GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — You might see a dog on the bus in Grand Rapids.
The Rapid has teamed with Paws With A Cause to increase awareness for the work of assistance dogs and the independence they provide to people with disabilities.
On Monday, seven assistance-dogs-in-training and their handlers visited Rapid Central Station. This was an opportunity for these dogs to experience all of the sights and sounds of public transportation and show off their skills at maneuvering the bus.
The partnership was made to honor National Dog Week, which takes place Sept. 22-28, 2019.
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Here are the top three things to remember when you see a service dog according to Paws With A Cause:
- The dog’s job is to focus on completing tasks for its owner or handler.
- Your behavior should not interfere with this focus. This means no petting, talking to, or bothering the dog!
- The handler is trying to complete his/her own activity. Even if the handler is out to dinner, the handler is not there to entertain you or to answer your questions.
“We want to prepare our dogs to work in environments of multiple varying distractions so that they are comfortable doing their job for their clients in everyday life,” said the PAWS Training Team. “It is very likely that our dogs will end up on some sort of public transportation at some point, so an experience like this one is invaluable.”
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