The "Cross" Command
I've been giving some thought
recently to road and parking lot safety. I'm not really sure how
ensure that Glindy is both confident in following me into traffic,
and at the same time cautious enough to stay *out* of the street or
away from cars in parking lots should she ever accidentally get
loose. After all, collars and leashes are not indestructible, and
mistakes (such as dropping a leash) do happen.
I've asked on a number of lists, but nobody has really provided a
clear answer as to what constitutes best practices in road safety
for a service dog team. So, I've come up with my own, which I hope
will suffice to keep Glindy as safe as possible in the event of a
"doggy wardrobe malfunction."
I've decided to teach "cross" as a separate command. My idea is
that I will teach an automatic wait at the edge of sidewalks, and
that "cross" will be a much more focused form of travel than "let's
go" or "come."
In the past, I'd tell Glindy "wait" at the edge of the street, and
then say "come" when I wanted her to cross with me. The problem was
that she will occasionally stop to shake herself in the street, or
dally to sniff something interesting. By teaching her to always
"cross" the street, and firmly correcting anything other than a
brisk, focused crossing, I hope that she'll learn that streets are
places that one may safely traverse on command but not places to
linger.
And of course, continuing to work with off-leash training will
provide another option in the event of an emergency. Let's just
hope I never have to find out how well it works in the middle of
rush hour.