Oh, the places we’ll go!

Back in June, Connie, Aidan, G dog, and I went into the studio where I work to get the lay of the land and introduce my co-workers to my new service dog. It was my first time back to the office since late March of 2020 when the pandemic hit. To be perfectly honest, being able to work exclusively from home during the last year and a half was a total blessing for me. My house is fully accessible in all the ways I need it to be, and I don’t experience all the gut-wrenching anxiety of trying to safely get around or having to rely on someone else’s help like I do whenever I’m out. So, even though I have an amazingly supportive and helpful team who have made physical accommodations for me that go above and beyond, I wasn’t necessarily chomping at the bit to go back to work in person. But I also knew that I couldn’t avoid it forever, so I put my big girl panties on and arranged for a training session to take place there. The goal for the visit was so that Connie could see the layout, give me any suggestions for handling G in that environment, and provide any needed guidance to the team. 

Whenever I go into work, I get the exclusive use of a single stall garage so that I never have to contend with rain, snow, or ice. A co-worker opens the garage door for me, I pull in, and then they take my computer bag in for me. I know. Pretty sweet, huh? Don’t think for one second that I don’t know how extremely fortunate I am to have this set up. Besides working from home, I can’t envision any other workplace scenario that would be more ideal for me. Now, with adding G to the mix, having access to the garage becomes an even greater benefit, as I don’t have to worry about him running out into the parking lot and potentially getting hit by a car. 

For our visit this day, we wanted to simulate as much of the typical routine as possible so that Connie could observe and G could experience what would be the norm. Even though I wasn’t bringing my computer bag, we had my co-worker, Katrina, meet us at the car just as she usually would. 

The studio is located on the second floor and has a stairlift (much like the one in my home) that I need to take to get upstairs. We had G wait at the bottom until I was fully situated at the top before having him come up. Once we were inside, we had G go under my desk and get into a “Down” and “Stay.” My team members had all been instructed to ignore him to help him stay focused on his job. I sat down at my desk, and we all chatted together while G stayed down in his spot. And while you could tell that all he wanted to do was to walk up to everyone and say, “Hello,” he did exactly what he was told to do. But my sly boy did manage to sneak in a wet doggie kiss on Katrina’s exposed toes when she sat down at the desk directly across from me.

The layout of the studio is really open, with a full kitchen and a nice-sized outdoor deck for convenient access to sunshine and fresh air. Connie felt it was a great set-up for G dog. She suggested that we put a dog bed under my desk and that I bring in a chew toy to keep G entertained for the times when he wasn’t snoozing. 

I needed to go to the bathroom, and we used it as an opportunity to see if G would stay down as he had been commanded to even while I was out of sight. He performed flawlessly. Connie then answered a few questions for the team—mostly about when it would be okay for them to interact with the dog and to what extent they would be able to. The office visit didn’t take more than 15-20 minutes, but it was long enough to make me realize that I missed interfacing live with my co-workers and that I was really looking forward to coming back. 

You’d think that this alone would be enough excitement for one training session, but, wait, there’s more! Connie felt it was high time we take G to a restaurant—the ultimate challenge for a service dog. So, our entire group headed out to a nearby café for lunch and got ready for the show. My co-workers were either going to see firsthand the excellent training that PAWS had provided to get G prepared for this task or witness an epic fail and how I would handle it. 

Connie had instructed me to have a steady stream of treats at the ready to keep G focused on me and not on the other diners and their food. As we walked to our table, he immediately went over to sniff a man who was enjoying lunch with his friends. I had to yank at G’s leash to get his attention while I apologized to the group for the intrusion. Fortunately, the man didn’t seem bothered in the least, and we quickly (well, at least as quickly as someone in my situation can) made our way over to our table. I gave G the command to go “Under” before I sat down and placed his leash under my leg so that I would feel it if he tried to move. But during the entire time we were there, my superstar dog never once stirred, not even as our tempting meals were being served to us. 

I was so proud of G’s overall performance, and I know that Connie was as well. Being the type of person I am, I tend to spend/waste a lot of time worrying about everything that could possibly go wrong in any given situation. I suppose it’s to help me feel better prepared, just in case. And while I don’t necessarily foresee the need to always take G with me to a restaurant, it’s nice to know that I can. Thanks to this spectacular day, I’m beginning to feel less anxious and more optimistic about all the adventures yet to come.