April 3, 2025 • 29 mins
On this episode of the Seeing Eye Dogs Show I'm joined by two guests.
First, Vision Australia's National Access Technology Manager and Seeing Eye Dogs handler Damo McMorrow joins us to talk about Access Technology options that can help handlers working with dog guides and to chat about his partnership with Jenna. This is part 2 of this interview, part 1 is here: https://omny.fm/shows/seeing-eye-dogs-show/damo-jenna-access-technology-part-1
If you’d like to speak to our Access Technology specialists you can email ATC.help@visionaustralia.org or ring the AT helpdesk 1300 84 74 66.
Then, Dr Ashe Mooney from Seeing Eye Dogs Vet Team joins us to talk about arthritis in dogs. Please chat to your trusted veterinarian for any advice specific to your dog.
If you’d like to learn about Seeing Eye Dogs, the work we do, becoming a handler, or supporting us head to our website at sed.visionaustralia.org.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
S1 (00:10):
On Vision Australia Radio. You're listening to the Seeing Eye
dog show. With me, your host, Harriet Moffatt. Today I'm
going to be joined by two guests. The first is
Damien McMorrow, Vision Australia's national access technology manager. He is
also a seeing eye dog handler. He's going to be
talking to us about access technology, to be used with
your dog guide, and how he uses access technology to
(00:34):
work with his own seeing eye dog, Jenna, to help
him navigate, orient and find, you know, different even things
like a store within a shopping complex. So lots of
really interesting tips on how you as a dog guide
team can work as well with that technology to really
enhance your experience. Then I'm going to be joined by
(00:56):
seeing eye Dogs vet doctor Ash Mooney to talk about arthritis.
We're going to be talking about what it is, how
to spot it, and how to work with your vet
to kind of treat or help manage the symptoms of arthritis.
So lots of interesting tips for you to use. I
hope you enjoy this episode and thank you for listening.
S2 (01:22):
Talk to us a little bit about some of the.
S1 (01:24):
Things that you.
S2 (01:25):
Use.
S3 (01:25):
Sure, definitely. So probably one of the other game changers
in the last sort of 12 months or so have
been the Ray-Ban meta smart glasses. So these are they look,
for all intents and purposes, like a regular pair of sunnies,
you know, with, um, they're a Ray-Ban. So they're, um,
(01:46):
come in a few different styles and colors and all
of those sorts of things, but they have a tiny
little camera just above the left eye. So the top
sort of left hand corner of the frame. And they're
also equipped with built in AI. So there's little speakers
in the arms of the glasses that when you. So
when you're wearing them, those speakers are very close to
(02:07):
your ears. And you can then use that. Use the
built in AI to ask questions so I can say
things like, uh, you know, common one that I'll do is, hey, meta,
look and tell me what you see. And if I'm, um,
you know, then if I'm looking for a particular shop,
I might say, look and tell me if there's any
signage or look and read me any text if I've
got a menu. Um, so a good example of that. Um,
(02:31):
we were, we had a weekend away in Melbourne at
the end of last year, and, um, we wanted to
do a little bit of shopping. And those listeners from
Melbourne might know the Block Arcade in Collins Street and, uh,
so I, we went into the The Block arcade and
we were looking for a couple of things. We were
looking for Haig's chocolates, and we were looking for the
Charles Dickens Tavern to go and have some lunch. And
(02:54):
then we were also looking for a, um, a Birkenstocks, um, shop.
And so what I did was I would sort of
come up to a shop window or a door And
I would say, look and tell me what you see.
And it would tell me that glasses would tell me
what you know, what was on display, perhaps, or, um,
you know, so or it might say, I see, uh,
(03:16):
what looks like a cafe with lots of tables and chairs.
And you think, okay, well, that could be the tavern.
So then I would say, look and tell me if
there's any signage. And it might say, oh, you know,
I see a sign that says. And it may or
may not be the business that I'm looking for. So
that sort of stuff is really helpful. Um, because it
means that, um, I can sometimes give Jenna more meaningful
(03:38):
directions if I can tap into some of the visual cues, um,
that might be there, you know, and I can know. Okay.
Do we want to go into this shop or is
it not the one that I want? So, for example,
when I was looking for the Birkinstocks shop, I stood
in front of the shop window and I said, look
and tell me what you see. And it said, I see, um,
a shop window with with shoes and boots on display.
