Tuesday, June 15, 1999

Help comes to disabled people

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BY SHEILA McLAUGHLIN
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Marlys Staley gives some attention to Doc, center, a signal dog for the hearing-impaired, and Abby, a service dog trained for mobility-impaired people. (Jeff Swinger photo) | ZOOM |

        BUTLERVILLE — Abby seems to be living the easy life.

        She quenches her thirst with chamomile tea, gets a massage on demand, and lounges in front of a box fan in the living room of Marlys Staley's log home on Carey Road.

        Despite her coddled lifestyle, this German girl is no slouch.

        She opens doors and drawers, fetches the newspaper, the cordless phone and the mail, turns on lights — and even can pick up an object as minute as a dime from the floor.

        Fresh out of training, the 2-year-old German shepherd is among two assistance dogs ready for placement by Circle Tail Inc.

        The little-known Warren County organization trains canines for assistance work and partners them free with people who have hearing impairments or mobility problems.

        Circle Tail has placed two dogs since its inception in 1997, and currently has no waiting list for the trained canines that normally cost $6,000 to $12,000 from some organizations.

No waiting list
        Organizations like Circle Tail are vital to people with disabilities who want to live independently, said Maureen Fredrickson, a spokeswoman for Delta Society, which promotes the use of assistance dogs and lobbies on related issues.

        Even with at least 75 training organizations in the country, there simply aren't enough dogs to go around. Most organizations have long waiting lists, she said.

        “There are 52 million Americans with disabilities in this country, and working, at this time, are approximately 16,000 dogs. We're talking a big hole,” Ms. Fredrickson said.

        Circle Tail is built on helping people with disabilities, but it also saves the dogs' lives, Ms. Staley said.

        All of Circle Tail assistance dogs come from animal shelters in Warren and Clermont counties, from people who can no longer keep their dogs, or from breeders, who otherwise might destroy litters that don't meet breed standards.

        “The dog really wouldn't have a chance otherwise, so it is for the person and the dog,” said Ms. Staley.

Year in training
        Many of the canines spend a year in prison, literally, for basic obedience training.

        Marion and Chillicothe correctional institutions pair dogs regularly with inmates who housebreak them, and teach them how to walk on a leash and to tolerate confined quarters. Circle Tail's first two “prison” dogs return this weekfor six months of advanced training with Ms. Staley.

        Abby ended up at Circle Tail after her owners banished her to the barn and she chewed up their tack equipment. She was meant to be a companion for the family's Doberman pinscher. But two large dogs were too much and the owners decided one of them had to go, Ms. Staley said.

        Ms. Staley trained the medium-sized German shepherd to help a woman in Pittsburgh who had rheumatoid arthritis and other medical problems. The woman died earlier this month, two days before Abby was to make the trip to her new home.

Doc needs partner
        Doc, a Labrador-hound mix who came from the Warren County Humane Shelter, also needs a partner that will keep him work as a hearing dog.

        The 18-month-old signal dog is trained to alert a person, through the touch of his nose, to sounds of smoke detectors, ringing phones, a knock at the door, and other noises.

        Applicants for Circle Tail dogs pay a $25 refundable application fee and are expected to supply needed equipment, such as bowls, bedding and leads, and provide veterinary care. The dogs work for eight years and can either stay with their partners in retirement, go back to their foster families, or to Circle Tail.

        Supported solely by donations and the work of a small group of volunteers, the non-profit organization limits its placements to the Tristate and Dayton, making it easier for Ms. Staley to make home visits to fine-tune training after the dog is placed.

        Ms. Staley made an exception in Abby's case because her prospective partner wasn't expected to live long. That prognosis prohibited the Pittsburgh woman from getting an assistance dog from other organizations because many don't want to place dogs short-term, Ms. Staley said.

        A physical therapist by profession, Ms. Staley came up with the idea for Circle Tail after touring a training center for pilot dogs in Florida.

        Wrestling with job issues at the time, she decided on a career change that would still draw on her background in physical therapy and experiences with physically challenged people.

        “It hit like a bolt of lightning. It was what I wanted to do,” she said. Circle Tail does not train guide dogs for the blind.

        While Ms. Staley also trains canines for profit, most of her time is devoted to doing the job free at Circle Tail and caring for the dogs, cats and goats that have accumulated on the 14-acre farm she shares with her husband, Reg Richard.

        Though its main mission is to provide assistance dogs, Circle Tail operates an emergency shelter for stray and unwanted dogs and adopts them out through monthly events at local Petsmart stores.

        The organization also offers a weekly pet therapy program at United Cerebral Palsy of Greater Cincinnati's service center in Avondale.

        Luke, a large white Turkish herding dog, called an akbash, is a mainstay in that program.

        “They can pet him, and touch him and feel his soft fur. Luke is a great dog because he is the right height and he can lean up against their wheelchairs and they can touch him,” Ms. Staley said.

        “It brings a smile to their faces.”

       

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