Las Vegas...Service Dog Style

   So my family is a little strange. I mean what family isn't? But, see, my family takes "family reunions" to a whole 'nother level. Most families try to get together at grandma and grandpa's house once a year, to catch up and be together with a BBQ and the dogs barking in the background under a white tent. There's probably a picket fence involved somewhere and crazy Uncle Lou telling the same story he tells every year. Yeah, not so much with mine. Every year, my mom's side of the family gets together. In Las Vegas.

   My uncles and mom have been doing this for as long as I can remember and whenever we (the kids) turn 21, we get to go, too. My cousin and I are the youngest ones, so for YEARS we have heard about Vegas. I mean YEARS. Until last June when we could finally join the big kids in the one and only Las Vegas, Nevada.

   June 20, 2015 we landed in Sin City. I knew that my first experience was definitely going to be different than my cousins', brother's or sister's first time in Vegas since I had Zido with me. He obviously did great on the plane (thank you Rescue Remedy for giving him the added comfort of sleep during take-off and landing) and overall HE did great during our trip. Me, not so much, but I'll get to that soon enough.

Zido and I at one of the art exhibits in The Belagio

  When we landed, the first thing I did was take Zido to the bathroom. If you ever take a dog to Vegas, service dog or not, the PRIMARY piece of advice I can give you is to have their booties with you at all times. Don't pack them in your suitcase. Just keep them in your purse because as soon as we stepped outside I knew his paws would be in trouble if I didn't put his booties on. Even in the shade, I felt the heat soaking through my sandals and could only image what it would do to his paws. Another thing that I found pleasantly surprising was that Vegas makes sure to put patches of fake grass around the strip for dogs to relieve themselves. If I remember correctly, the relief area by the airport was rocks, but after so many hours of Zido holding, he wasn't one to be too picky.

   We hailed a taxi who drove us along the strip to The Palazzo. I felt like a complete and total tourist. My face was plastered to the window just taking it all in, while the driver told us about the Electronic Dance Music (EDM) festival that was taking place. He mentioned that there was definitely going to be more people around, but that it was very exciting. Little did I know that "more people" really meant THOUSANDS of college-aged festival-goers that were going to be swarming the streets, casinos, restaurants, sidewalks, theaters, EVERYTHING at all hours of the day and night. But again, I'll get to that soon enough.

   We got to The Palazzo, and when we checked in I told them that I had my service dog and was wondering where the closest relief areas were. If there is one thing I have to say about The Palazzo, it is that they are AMAZING with service dogs. They had a map ready with paths to the closest areas outside, they had a gold tag for me to put on Zido's collar to show he was a guest at their hotel, the areas were very well kept, shaded, very large, and they were for Palazzo guests only. I seriously have nothing but praises for the hotel and the treatment we were given. My mom, sister, and I even had a spa day and they didn't bat a lash at Zido coming with me to all of the different rooms in the spa. Obviously, we didn't go into the sauna, but everything else was completely open for us.

   During the days we were there, we experienced pretty much all there is to experience in Vegas. Or, we at least got a taste of it. We gambled (goodbye to all of my money...), we ate at fancy restaurants, we walked the strip, we went to the spa, we went to shows, we shopped (see above for why I couldn't buy anything), and we even saw some show girls.