(03:59):
And I said, um, look and tell me if there's
any signage. And there was, but it wasn't the shop
that I wanted. So it meant I didn't have to
go into that one. I thought, okay, I've had a
look on my GPS and I'll talk about that in
a second. Um, I know it's in this block somewhere,
so we'll just go a couple of shops further down
and repeat the process. And then I found it said,
you know, I see a shop with, um, leather sandals
(04:20):
in the window. And I said, you look and see
if there's any signage. And it said, I see a
sign that says Birkenstock. So I was able to to
find the shop that I wanted. So that one's definitely, um,
a bit of a game changer, I think. Um, and
just sometimes being able to, um, get descriptions of things,
you know, looking at if you're standing at a table,
(04:41):
you're not sure if it's occupied or not, you know,
look and tell me if there are any people at
this table, that kind of thing. Um, and you can
also use it in conjunction with services like Be My
Eyes or IRA to get hands free assistance. So you
can be put through to if it's be my eyes,
a volunteer or if it's IRA, one of their agents.
And you can make a video call through the glasses
(05:03):
and they can essentially see what you're looking at and
give you directions that way. So that's pretty handy as
well because it's hands free. Um, probably the other thing
that I use a lot with Jenna is my stellar
Trek GPS. Um, there are a couple of things, even
on familiar routes. Um, I used it a bit with
with in training just so that I could start to
(05:24):
cue Jenna, you know, to find a crossing or those
kinds of things. It just gave me a little bit
more information about what was around. Uh, so I found
that that actually worked really well. Um, and also things
that were maybe a little bit difficult to find initially. Um,
you know, I put marked it, put a few more
landmarks in the device so that I could, um, uh,
(05:45):
find them easily and give her the, the reassurance and
the confidence to sort of find it first time. So
I found that.
S2 (05:50):
Type of.
S1 (05:51):
Um, landmarks out of.
S2 (05:52):
Curiosity.
S3 (05:52):
Ah. So things sometimes an entrance to a business that
was maybe a little bit hard to identify. Um, you know,
a particular crossing where you, you know, it's maybe halfway
down a street. So, uh, crossing the road in front
of my house, there's not really any landmarks, you know. Um,
so I marked that so that when I came up
(06:12):
to it, I would hear an alert on the GPS,
and I could start to tell Jenna to to find.
Right and find the crossing sort of thing. Um, so
things like that where you might be crossing a road
and not at a corner. So it's not, you know,
it's not obvious. Um, those those kinds of things. Um,
I found really helpful. But also with that, it means
that I can, um, use things like the map browsing mode,
(06:36):
and I can, um, have a look at a map,
and I can, I can have a look at. Okay.
So to get from here to here, I'm going to
need to cross three roads. And then at the third
one I'm going to need to turn left on the
up curve and that kind of thing. So having being
able to look at that ahead of time again, it
means that I can be more confident in the directions
that I'm giving Jenna. And so that makes her job easier.
(06:58):
And also, um, you know, it means that she doesn't
lose confidence. Uh, so I can be a little bit
more sure about where we're going and what we're doing. Um.
And you normally. Then you've got a better chance of
getting it right the first or second time. So, um,
you know, and I think particularly with a new dog,
that's actually really important. Um, so using some of those
tools in conjunction with, um, with my dog just makes
(07:21):
a difference to how smoothly you travel. Uh, it makes
a difference for me in terms of how willing I
am to wander around somewhere unfamiliar. You know, I'm from
Brisbane and I'm wandering around the centre of Melbourne, for example. Um,
and therefore, you know, it means that Marion and I
can go off exploring new places, have a weekend away
in Melbourne and actually enjoy, you know, zipping around and
shopping and, you know, seeing the various sights and trying
(07:43):
the various restaurants and things.
S1 (07:46):
I mean, it's amazing, especially like it makes me think of, um,
you know, a spy film or like a spy TV
series from the 90s where everyone's got, you know, it's
like your phone, your shoe was in your phone and you're,
you've got these high tech glasses. It's quite cool, isn't it?
And quite. I think the thing that is, I don't know,
I think is quite cool about it is it. It's
like it's quite discreet and easy. It doesn't. Sounds to
(08:08):
me like something that, um, you know, you can really
use with kind of total confidence. It's not like some,
you know, massive, bulky, you know, you don't have to
bring out a melees and, you know.
S3 (08:18):
Try.
S1 (08:19):
To, um, you know.
