Nikki the service dog in training @nikkitheservicedog - Tumblr Blog

I love being petted! 😍😍 my girl loved petting me as well as her twin sis and other sisters. ❤️💙💚💖💜💛

#service dog in training #nikki #pet me #love #love on me

My SDiT gets overly excited whenever she see's someone she knows or someone new. She also barks at sounds, and sometimes people. How can I help her learn to be calm when greeting people? Thank you. :)

One way is to have your dog sit to be greeted by people. If your dog isn’t sitting then tell the person you’re working with to stop or wait to pet them until your dog is sitting nicely. If your dog breaks her sit then make sure she is no longer being petted. If you do this consistently your dog will associate needing to sit in order to receive pets.

-Leah

Hey, check out these awesome patches my mom got from etsy! She got these to put on my vest when she orders the new vest. She ordered them off of Etsy from Creative Clam, and PatienceandLove143.

#etsy #etsyshop #patches #service dog patches

This is me (Nikki) practicing block for my mom. My mom has anxiety, so she is training me to do block so that she can have space when there are crowds of when she feels anxious. 😬 I'm a service dog in training, so I have to practice a lot to get my tasks down. Practice makes perfect! ✔️ My mom loves me so much, and I love her. ❤️❤️ (Image: Nikki doing block)

#service dog in training #block #anxiety #psychiatric service dog

trainingfaith

I’ve gotten a few questions in the past about what I like seeing in terms of behavior in public, particularly heeling/navigating through stores. Here’s a quick demonstration :)

She’s scanning and aware of her surroundings, yet frequently looking back at me to check in. She also remains no more than a foot out from my left side, but she’s still not crowding. She doesn’t forge too far ahead or lag too far behind. She also sits and checks in when I stop.

Obviously different handlers have different needs and preferences, but this is my ideal when working a dog in public.

trainingfaith

Baseball game with the little blue dog ⚾

dissolutionandcreation

The first seven completed pictures in the Royal Service dogs series!

This series is so fun to create and I love the mission behind it–to raise awareness for disabilities and service dogs, as well as show service dog handlers just how awesome they are.

If you want to follow the series as it continues, check the hashtag “royal service dogs” or follow the facebook page here!

As always, feel free to share to raise awareness and acceptance for people with disabilities and service dogs. <3

~Also, I’d really appreciate if you could donate to my service dog fundraising campaign here. Service dogs are expensive and I really really need one to handle my disabilities. Even just a dollar or two makes a difference and I’d be super duper grateful~

Here are all their disabilities: Cinderella with Fibromyalgia Snow White with Allergy Detection Dog Sleeping Beauty with Narcolepsy Rapunzel with C-PTSD and Dissociative Identity Disorder Belle with Generalized Anxiety Disorder Autistic Tiana Pocahontas with Diabetes

anxietyservicedogs

What is the best way to teach a dog who pulls to heel? My SDiT Nikki is very good at heeling inside, but once we get outside she pulls and gets easily diststracted. She is around 14 months old.

The best way I’ve come to find, is to just stop. Completely stop. If they pull, they don’t get to go anywhere, let alone where they want to go. So, stop, put them back in heel, wait a few seconds and continue walking, you’ll probably only get a step or two before they try again, at first. Just keep doing it. Not going anywhere is no fun, eventually they’ll figure out that if they walk in heel, they get to go places, and if they don’t everything stops.

You can also get their attention with treats, have them walk beside you and treat them every few seconds (as long as they stay in heel.) I start out around 5-10 steps, and they get a treat and then gradually increase the time.

Hope this helps

- Nate

Today was great!

Today was a great day! Nikki is doing block very consistently on command, and she is starting to get cover with a hand signal. I'm debating on whether to keep the hand signal or not. She is also doing stay really well and ground really well. I'm going to work on maintaining block, improving cover, improving sit, and teaching anxiety alert, heel, and guide to exit. ❤️ I will go slow though, because she needs time to learn.

#service dog in training #grounding #DPT #cover #block #anxiety alert #guide to exit #heel #stay #sit #down #great training session #awesome #awesome day

River dog vest

I am going to save up for a river dog vest for Nikki. 😍❤️

Training updates

Block is going well with Nikki. She has almost got it down. Cover is still taking some time to learn. Ground and DPT is going really well. She is staying pretty consistently now and knows sit, down, and is learning heel. Patience, patience, patience. 😉

Went shopping the other day and got some stuff. I found this awesome Pegasus book at half price books, and a fidget spinner at target. I also got a bone for Nikki at Walmart too, because she needs something to chew on. I’m also making a bandana for Nikki to wear. ❤️

Bandana for Nikki. ❤️😍

anxietyservicedogs

As those of you who know me, know, service dogs are very close to my heart. Without service dogs, I have no idea where I would be today. The goal of Keep 6 is to be a weekly podcast that discusses everything service dog related, from living with service dogs and their benefits, the roadblocks han...

Hey all! I would like to announce that Patch an I (Nate) are going to be starting a podcast talking about all things service dog! The podcast will be called Keep 6! We are already working on our first episode! We could use some help getting started though! We are fundraising for suitable mics, as well as other things such as our intro and outro music! Our goal is only $300! If you could donate, even a dollar we would be ever grateful! Anyone that donates will get a shout out in the first episode!!

You can find more info on our hopes for the podcast on the gofundme page!

If you are unable to donate, signal boosts are also greatly appreciated!!