Tasks
Robbie completed basic & advanced obedience with me and a professional trainer before we moved on to learning all of the tasks/activities that he needed to best help me manage my CRPS. Before beginning task training with your dog, they need to have a solid foundation of advanced obedience and a strong partnership with you.
All of the tasks I taught Robbie help to limit possible flares for me. When we limit the amount times I have to stretch my arms out, pick up & carry things (like a laundry basket), or lose my balance, along with other things, we're able to keep my pain more consistent & manageable.
Tasks He Learned & Did Routinely:
All of the tasks I taught Robbie help to limit possible flares for me. When we limit the amount times I have to stretch my arms out, pick up & carry things (like a laundry basket), or lose my balance, along with other things, we're able to keep my pain more consistent & manageable.
Tasks He Learned & Did Routinely:
- Brace - Robbie has learned how to stand beside me or in front of me so that I can push up off of his shoulders for assistance if I fall down, am bent over, or am sitting down. He has mastered this task.
- Carry a Pack - As of January 2016, Robbie can carry a pack with no problems. To date he has carried at most about 8lbs of weight.
- Bring Items - Small items that I cannot reach or need, Robbie can bring them to me. Robbie took long to teach fetch because he didn't have a drive to do so, but now routinely picks up dropped items for me and is able to assist in other retrieve based tasks, such as helping me sort and put away laundry.
- Pick Up Items - If I drop something, like my keys, Robbie will pick it up and hand it to me
- Open/Close Doors - Either using a tug rope or pushing handicap buttons. Robbie can push handicap buttons, flip lever door knobs, and use tug ropes to open or close doors.
- Turn On/Off Lights - Flip a low-set light switch with his nose.
- Find... - Find items or people. For instance, if I were to fall down at home, I would be able to say "Robbie, Find ADAM" and he would go through the house until he found my husband, or if I get separated from someone in a store, Robbie can guide me to them by tracking their scent. Robbie has been doing excellent with Find!
- Drag Items - Robbie can pull a laundry basket into the laundry room for me so that I can wash clothes.
- Response to Pain/Stress/Anxiety - When I reach a high level of pain or stress or anxiety, or am crying from pain, Robbie comes over to me and licks my face and shoves his head into me. He is encouraging me to play with him so that I relax and focus on him instead of my pain or anxiety.
- Pull a Lightweight Cart - Once Robbie turned 3, he was taught how to pull a light garden cart with firewood in it. We have a wood stove and as I cannot carry weight, it is difficult for me to get wood from outside and bring it in. We bought him a pulling harness and in the summer of 2017, we taught him how to pull a cart. We waited for him to turn 3 so that we knew his bones and muscles will have matured.
- Counter-balance Assistance on Hills and Stairs - I can hold onto Robbie's harness to help stabilize myself to prevent losing my balance.
- Stabilize Body Temp - CRPS affects my body's ability to regulate my body temperature, as well as its ability to correctly perceive temperature. Often, I experience what we call "Deep Cold Flares" where it feels like I'm bone-deep cold. Sometimes staying in that state triggers shock. It can happen on its own, when I'm exposed to cold too fast or too long, when I'm given cold IV fluids, or when a sudden and severe onset of pain happens (like doctors performing surgery, even though I'm under anesthesia). Blankets can help, but are slow. We found that having Robbie lay on me not only keeps from dropping into shock, but can also bring me out of it from his own body heat. This is invaluable to us, and gets used in doctor's offices, in public access, and at home.