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The Service Flower

@theserviceflower

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Service Dog Influencer + Professional B*tch
✦ Ft. on The Dodo for National Service Dog Month
150K+ across platforms
💌 [email protected]

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Not all heroes wear capes — some wear little vests! 🥹

Jay explained how crucial to her health it is having her dog, @theserviceflower, with her at all times — and that while not all disabilities are visible, they're just as deserving of the right support!

Join us in honoring service dogs this month for the life-saving work they do. #NationalServiceDogMonth by @theserviceflower

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a year ago

Just because you could doesn’t mean you should, and that applies to a lot of things especially in the dog and service dog community.

If your dog struggles around other dogs for whatever reason, maybe you shouldn’t do meetups. If youre going somewhere that might be questionable for the safety of your dog, maybe you shouldn’t bring them. If there’s a grey area in a law or maybe youre interpereting it wrong, maybe you shouldn’t push it.

Unfortunately the phase of not caring for clicks in the dog community is coming back and is frustrating to see from someone who actually advocates for dogs. You can’t advocate for dogs online and then turn around and put yours in a bad situation like it isn’t exactly what you speak out about.

I could be posting a dozen clips of my bomb proof service dog holding a down stay or heeling in a busy concert venue, but instead I chose to leave her at home.

Service dogs are an aid to many peoples health but that doesn’t mean we need to overlook their own. I will forever be an advocate for doing what is best for your dog, no matter how much the dog helps you. Because at the end of the day, we wouldn’t be where we are without them 💕

#servicedog #dogcommunity #hottake #foryou #dog by @theserviceflower

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8 hours ago

Being a service dog handler doesn’t mean I stop being a dog mom. My dogs have jobs, but they’re still dogs first. I care about their health, happiness, enrichment, training, and actually letting them enjoy being dogs.

Being a good handler means knowing when they’re working, when they’re off duty, and when they just need to be allowed to be a regular dog.

#servicedog #dogcommunity #dogtraining #foryou #workingdog by @theserviceflower

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6 days ago

If that sums up our first time doing dock diving at all…😭😭

#belgianmalinois #dogcommunity #dockdiving #malinois #funny by @theserviceflower

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7 days ago

Everyone loves to tell you when you’re training your dog wrong... but very few people actually show you what the right approach looks like. So I’m making a follow up to my last video, where I break down the training that goes into properly desensitizing a dog around animatronics.

I’m not here to tell you not to train your dog. I’m here to walk you through the process and explain what I’m looking for along the way. Because at the end of the day, we all want the same result. Some of us just need a little guidance getting there, and there’s absolutely no shame in looking for help.

#servicedog #dogtraining #dogtrainer #foryou #dog by @theserviceflower

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8 days ago

Every year, I see videos of people bringing their dogs to train around Halloween decorations. While this can be a good opportunity for desensitization and confidence building, there’s a right and wrong way to approach it.
I’ve seen dogs who are clearly way past threshold, with their ears back, tails tucked, and bodies shaking, while their handlers continue pressing buttons and pushing treats as if that’s going to fix an already ruined situation.
When you’re working with a dog around something that elicits fear, whether it’s animatronics, other dogs, or anything else, you have to be careful with how you approach the situation. Once a dog is past threshold, you can easily do more harm than good.
You need to know the dog you’re working with and gradually increase environmental pressure. Confidence and stability are not things you can rush.
As a trainer, I saw dogs all the time who needed behavior modification because they had been flooded and pushed toward the idea of perfection too quickly.
Intention is important, but attention to detail is more important. Truly advocate for your dog, not social media clicks.

#servicedog #dogcommunity #trend #hottake #dogtraining by @theserviceflower

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11 days ago

For most people, something as simple as using a public restroom doesn’t take much thought or consideration. You just walk in, do what you have to, and leave. But for disabled people, there can be obstacles to go through before thats even possible. For someone in a wheelchair, using a rollator, or even someone with a service dog; theres a lot of nuances to think about.