S3 (08:21):
And that's the thing, you know, some of the, the, um,
those types of devices that have gone before kind of
make you look like an alien with a, with a,
a camera sticking out the side of your head. Um,
the other thing about those glasses, too, is that they
are a consumer, a consumer item. They're an everyday piece
of tech, you know, that that, um, works for someone
(08:43):
with a vision impairment. You know, they that wasn't what
they were designed for. They were designed for people to
post to their Instagram or their Facebook feed and things
like that. But it just sort of happens that they're
actually something that we can use. But the nice thing
is that you can get them at any sort of
standard sunglass or eyewear type store, um, you know, and,
(09:03):
and that they'll, they'll work quite well out of the box,
whether your iPhone or your your Android phone. So it's
nice to have a sort of a mainstream, off the
shelf piece of tech that actually works and is a
real enabler for us in terms of navigating the environment.
S1 (09:19):
And can you claim that on NDIS as well?
S3 (09:22):
Not really. Um, well, okay. I would say you could,
but you would do so at your own risk because
they are an everyday item in the same way that
a phone is an everyday item or that type of thing.
And so it's one of those things you could try
and you might get away with it, but you might
not because it technically doesn't meet the guidelines. Um, so
(09:46):
my my advice to people is don't I didn't. Um,
but you know, I can I know there'll be people
who'll who'll jump on me and say, oh, but I did,
and I, you know. So look, if you want to
risk it by all means. But the reading, the Ndia guidelines,
my advice would be that they don't meet the guidelines
and that I would generally not recommend that you try.
(10:09):
And if you do, you do so at your own risk.
S1 (10:11):
Out of curiosity, do you have a ballpark of how
much those would cost?
S3 (10:15):
There are about $450.
S1 (10:18):
That's not too bad for something that can enable so much.
S3 (10:21):
Absolutely. When you think that most of the other blindness
specific wearables come in at 4 or $5000.
S1 (10:27):
Yeah, that's what I was wondering if it would be.
S3 (10:30):
Yeah. No. Um, and that's and that's the thing, you know,
that that's the the advantage of it being mainstream tech
is that the price comes down because obviously they can
sell them by the million rather than by the thousand. Um,
but the disadvantage is that the you know, they though
a lot of those things are regarded by the agency
as a non-disability specific item or an everyday item, and
(10:53):
therefore they're not covered, but the fact that they are
of a much more reasonable price tag means that, you know,
most people could probably save up and, and still, you know,
get themselves one.
S1 (11:05):
I think your point about it being an aid for
Jenner as well to make as it will. As an
aid for you. But, you know, in terms of making
her work easier, I think it's really interesting because, you know,
I'm sure, you know, we've had that there's been that
long lasting kind of debate about will AI or will
robots replace dog guides. And then you get on the
flip side of, you know, um, oh, the dog is
(11:26):
just guiding you around and you don't do any navigation.
It's kind of amazing to highlight how these two things and,
and you kind of all navigate together with your different responsibilities,
like your use of the technology.
S3 (11:39):
That's right. Yeah. I mean, you still you still have
to operate as a team. You still have to have
good O&M skills. You still have to be listening to
the traffic around you and all of those things. I mean,
that's why we call them a seeing eye dog team,
because you you can't rely solely on the the dog,
and you can't sort of be overriding the, the dog
either to get the best result. You're using your own skills,
(12:00):
whatever technology is available and the skills that the dog
has to give you the best outcome. And you know,
even though I'm a tech guy, I sincerely hope that
we never get to the point of our dogs being
replaced by robots because you, you cannot, um, go past
the emotional bond that you form with another living being,
(12:21):
you know, and, um, and I, I mean, there are
there are devices like the glide coming out, which is
sort of essentially a guide robot. Um, but I think
that that does not interest me at all. Um, I'm
happy to use technology in conjunction with my dog, but
I would never want to, um, substitute my dog for
any kind of, um, piece of AI.
S1 (12:44):
Yeah, it is fascinating. And there's really there's no point when,
you know, um, robots will really have that. I mean,
have any of it, you know, they're just. It's just
not the same.
S3 (12:55):
No, I did see, uh, the other day, um, that
in the States, someone has brought out a robot dog
that doubles as a flamethrower. Now, that's something you know,
I wouldn't mind having, but.
S1 (13:07):
I.
S3 (13:08):
Can control it from your phone. What?
S1 (13:10):
For what purpose? I have to know.
S3 (13:12):
Um. I think they use them for, um, things like
fire suppression, you know, so going in and setting fire
to undergrowth that might otherwise cause a bushfire, for example. Okay.
S1 (13:24):
Um, interesting.
