Navigating Conventions and Conferences with a Guide Dog
Over these last almost three years I have been to several conferences with Eve across the country. In attending these conferences here are a few things that I have learned along the way.
Find an Alternative relieving area for your dog when necessary: When attending large conferences such as the CSUN assistive technology conference or the various consumer organization conferences you may find that the main relieving area may get a lot of traffic making it so you have to wait a little while to allow your dog to go to the bathroom. In order to resolve this you may want to find an alternative relieving area. If you do use an alternative relieving area it's important to ensure that you pick up after your dog. Having an alternative relieving area may also help if the main relieving area becomes stinky, as does happen after a while of many dogs using the same area.
Elevators and escalators: When attending disability related conferences, make those around you aware that you are boarding or exiting elevators or escalators, as some may not be aware that there is a dog present.
Food motivation: If your dog is food motivated be aware at some conferences there may be food in places where there usually isn’t like chairs or in bushes. I say this because at our first California State University Northridge (CSUN) Assistive Technology conference I had to pull uncooked bread dough out of Eve’s mouth as she was trying to find a spot to relieve.
Lindsay and Eve at the CSUN Assistive Technology Conference 2024
Go during off times: Travel the convention halls a little before sessions start or a little after to avoid large crowds of people. Using off times to take your dog out may also be helpful, as most people will be in sessions. If I end up doing this I usually take Eve out during sessions that I do not plan on attending.
Sit at the end of a row or in front of the room: When in large conference sessions sit at the end of a row or at the front of the room making it less likely that your dog will be stepped on by those coming into a row, If you find yourself in the front row of a room ensure that you tuck your dog under your chair so they do not get stepped on by those coming into the room.
Eve taking a nap under my chair during general session of her first National Federation of the Blind Convention.
Bring their favorite toy: As conferences can be stressful for dogs it is a good idea to bring their favorite toy or bone, so during downtime they can have a good play session or chew on their bone.
The importance of rest breaks in between sessions: As mentioned earlier, conferences can be quite stressful for dogs. One way to get around the stress of conventions is to give them rest breaks in between meetings. During these breaks something that some people do is allow their dogs to play with friends' dogs. If you chose to do this just know that dogs may act in different ways as a result of the stress of convention. It is a good idea to do this only if you know the other dog and handler well, as you may not know how each other may react.
Bring extra food and poop bags: As I shared in my Traveling with a Guide Dog post, bringing extra food is really important as flights may get canceled or other disasters may happen. If this does occur the last thing you want is not to have enough food and poop bags for a possible extended stay.
Mushers secret or shoes: When attending conferences in either hot or cold climates, it’s good to have either booties or mushers secret available to protect your dogs paw pads.
Beware of canes: If at a blindness related conference beware of canes. I say this because at such conferences those who use canes have various cane skills meaning that your dog getting hit with canes is quite likely. All you can do is be patient with yourself and your dog. You may also be surprised that your dog may see a large group of canes and pull you in the opposite direction of them to avoid them before you get to them. I say this because after attending a majority of our first National Federation of the Blind (NFB) conference Eve started to do this. It was really helpful because I was not running into them, and they were not running into me.
You may need to work through dog distraction more than normal: As to be expected at blindness or other disability related conferences, you may need to work through dog distractions more than normal because there will be many service animal teams present at different points in their journey. The only word of advice I can give is go back to obedience to get your dog to focus on the task at hand when distracted.
