Fame and Fortune come to Lightning...

Publication:The Lawton Constitution;

I am so fortunate to be in a situation where I am loved and needed in my permanent home and now I am famous too! This was in my local paper a few weeks ago...

Date:Nov 8, 2009;

Section:The Insider;

Page Number:3

A guiding paw

Guide dog helps woman navigate life

BY TYRELL ALBIN STAFF WRITER TALBIN@LAWTON-CONSTITUTION.COM



Lightning is an 18-month-old female golden retriever who has taken over as academic counselor Kay Love’s new service dog.

For Love, who is blind, Lightning means independence.

“It is such a wonderful feeling, to be able to get out and just go at your speed, on your time, and do the things you want to do,” Love said.

Lightning helps her navigate through daily life. The dog helps Love avoid obstacles and understands a multitude of commands for finding specific things, like stairs and elevators, and distinguishing between inside and outside doors.

Love’s last guide dog, Holly, a black Labrador retriever approaching the age of 11, recently retired. Now she sits at Love’s home and relaxes, free to be just a beloved pet instead of a guide dog.

“Holly had been giving me signals for quite some time that she was just not interested in working as a dog guide anymore,” said Love.

So, after nine years of service, Holly now snoozes on the couch and helps raise the eager puppy who has taken over her job.

When it became necessary to find a new service dog, Love contacted the Leader Dog School for the Blind in Rochester, Mich. She flew to the school, where she went through the detailed, nearly month-long process of obtaining a dog and training with it.

Everything was paid for by the Leader Dog School for the Blind, Love said.

“When you go to the school, you arrive on a Sunday afternoon,” she said. “You meet with your trainer and some of the people you will be working with. And then Monday morning you start your first work.”

For the first few days, the trainer actually took walks with Love attached to a service dog harness, as if he were the dog. He was testing her confidence, how quickly she reacted and gave commands, getting a feel for what sort of service dog handler she is.

On Wednesday, Love was the first one in her training group picked to receive her dog.

The trainer had her sit down. He told Love her new dog’s name was Lightning and that he would be right back.

He returned with the squirming puppy who has become Love’s service dog.

“Lightning ran over to me and was all wiggly and excited, and I petted her for a bit,” Love said. “Then she dropped to the floor and rolled on her back for me to pet her belly. She wanted to have her tummy rubbed. I guess that’s how she decided whether I’m a valuable person.”

For the next few weeks, Love and Lightning spent a great deal of time together at the school learning to work as a team. They returned home Oct. 9.

“For such a young dog, she’s really made great headway,” Love said.

She said Lightning already does an excellent job of guiding her around obstacles smoothly. She’s also very obedient and is good about getting back on task when she is distracted.

Love said the biggest challenge she faces with Lightning is the young dog’s exuberance and endless energy.

And there is that aforementioned chewing issue.

Love said Lightning recently chewed up her leather leash at work. Now Lightning has a chain leash instead.

When Lightning isn’t wearing her work harness, Love said she really lets her puppyhood show.

“She’s very much a puppy, so she thinks everything is a game and play. When she’s at home, she’s just a dog,” said Love.

Love’s coworker, academic counselor Heather Nance, has worked with Love for three years. She said after a while, you barely notice a service dog around the office, especially well-behaved ones like Lightning and her predecessor, Holly.

“It’s actually kind of nice,” Nance said. “It’s nice to have a ‘fur relief’ during the day. And it’s also been quite a learning experience to see someone who has other challenges to work around.”

MICHAEL D. POPE/STAFF Lightning, an 18-month-old female golden retriever, is Cameron University academic counselor Kay Love’s new service dog. Lightning helps Love, who is blind, maintain her independence in daily life.



MICHAEL D. POPE/STAFF Kay Love, academic counselor for student support services at Cameron University, walks down a hallway near her office with her new service dog, Lightning.