S3 (13:25):
You know, things like that. So the, the, the application
is more industrial than, than anything else, but, uh, you know,
sometimes when you run across someone annoying, you think, oh, yeah,
I wish I had one of those flamethrower dogs, you know? But, uh,
you know, that's a different story, but I don't think
I would ever want a robot, uh, seeing eye dog.
S1 (13:44):
Yeah, no. Well, I yeah, I think it sounds more
and more like some of the technology that's coming out is,
you know, it's it's just a game changer in some ways.
S3 (13:53):
Um, it absolutely is. You know, all of this AI tech,
you know, is, is incredible really in terms of things
like just image descriptions, even, you know, being able to
take a photo and then ask the AI what's in
the photo? Is the photo straight up? Marrying my wife
had some usable vision until her mid 20s and used
(14:14):
to like to take photos. And she has, because of
the AI, been able to get back into that using
apps like Be My, Be My Eyes and so she
can take a photo and she can say, you know,
ask it is the dog looking at the camera? Is
the photo straight? Uh, is the photo well lit? You know,
so she can ask all of those questions and be
pretty confident about the photo that she's going to send
(14:35):
to her family, or post to Facebook or whatever it
might be. So, you know, there's all of those sort
of side benefits for us as well. And things like
reading menus to be able to, um, you know, photograph
a menu with your glasses or your, um, an app
on your phone and say, uh, tell me the vegetarian options,
you know, rather than having to listen to it from
(14:56):
top to bottom and hear all of the things you
don't want. Um, I, you know, I'm, I'm a bit
of a car nut as well. And so sometimes I'll
hear something go past with a nice throaty V8 rumble.
And I'll say to the classes, hey, meta, look and
tell me what kind of car that is, and it'll say, oh,
it's a 1969 Mustang or something. So you know that
just having that kind of incidental information about your environment,
(15:18):
I think, can be quite enriching and just just cool, really,
at the end of the day, I.
S1 (15:22):
Mean, that type of thing is, is like because it
goes beyond a lot of human intelligence, because if, you know,
if you asked, you know, for example, if you were
with someone sighted, if if we were walking together and
that car went past and he said, what is that?
Our car would be my answer. Maybe a blue car.
You know, it's it's kind of it's an incredible bank
(15:43):
of knowledge that these things have access to that. Um, yeah.
Not everyone does.
S3 (15:48):
That's right. Yeah, that's absolutely right. Um, you know, and
as I said, even even in the car, you know,
something will pull up next to you at the lights
and you go, oh, that sounds cool. What is that thing?
So you look out the window and say, look and
tell me what sort of car that is. Um, you know,
so just having that, you know, because if I could
see and I was a car nut, I would be
looking out the window. Oh, look at that Mustang, you know. Yeah. Um, my, my,
(16:10):
one of my cab driver mates does that all the time.
He'll go, oh, that's a 68, you know, fastback or whatever.
And so it's nice to kind of be able to
do the same thing.
S1 (16:19):
Yeah.
S3 (16:20):
Using using this tech that isn't obtrusive and that you
just have, you know, you just where.
S1 (16:28):
I'm just to finish off. Do you have, I guess,
any um, I was going to say just to finish
it off, do you have any advice for anyone who's
looking for, I guess, a help with the access technology or,
you know, how might they get in touch with Vision
Australia's team to help?
S3 (16:44):
Sure. Well, they can certainly call the the Vision Australia
at help desk. Um, and um, all of the, um,
people who, who were on the help desk are themselves
blind or low vision. So they bring lived experience as
well as, um, a fairly broad range of technical knowledge. So, um,
you can access that by calling the one 308 4746
(17:08):
and one 300 vision phone number and asking for the
At help desk. Uh, you can also email them at
help at Vision Australia. Org or you can obviously contact
your regional office if you want to meet with one
of our access Technology specialists face to face. And we
can certainly step through the options with you. We've got
a all of our specialists have a good understanding of
(17:30):
what's funded or fundable. Um, and, you know, can can
step through the different options with you, the pros and
cons of each, all of that type of thing. Because
it is a, a minefield and it's a, it's a
it's ever changing as well. And so sometimes just having
access to that sort of information can be pretty helpful.
S1 (17:48):
When there are so many good options. It's it's nice.
It's nice to have. It can also be quite overwhelming. Absolutely.
It's not like everyone has unlimited funds to buy every
single thing and check which one's best.
S3 (17:59):
That's right. Absolutely. And so that's part of what we
offer as well, is the ability to try some of
these things out and test them and see what you
think is going to work for you.
