COURSES FOR DISABLED PEOPLE
These courses address disabled people who are able to use at
least one hand.
SESSION LENGTH: variable (it
depends upon each case, and from the intended target to be reached).
The sessions are developed in a special area of easy access.
Team Dog is available for courses to be taught at
home, and to assist the future owners with the selection of a puppy. Any specific
requests will also be considered.




Usually disabled people desire the company and
assistance of a dog more than others do, yet they are concerned about the
responsibility this entails. They wonder if they can take care of a dog, when
they need someone to take care of them.
Disabled people manage to find a way to take care of their dog, yet we have
to say that sometimes they share this responsibilty with the whole family.
Disabled people who already own a dog enjoy some invaluable psychological
and physical benefits from their relationship with their friend. Yet sometimes
their dog has to be trained to walk at their side, not to pull on the leash,
and to happily obey all commands.
Through patient training it is also possible to teach a dog to help disabled
people with their daily activities. This gives them a great sense of autonomy,
self-respect, makes them feel more as an integral part of society, and gives
them more control of their environment.
The increased autonomy often encourages many disabled people to dedicate themselves
to some new activity.
To provide you with a real life example,
we asked Marina to send us an e-mail.
Her words count more than ours do!
Marina walks with a walking stick, and she contacted Cinzia Magistri to train her dog Rex not to pull on the leash. Now Rex is learning how to open the door to the garden, and when he will be able to do that we will also teach him to bring the mobilephone to Marina in case of an emergency.


EDUCATE YOUR OWN DOG
Because a dog already has an established relationship
with his owner, for some aspects of the training it may be of great help
to have the owner participate in the dog's education. It may also be necessary
to correct some behavioural problems.
BUY A PUPPY
If you wish to buy a puppy and your budget allows,
we recommend a selection between a GOLDEN or a LABRADOR RETRIEVER, GRAND
CANICHE, and CAO DE AGUA. They are both dogs with a friendly character,
easy to train, and considering the hesitance of many people about some dog
breeds, they are not aggressive nor do they strike fear in people (this
helps the disabled person to better integrate himself and his dog within
society).
ADOPT A PUPPY
We absolutely agree with the option to adopt, yet in
this specific case we recommend the choice of a young subject, medium sized,
of good character, and one that does not cause fear in people (again, this
always helps the disabled person to better integrate himself and his dog
in his social environment).
If the dog is not a puppy, resolving some behaviour problems and bad habits
may be necessary.



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