Hi Bob
 BL> Hi Allan!  I loved the story about your dog.
Thanks for your interest
  It made me want one
 BL> just like him!  I'm a dog lover to begin with and a service dog
 BL> would make a lot of things much easier for me.
There are a number of groups in the States, that provide them, but I am 
not quite sure how much they would be. Unfortunately, I am having 
trouble remembering their names, but you may be able to get them off the 
bbs by asking 
 BL> I too am Post-Polio and a paraplegic.  I walk with full length leg
 BL> braces and crutches, but am having to do without them more and more
 BL> all the time.  I've been using them for 50 years now and the doctors
 BL> tell me I've worn out all the tissues in my legs where the pressure
 BL> points are.  If I don't spend the largest part of the day out of the
 BL> braces and in the wheelchair, I can't stand the pain, even with
 BL> medication.
That is tough. Have you tried acupuncture? I find it a great help for 
quite a range of things. I hope that is not ahead of me, as I have been 
using mine for 39 years so far. And am so far lucky in regard to pain.
 BL> I'm also the co-moderator of Fidos POST_POLIO echo and we'd love to
 BL> have you visit there and tell us all about your dog, how one might
 BL> be of use to some of us and maybe how to go about obtaining one.
I have been dropping in on the PP echo from time to time for a while 
now, and appreciate its availability
What does Zuga do for me?
The key reason I got him was that I had irreparably torn the right 
rotator cuff of my shoulder (of course my good one, and still is) in 
1988. In 1989, had an arthroscopy on it to trim off the frayed tendon 
fibres so they would not catch when they were moving through a narrow 
gap of my shoulder, also had been in chair for 5 months with a broken 
left arm. Result- lost a lot of my specialised strength and agility when 
on crutches, and could not longer pick up things from the ground. My 
crutches often fell to the ground. Realised that a trained dog would be 
a great help here. that was the start of the idea.
The key idea was to save my shoulder from getting into trouble trying to 
do things, only to find that I was committed, and had to overload it. 
ie reduce any risk to it.
* dog that could pick up things for me eg crutches that dropped 
frequently, car keys, or anything (remote vcr controllers, my pocket 
telephone etc
* might also want a dog I could lean on. I found that as I came out of 
the car backwards, I was niggling my shoulder when I tried to stand 
upright, using my right arm for bracing support, and lifting my trunk.
Started to call Zuga forward towards me when I was ready to stand 
upright. As he came forward, I put my left hand on his shoulder(we have 
right hand drive cars), and this straightened me up, with no problems to 
my r shoulder as I only had to use it for balance.
Also have used him as a portable step, when I have overbalanced the top 
half of my body out of the bed. Then I call him into position where I 
have better leverage and lean on his shoulders, and push my top back 
into bed, or upright if my chest has fallen forward onto my knees. 
When I am on a swivelling chair I sometimes use him as a portable fixed 
external point to help me change position in the chair - but not full 
weight (he is too valuable to injure by stupidity).
* pulling up on him.
Sometimes I have fallen backwards from a sitting position on my bed, 
into the venetian blinds, where I am suspended. Nowhere to use my arms 
to push or to reach and grab the rope ladder I use to help me sit up 
with. Then I call Zuga onto the bed and grab him and pull on him to sit 
up. (a real relief because I feel so trapped and helpless, with no 
people around).
 
*one that could carry things either in his mouth (he was chosen to 
have a relatively dry mouth which did not wet things easily), or on his 
back.   It lessens the risk of me stumbling.
_In his mouth_. Anything I want carried about the house or out to the 
car.
Often i put things in plastic bags for this so that it is easy for him 
to hold. I get him to carry my microwaved tea from the kitchen to the TV 
in a plastic bucket and lid, which has a handle he can hold.
_on his back_.  He carried 
my coat out to the car yesterday, because I did not want to put it on to 
get to the car and then have to get it off to drive. Othertimes I use 
him to carry my washing from my bedroom to the washing machine.
He has a saddle bag when he is out to help give him identification as a 
support dog, and to carry my pad and notes to meetings. I do not use 
this carry heavy loads in although he occasionally takes up to 5 
. 
Continued in the next message...
--- Maximus/2 2.02
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