Zido and the biggest birds he's ever seen

   The issues started coming in the weirdest of ways. First of all, I would have thought that with all of the half naked women (see above photo for proof), the weird "shows" on the sides of the streets, the elaborately dressed EDM concert-goers, and the general inebriation that encompasses the entire atmosphere of Vegas, that Zido and I wouldn't stand out quite as much. Well, I was wrong. People were constantly trying to take pictures of him (to which I or my family promptly told them not to) or they were shrieking about "that dog." They stared, they pointed, they made comments. I'm not kidding...people that were walking around in less then their underwear were gawking at a dog. Normally I try to ignore these happenings, but the mixture of all of that with the constant lights and sounds and smells resulted in me having a complete panic attack on the third night we were there while walking back to our hotel. It felt like I couldn't breath and that everything around me was closing in. I slipped down a few stairs and broke down crying and hyperventilating. Zido had been alerting throughout the night and we were just trying to get me to my bed, but the attack happened before we could. He calmly took his place over me as I sat there with my family around me and he truly brought me back into focus. It felt like everything was happening all at once, but when I simply pet him and focused on his ears, or his eyes, or his fur, then everything else went away. This is embarrassing to type because that's not something that normally happens. I regularly ride the metro with hundreds of my closest friends packed like sardines, but for some reason that was my breaking point. But the best part is Zido never left my side.

   There were some other issues we faced, such as a homeless man's un-neutered pitbull charging us on the last day (we were completely fine), but the most disturbing issue was when my family wanted to go see Mystère at Treasure Island. My entire family (all 30 of us) were going to do it together, but when my dad and brother went with my uncle to pick up the tickets, they ran into an issue. LEGALLY we don't have to tell theaters that I'll be bringing my dog to the show. However, to make it easier on all parties involved, I tell them so that they can make the necessary accommodations and it just makes everything run smoother. Especially now that I work in the office that does this for people who want to come to a show at The Kennedy Center, I've learned that it just makes the whole experience more enjoyable for everyone, even if legally a person with a service dog doesn't have to. However, when my dad told them, the person said "Oh, well then we'll move her to the handicap seating." First off, it's not called "handicap." It's called accessible. Anyway, when my dad said "Okay then how many can sit with her?" the Treasure Island person said "Oh no one. It's for people that are disabled only." My dad said "Okay then never mind, she'll just sit with us. Her dog is trained to fit in tight places." Treasure Island person said "Oh no that won't happen. Now that I know she has a dog, she has to sit in the handicap section." Which brings me to my "second off"...that's not allowed.

   So basically, this person was trying to separate me from my ENTIRE 30 PERSON PARTY and would not "allow" me to sit with any of them. Unfortunately, I wasn't there with my dad to pull out the law book Canine Partners for Life provides for us to show them that what they were asking me is not only horribly rude, but it is ILLEGAL. My brother called me to see what I wanted to do and I said I wasn't going to pay any amount of money if I wasn't going to enjoy the show with my family. My parents, brother, sister, and sister's friend all chose not to go either and while I know that our couple hundred dollars means nothing to Treasure Island, me spreading the word about their inability to accommodate for a person with a disability will mean something to them. Eventually.

   At The Venetian, however, I had a completely different experience. My brother took me on a date to see Rock of Ages that plays in The Venetian's theater. We had already had our poor service from Treasure Island, so we were really worried about how this one was going to go. All I can say is it was amazing. When we went to get the tickets, this woman (named Sarah) was the one to help us. We explained the situation and what had just happened to us, and she made sure it didn't happen to us again in her theater. We got accessible seats in the back row of the front section, so the seats were regular chairs that could be moved. We were allowed to arrive early and they moved the seat from between Tim and me so Zido could lay there and not get stepped on. Guys, I'm not joking when I say we were RIGHT there. If you haven't seen the show, it's basically a musical based around 80s hits! For anyone who has seen the movie, let me tell you seeing it live is 100x better! Sarah and the ushers asked if Zido would be okay because it gets really loud, and I promised with his ear protection he would be fine. Turns out that during the middle of one of the loudest numbers, there was a sudden silence and you could hear Zido snore REALLY loudly next to me. My little buddy was dead asleep. In the middle of an 80s rock concert. Yeah...I'm thinking he was okay.

   Okay, I think that's a long enough post, but I know I'm probably missing some details! Above all else, I am so incredibly impressed and thankful for the training that Zido had to prepare him for situations such as Vegas. I keep saying he handles things like a champ, but he really does. The best part was that Zido (as you'll see in the photos) had a blast while we were there.

