Tashi's Web Photo and Storybook

February 14 -- Stan, Becky and I spent the last month with Samaritan's Purse in Nashville, TN helping to rebuild houses after the flood they had last May. In the picture above, you can see me in my portable kennel. That's where I stay while all the construction work is going on. It helps to keep me safe, but I get to come out when everyone is taking a break or eating lunch. One of the things Stan heard most during our time there was guys commenting that they would never know I was in the room. A new group would come in each week, and I think every week there was at least one guy that would ask Stan around Wednesday of each week (groups would arrive Sunday night) where I sleep at night. When Stan told them that I sleep in the bunk with him they would always be surprised and not believe it at first. Times like that make it so much fun to be a CCI dog. The first two weeks we were in Nashville, there was a team from Tabor College that stayed for two weeks. One of the girls was very interested in my skills and training and how to properly give me a command. She and Stan talked quite a bit. She asked Stan if she could try to give me an alert command and would I alert her like I do Stan. Stan explained to her how to give commands and what to do. The first time she tried it, she was bent over towards me and looking at me, so instead of alerting her I just looked back at her expecting a treat. I was thinking that alert means I need to get your attention and I already have your attention since you are looking at me, so do I still get a treat? When Stan explained to her what I was thinking and why I didn't nudge her with my nose like I do when Stan tells me to alert she understood that there is a lot more to training and handling a dog than what you see even when you pay as close attention to things as she was. She changed her body language and position along with her tone of voice as Stan suggested when she tried it the second time. This time I knew I had to get her attention if I was going to get a snack so I launched my nose into her thigh a few times. She was so excited and happy and gave me what I wanted which was a snack. She and Stan talked some more and Stan has since heard that she has mailed in her application to be a CCI puppy raiser starting in May after she graduates from college.

While we were there Stan and Becky worked on the final details to finish one of the houses. One of the things Stan did was to install a couple of carbon monoxide detectors the homeowners had purchased. When Stan installed them, he of course had to test them. They make a different alarm sound than any of the alarms Stan has taught me. However, I have learned enough emergency alarm sounds and have heard them often enough that I have been able to generalize the sound of an emergency alarm. Generalizing is the word the CCI trainers use to describe when a dog is familiar enough and confident enough with a set of sounds or commands to perform the action we have been trained for in a variety of different places and situations. In the case of us hearing dogs that can also mean recognizing a sound as "close enough" to one of the important sounds we are trained for and doing an alert for that sound just like we do for the sounds we know. Generaling is a simple and common skill for humans. But, for us dogs it is a highly advanced and complex thing for us to understand. Just ask any CCI puppy raiser who has ever tried to get their puppy to sit or do some other thing on dirt, grass, mulch, concrete, gravel, tile, carpet, etc. for the first time. Back to what I was saying, I have generalized the sound of an emergency alarm, so when Stan tested those carbon monoxide detectors and they made an alarm that I hadn't heard before, I just knew that this was a sound I should let Stan know about and I alerted him. Becky was standing by to let him know if the alarm was working or not, but she didn't need to say anything. I was on it! Speaking of carbon monoxide detectors, while Stan and Becky were away the one we have at home lost it's mind (they do that after 7 - 10 years and need to be replaced) so Stan installed a new one today. It makes yet another sound that I hadn't been trained on, but because I have generalized emergency alarm sounds, I did what I needed to do when Stan tested it. By the way, Stan can still hear them if he holds them up close to his left ear. Today was just more proof that I have, in fact, generalized emergency alarms. Speaking of generalizing, Stan says he needs to start working with me to help me generalize the sound of his hearing aid battery case falling out of his pocket. He started training me on that sound and I think I've mentioned it here before. I am getting really good at alerting Stan and picking up the battery case from carpet, tile, or linoleum. Stan says I need to learn to do it while I'm on my leash and wearing my gentle leader as well as learn to do it if it drops onto concrete, gravel, or asphalt. Us dogs are always learning things, you know.