What’s Up Now
By Julie Adams
I must begin my story by saying that I’m truly blessed by everyone I have come to know through this amazing experience. I have one awesome dog that I love very much, and I believe she loves me too. We have learned so much in the time that we have been together, and she never ceases to amaze me everyday that we are together.
We began our training in December for the “passing of the leash” at a local park in Atlanta. It was great getting to see Ellie again because I didn’t get to see her during her months of training. In a matter of minutes she was able to say hello to me. She jumped up on my lap, and I was canine kissed all over my face. I got the same greeting every trip I made for training while we were apart.
We started out slowly to get her accustomed to my big chair, and we worked our way up to performing commands. Learning the commands and having Ellie follow my lead was probably the hardest part of the training. She loves Claudia and always wanted to have her in sight. It only took a couple of times running over her toes for her to realize her boundaries. We worked our way up to going into public places like the mall, the grocery store, and other places she would accompany me. She is a very fast learner and we got used to being a team and figuring out our obstacles.
When she made her first trip to my home there were a lot of things for her to check out. We had other animals and tons of new smells for her to learn. She greeted the dogs and after some initial reservations she warmed up to them and they to her. She also attended school with me. I’m getting my degree in Early Childhood/Special Education, so Ellie made trips with me to both my college campus and elementary campus. She did great!
The training time went by really quickly and Ellie finally got to have her first sleepover with me. She of course missed Claudia and her whimpering broke my heart. We had our bond going, but it wasn’t as tight as it was with Claudia. I got the leash on March 22nd and had my entire week of spring break to be with Ellie. It was only the two of us, so we had unlimited time together. She started to understand her job in my opinion because I wasn’t able to do the things others could do. It was a big adjustment for her, we worked and stayed together daily. The first time I dropped something on the floor and she gave it back to me with out my asking for it gave me so much joy! I praised and rewarded her immensely. She is so smart that she has learned which side was my strongest. If I didn’t get it the first time she fixed it by changing to my stronger side. She is sooooo awesome!
It really is like everyone said, “You will want to say what did I ever do without her.” Ellie has given me more independence, and that feels great. To see her happiness when we get ready to work makes me so happy. She really knows what her job is because when we are out and about and she sees others in wheelchairs she wants to go greet them. I’m very thankful to God and the Dreamworkers organization for opening this door for us. Their unending blessings and kindness mean more than I’ll ever be able to express. Our bond has grown really tight now. She is very protective of me. I always have to be in her sight. If I’m gone somewhere without her she waits for me in my room and greets me enthusiastically when I’m back!