   Next time on Zee and Me: "Downward Dog: Yoga with Zido"

Zido gearing up for some hard-core gambling

Another day touring with my boy and his booties

First day in Vegas with my brother and sister

Celebrating Father's Day in Vegas with my dad

Love and blessings,
Zee and Me

Zee and Me...1 Year Later

   I know. I'm a horrible person. I haven't written anything for this blog in almost a year. However, with the new year comes new goals. Now, I've never really been one to set "resolutions" or goals for the new year (simply because I know I probably won't stick with it past February 2) but this year, I'm doing it.

The first two goals I've set for 2016 were:
      1. Get healthy. Feel healthy. Stay healthy.
      2. Read and interact with the bible every day.

   So far, I've actually been doing really well with both of these. I've changed my diet tremendously which has allowed me to lose some of the extra weight and feel healthier than I've felt in years. I've also taken up yoga which has been amazing for stress and strength. I'll get more into my experience with Zido and yoga in a future post, but SPOILER ALERT: he loves it too.

   As for reading the bible, I've been able to read every morning before work or school with "The Daily Bible" (find it on Amazon. It's amazing.) and I've used the SOAP method of study to interact with the Word and apply it to my life (Scripture, Observation, Application, Prayer).

   Now, however, I'm setting a new goal for 2016: get back to blogging. Not only does this help my writing skills (as a communication major, writing is kind of a big deal) but I truly feel like my experience with Zido is something to be shared, because let me tell you, it's nothing like I thought it would be.

I'm going to start this post with the best news of all: 

it has been 488 days since I last lost consciousness!

 

   I can't believe it. Seriously. The fact that I can now walk around and it never crosses my mind what I would need to do if I went unconscious is a testament to the change Zido has made in my life. My mom even says that for the first time ever, when I'm not with her and the phone rings, she never thinks "Courtney's in trouble" anymore. If that, alone, was what Zido had to offer me, then this partnership would be a complete success. It's only a bonus that he's grown to be my best friend who I never get tired of looking at (I mean...have you seen those brown eyes?)

   This year has also been a huge year of growth for me. Last summer, I was a graphic design intern for Hitchcock Creative. My boss and I worked with the Office of VSA and Accessibility at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts where we made different kinds of materials for some events and conferences the office and the Center were putting on. My super proud moment was going to the 4th of July event at the Kennedy Center and seeing the HUGE banners I helped with hanging from the ceiling:

4th of July event at the Kennedy Center

My mom, Zido, and I also had some fun at the event's photo booth.

   When that internship was done, I applied and was accepted for an internship at the same office in the Kennedy Center that we were working with all summer. The Office of VSA and Accessibility is the office that helps patrons with disabilities enjoy the shows, as well as helps the artists with disabilities while they perform. The office also provides educational tools for K-12 educators to learn how to teach people with disabilities. During my time, I was the communication and marketing intern, and when THAT internship ended, I was hired as a contractor for the office. It's been really cool to see how Zido acclimates to anything this city-girl throws at him. I mean, we had to ride on the metro when the pope came to town. Long story short, not fun. But Zido handled it like a champ.

   We are currently in our LAST SEMESTER OF COLLEGE.....AHHHHHHHHH! Sorry, that deserves a mild-panic attack. Not that anyone is counting, but as of this post, we are 78 days away from walking the stage (yes...Zido will have a cap and gown.) What's my answer to the question that sends every college graduate into having an aneurysm? "I have no clue what I'll be doing after I graduate." I'm applying to a few places and praying like crazy that God will provide, but after that...I got nuttin.

   I don't want to say everything that this year has held, but trust me, more posts will be coming. What's coming up next on Zee and Me? "Las Vegas...Service Dog Style"

   I'm so excited to be back and would love to hear your thoughts or any questions you want me to answer!

Love and blessings,
Zee and Me