and it was all about him the final straw was that they accused him of mauling a 2 year old boy and tearing up his face. Animal Control came out and she spoke to me in my room and said you know I saw the boy and there's not a thing on that little boy's face not one mark. So I'm going to tell you the truth that lady is crazy she told me to take your dog away from you and euthanize him because he's so aggressive. Well after we left their sin has never been the same Laura never. It was way too much and he imploded. Now when I am in pain he is not into helping at all. He still does some awesome tasks but my buddy got traumatized.
I WISH I KNEW what you shared about today. Again, I am grateful you opened up about your lssues a little today. Please share about this more, so we don't ruin our best friend and SD. 😢❤️🩹😢❤️🩹
I'm so sorry you went through that Kavita. Wishing you the best as you both heal
Hi! I love your videos, can you make a video on how to train a nose bump? I can’t seem to find one
I actually made an entire course on how to train a nose boop/alert behavior with step-by-step instructions and troubleshooting. You can find out more here: courses.doggyu.com/p/bia
@ I ment free one 😅 but I understand if you can’t, or don’t want to :)
@@Highjinx1 Teaching a thorough alert is more than a 10 minute videos worth which is why I made a course that outlines the entire process. Plus, gotta put a roof over my head, and making free TH-cam videos certainly doesn't do that ;) Everyone who has taken the course has found it well worth the investment.
@ got it! I’ll look into it
Question for the Van, what insulate and cooling measures do you use during Summers for the dogs to stay cool in the van.
I don’t bring my Service Dog to every place that I go. There are places that I need Service Dog, and places that I feel safe. Dogs need lots of resting.
I'm actually doing a tour of the van in a few weeks! But the insulation is Havalock Wool, there's a maxxair fan, and I'm considering putting in a rooftop AC.
Thank you❤❤❤ Would be grateful to have van climate control guide for dog, cuz I don’t want to bring my dog to some places with lots of kids and off leash dogs.
Im having a weird situation with my SDiT, and I was hoping for advice! (I have a 4 month old swiss mountain dog) we were doing a short socialization trip in walmart ( she was doing awesome) when I had an medical episode. (When that happens I have to stop moving and I usually ask for DPT) we were in an isle, when a man ( clearlh rushing) with a cart truned the corner and his me straight on ( he was very apologetic) it was hard enough to knock me over and push her off my lap. She has never been the most confident dog, but this rattled her. Now when ever we go in public, she tries to bulk and hide from any man or cart. She was doing so well and is such an attentive dog that I don't want to wash her, but i'm not sure of the next steps!
I am currently looking looking for a trainer, but am having bad luck!
i hit the like bullet
❤
super importnt question where id love an answer to; ive been diagnosed with ADHD, (C)PTSD, depression, general anxiety, hyperflexibility and arthritis (im 24F)... i have tried therapy and many MANY other things since i was 10 years old... i have recently decided with my ADHD and (C)PTSD diagnosis (literally this year but i always knew something was off but i was on a 5 year waiting list) that a service dog would be right for me as in the past 6-8 years i dropped out of school and have no job since and i can barely do the groceries withut having a panic attack. i have good days but im extremely limited. i was considering a belgian malinois as a service dog for primarily (C)PTSD, physical challenges and my social anxiety, what are your thoughts on the dog of choice? thank you so much for the reply although i doubt you will see it in these thousands of comments. i just moved to the uk and would be training the dog myself as dog training is a hobby of mine. thank you so much
I generally do not recommend herding dogs for psychiatric task goals. They tend to take on the emotions of the handler. On top of that, very few Mals are a good fit for service work, and most would rather not do the work. If you can find an adult that is a good fit and have it evaluated by a trainer, than maybe, but I've never once recommended a Mal to a client for a variety of reasons. Instead I'd get a nice bench bred lab. Here's why: th-cam.com/video/rnPUGGzciBQ/w-d-xo.html
@@DoggyU thank you so much for your answer! i really dont want a lab, they just i dunno i just dont like them for some reason, do you have other suggestions or a video with suggested breeds? thank you so much!
@AutumnVulpes369 I didn't want a lab either, and then I made it my job to go out and see how cool (and really appropriate for the work) labs are. I can't in good faith recommend other breeds outside of labs and goldens because there isn't another breed with a temperament as an entire group that is consistent enough with service dog work to make that kind of recommendation. Maybe check out some different events with labs or goldens at them and see if it changes your mind. It may be a matter of finding the right lines/breeder. I know I was so impressed after watching my breeder's dog compete in shed hunt, dock diving, agility, obedience, rally, and hunting. The versatility of the lines made me overlook the fact that aesthetically, labs weren't really my jam.
And while, yes, you have to like the dog you choose, ultimately, my goal is to have a service dog as medical equipment to help me with my disabilities day to day. Using a breed that isn't as well suited doesn't make sense if that is my most important goal.
I am so sorry you needed to go thought that.
I would say the people taking the Xrays were NOT registered Xray techs. We all know you do NOT move a joint that might be fractured. You do a cross table or two angled views, or whatever you have to do to get the views the Radiologist needs to see what's going on. When my hubby broke his hip, the a**holes rolled him up on the broken hip to Xray it. That is a HUGE no-no. They could have severed his femoral artery or caused a compound fracture. I was furious. It hurt hubby so bad.
Are you effing kidding me??? Did you report them to the Board or just the hospital patient services (it was Social Services at my last hospital)?
I have medical trauma as well that keeps compounding. I have refused treatment AMA, refused ambulance transport AMA, “threatened to discharge myself” AMA bc a resident doctor didn’t understand medication 101. I could go on. We absolutely need to advocate for ourselves.
I hope whatever complaint you filed had a good outcome.
Therapy dog? You mean the dog needs therapy or you can’t function on a daily life without dragging a dog around? Lmao.
I hate that that happened to you, and I hope that if ever anyone tries such nonsense with you again, you'll press criminal charges. That was highly illegal, not just bad bedside manner.
I've had doctors laugh at the symptoms of my hEDS ('collar bones can't move! That's not a thing' etc) but never had them try to forcibly reset any of my dislocations. That's next level. And they don't react that way to any of my other medical issues (schizoaffective, tumors, an occluded celiac artery depriving organs of bloodflow, etc). It's weird how little doctors know so far about EDS.
On the happy side, I brought my SDIT to a doctor's appointment for the first time this month and he did wonderfully! It was a full 3 minutes into the interview with this new doctor before she realized there was a 90 pound dog under my chair, quietly watching her. She was thrilled and brought out dog treats. It was a really great interaction and I was super proud of him. He's 1.5 years old as of tomorrow, and just doing great! That's in large part thanks to YOUR videos so thank you for everything you do. You're amazing.
Wow what a success! Congratulations!