Can my disability aid fit in the stall with me? Is the accessible stall even working? Things that might only put a ripple in an average persons day can create a wave in a disabled persons outing. But not many people think of that… this is one of those things that only disabled people really notice.

#disabled #foryou #servicedog #accessability #assistancedog by @theserviceflower

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22 days ago

Recently, I got a comment asking why I talk about the things I talk about even when they’re so controversial. I replied to the comment, but thought about it more after the fact.

There’s a lot of things in the dog community that you are almost expected to be a bystander to. If you point out someone intentionally abusing the law, you’re slandered and told you’re just trying to police people. Policing people isn’t the point, upholding standards is.

I take pride in my image and how my dogs reflect me. I take pride in wanting to be in a community that isn’t full of buffoonery. We as the service dog community always complain about people not taking us seriously, but then enable the exact reason why people don’t because we’re too scared to say something.

So sue me for standing for something. Sue me for speaking my mind, and sue me for not being silenced. But don’t ever try to sue me for being a bystander to something that affects all of us. Cause I won’t be.

#servicedog #dogcommunity #hottake #dog #workingdog by @theserviceflower

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24 days ago

To the untrained eye, it might look like my service dog is literally just existing here….

And she is, but she also did two separate check ins. Did you notice them?

The first one, she was air scenting and sniffed my hand. The second was a little glance as we started moving. My heart rate was slightly elevated here, but not past the threshold for an alert.

It’s her job to maintain tabs on me and alert me when my heart rate rises past that threshold, so check ins are a must to make sure she’s able to catch it in time. I don’t require 24/7 eye contact because quite frankly, it’s unnecessary. But check ins like these are what make her good at her job and what help make my outings go smoothly.

#servicedog #dog #dogtraining #workingdog #foryou by @theserviceflower

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a month ago

Typically, I’m not one to make a response video THIS aggressive, but Poppy Coburn, the author of @telegraph article titled “How having a disability became cool,” followed it up with the caption, “Young women, nicknamed ‘sickfluencers’, are turning chronic illness into a lifestyle trend and entrenching a culture of economic inactivity.”

And she successfully got my full attention. So she’s going to get all of the energy behind it.

A lot of disabled people have created a tight knit community online. Some of those people have become influencers and have built platforms by spreading awareness, educating others, and talking openly about what they struggle with every single day. I happen to fall somewhere in the middle of that.

My content does not magically make me less disabled. It doesn’t change the fact that I still have to deal with my chronic illness every single day. I still have symptoms. I still have limitations. I still have days where my disabilities completely kick my ass.

But if talking about it and making content surrounding it can help someone come to terms with their own disability, feel less alone, understand something about themselves they didn’t understand before, or even learn how to better manage what they’re dealing with, then I’m going to keep fucking posting.

Because I did not choose to be disabled.

I did not choose the conditions I have, the limitations that come with them, or the ways they have changed my life. What I DID choose was to make something good out of a situation I never asked for. And there is a massive difference between someone exploiting disability for attention or financial gain and a disabled person choosing to build a community around their own lived experience.

If you cannot tell the difference between those two things, maybe the problem isn’t that disabled people are talking about disability too much.

Maybe you just don’t like what you’re hearing. And unfortunately that seems to be a common theme amongst society, and the media is getting ballsy enough to perpetuate it.

#disabled #disability #servicedog #foryou #viral by @theserviceflower

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a month ago

Some of these are a LIFESAVER when she goes into season!

#servicedog #dog #foryou #dogsofinstagram #malinois by @theserviceflower

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a month ago

Let them sniff. Let them play. Let them roll around in the grass and do stupid things. Let dogs be dogs.

Just because your dog is a service dog or is well trained does not mean they automatically don’t have the same needs of enrichment and enjoyment for life.

#servicedog #dog #dogtraining #foryou #workingdog by @theserviceflower

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a month ago