Why did Tella’s trainers try to distract her?

Helper dogs like Tella have to be under control at all times when they are working—if a service dog were to suddenly chase a bouncing ball (or squirrel!) down the street while someone with a disability was holding its leash, he/she could get injured. This kind of self control is difficult for the pups, so to practice, Tella’s trainers would walk by her with noisy toys, bouncing balls, and stuffed animals tempting the dogs to get up and play.

The volunteer trainers like me would be off to the side encouraging our pups-in-training to remain laying down and in control. This was all done in a closed room so if the dogs were to get up and scurry away, they would be safe. The same concept applies to setting food in front of the dogs and not allowing them to eat until commanded to do so. This may seem like an unkind thing to do to the pups! But imagine if a service dog was sitting in a restaurant and a yummy bagel with cream cheese dropped onto the floor. Most dogs would lurch to gobble it up! A service dog can’t do that; again, they could pull their handler or person with a disability out of his/her chair and possibly injure them.

This took a great deal of practice and would be part of a combination of skills developed over time with the dog—like first teaching them to lay down and stay even when their leash is dropped and their handler has walked away!