On a hazy day in November of 2023, the day I had been waiting for finally came, I was adopting a dog. In the time leading up to this momentous occasion, I had spent countless hours researching the best kind of dog to get, training programs, rescues around town, how to adopt from out of state, basically if you can think of it, I probably Googled it.
I had wanted a dog since I was in college and got my own apartment, but the timing never felt right because I knew I wasn't yet in a place to give a dog the life they deserved. Skip to present day and a new obstacle presented itself that I never saw coming, my physical and mental health took a nosedive at the same time.
While I have had symptoms of my chronic illness since childhood, I was officially diagnosed with Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS) and an unknown autoimmune disease in 2019. My symptoms took a turn for the worst in 2020 which meant dozens of doctors appointments, medical tests, and debilitating symptoms which often left me home bound while my peers were out at college parties. Over the last two years, my symptoms have reached a point where I, at times, find myself unable to walk and so lightheaded that I can barely sit up.
Now, I have always known that service dogs exist. I had one come visit and give a presentation when I was in elementary school (the handler did the talking... no discoveries of talking pups here... yet). What I didn't know was everything that a service dog could do. Like many people, I was only familiar with guide service dogs and mobility service dogs. After I started researching more about service dogs, I learned about psychiatric and medical alert service dogs. A whole new world of possibilities opened up in front of me and I quickly started researching different service dog programs.
A whole new world of possibilities opened up in front of me.
I hit a wall in my research after finding that most programs either were nonprofits that had waitlists that went on for years or programs who only provided fully trained service dogs or service dog training free of cost to those who have served in the military. I felt defeated. I had already waited years to be ready for a dog and knew that waiting that much longer wasn't a reality for me. This is when I started to dig deeper into the requirements the ADA lays out to call a dog a service animal. I was pleasantly shocked to find out that you can self-train your own service dog! This is when my second phase of countless hours of research began. Not to brag, but Google and I really became best buds.
I went back and forth so many times as to if I actually wanted to go through with training a service dog myself because it sounded tedious and daunting. Not only that, but all of this was entirely dependent on whether or not the dog I found was suitable for service dog training. I knew that my biggest priority was finding a dog that I would bond with. If I was able to train her as a service dog, then that would just be an added bonus.
I started looking at pictures of dogs at local shelters (a quick side note to get ahead of what you are probably thinking, I know that many people get their service dog prospects from breeders and look for one of the fab four breeds (remember my mountain of research). It was really important to me that I get my dog from a shelter, so I accepted the fact that I might get a dog that's not suitable for service dog training/work and I was okay with that!). I even found a dog that I wanted to meet, but he was adopted before I even made it to the shelter. This cycle went on for a couple of weeks and alternated between me looking at shelter websites daily and going days without checking.
Then, one night, by some strange magical force, I found a picture of a little black and white dog who just became available for adoption at a shelter over 45 miles away. I immediately felt a connection and knew I had to meet her. The next day, I called the shelter the minute it opened and said I filled out an adoption application and was coming to meet her, but they told me there was an adoption event that day and they couldn't guarantee she wouldn't get adopted there. The adoption event was only 10 minutes from me. It felt like a sign from the universe that this was meant to be.
It felt like a sign from the universe that this was meant to be.
I grabbed my keys and called my partner to explain the whole story. They helped me think of all the practical questions I needed to ask myself to see if this pup would be a good fit for me and her. I pulled into the event 10 minutes before it was supposed to start and that's when I saw her. Sitting in her kennel in the cutest coat to keep warm on a rainy day was my Oakley.
We immediately bonded and all the shelter staff were in awe about how quickly we both chose each other. Oakley wouldn't stop leaning on me and giving me kisses. After signing all the paperwork (and taking our first picture together that I will cherish forever), we got some supplies from the pet store and we went home.
This journey has been nothing like I expected in the most beautiful (and at times very overwhelming) way. Oakley has the ideal temperament for service dog training and so we have begun the path of self-training. When I was researching, I couldn't find any tell all, step-by-step training guides and so I decided to make my own and share it here for others to use. I will be documenting our progress, tips, and what does and doesn't work.
I am simply a 23 year old, queer individual with a chronic illness and limited income trying to navigate my way through this wild thing we call reality.
You may be wondering, Amaya, what are your qualifications? And my answer to that is: none. I am simply a 23 year old, queer individual with a chronic illness and limited income trying to navigate my way through this wild thing we call reality. If you want to follow along, great! If you don't, great! Life is too short to get caught up in the technicalities (yeah Amaya... maybe you should listen to yourself). I am sure I'll make a thousand mistakes and what I do will likely not be what you would do. But guess what? I'm the one who has to live my life, so I'll be doing it my way.
Welcome to the story of me and Oakley and our journey through self-taught service dog training. I hope you stick around and maybe even learn a trick or two!
Sincerely and unapologetically me,
Amaya
(I would not be doing my duty as a first time pet parent if I didn't tell you Oakley is currently in a contest to be crowned America's Favorite Pet! Daily voting is free and the link to vote is in her social media bio on Instagram and TikTok @Oakley.Wonder.Pup)