S1 (18:08):
Some it's it's a very it's a very cool thing
to be able to have. Um yeah. As well people
with lived experience really, um, help you work out what
works has worked for them as well.
S3 (18:18):
That's right. And they can share that information with you
and say, well, I use it in this way. I
don't find it good for this particular thing. And they're
not salespeople. They're not there to sell you product. They're
just there to give you the the advice or the help. Yeah.
S1 (18:30):
Amazing. Well, thank you so much for coming on the show, um,
again and talking about you and Jenna and your story and, um,
and about some of the very exciting and kind of
mind blowing at.
S3 (18:41):
Yeah. No, thank you for having me. It's always, always
fun to catch up with you, Harriet. And always, uh,
good to be part of the show.
S1 (18:53):
You've been listening to the Seeing Eye dog show on
Vision Australia Radio. I hope you enjoyed my interview with
Damien McMorrow. Seeing Eye Dogs handler to Jenna and Vision
Australia's National Access Technology manager. If you'd like to find
the other part to our interview where Damo spoke about
his partnership with Jenna, you can head to your preferred
podcast provider or Omnia FM page. If you'd like to
(19:15):
get access technology help or find out about some of
the At solutions that might work for you, you can
head to Vision Australia's website to find information about the
Access Technology Help Desk. Or you can give the At
Help desk a ring at one 384 7466. That number
(19:35):
again is one 384 7466 and ask for the At
help desk. Or you can email at help at Vision Australia.
Our lovely At staff are all blind or have low vision,
so they have lived experience and are a kind of
no obligation form of assistance so that you can get
(19:55):
the best out of your technology. Then I'm going to
be joined by seeing eye dogs, doctor Ash Mooney from
our vet team, who's going to be talking about arthritis.
Thank you for listening and I hope you enjoy. So
one of the topics that any older dog owner is
probably all too aware of, particularly those of us who
have had labs or golden retrievers, is arthritis. What is
(20:17):
arthritis in dogs?
S4 (20:19):
Yeah. So, um, arthritis generally refers to osteoarthritis, which is
typically associated with aging. Um, it comes when the the
bones start wearing and tearing the cartilage starts degrading between
your bones. And that's the nice padding that keeps them, um,
from rubbing. And then over time, the changes to the
actual bone structure result in pain, inflammation, reduced mobility.
S1 (20:44):
And what are the, I guess, what are the symptoms
that you might see in your own dog to show
that that's what's going on in the body.
S4 (20:52):
Sometimes it can be something as subtle as taking a
bit longer to get up first thing in the morning. Um,
or perhaps being a bit more hesitant, going up and
down stairs or jumping up and down from the couch
or the bed or the car. A little bit more
hesitation from the animal can often indicate some mild discomfort.
In more severe cases, you might see things like limping,
(21:14):
holding a leg up, whimpering and vocalizing, or heavily panting, um,
or even like seeking out different surfaces to what they
used to. Like maybe a dog used to always lay
on like the concrete floor, and now you're seeing them
always seek out a pillow. Um, that might also be
an indication that they're a bit uncomfortable.
S1 (21:34):
And what might what might make arthritis worse? Either kind
of flaring up or, you know, I guess increase the
likelihood of them presenting with arthritis.
S4 (21:45):
Um, so B being overweight is probably the biggest risk factor. Um, oftentimes,
you know, if you are bearing more weight, there's more
pressure on all of those joints. And it increases the
rate of the degradation. The degradation of the joints can
be normal wear and tear to some extent. Pretty much
all aging beings develop arthritis if they get to an
(22:06):
advanced enough age. But being overweight can really kind of
accelerate that aging process in the body. Um, other things
can also be like being extremely, extremely active. Like think
about the kelpie. That just doesn't stop and would run
until its feet were bleeding. Um, you know, those kinds
of animals because they're overdoing it. They're also putting a
(22:27):
bit too much strain on their bodies. Um, there's other
risk factors, like, um, if they've had ligament injuries or
anything like that often, you know, the injured joint will
be the one that develops arthritis first as the animal ages.
S1 (22:43):
As we reach those cooler months, is that also something
that might pop up more or symptoms might become worse
in in the cooler months?
S4 (22:51):
Yeah. So as a vet, I do notice that there's
an increased trend in cooler months. And humans with arthritis
certainly report, um, increased aches and pains when it's colder
and also when there's kind of rapid weather changes, like
when it goes from being 40 degrees, and then suddenly
there's a thunderstorm and the humidity changes, and then it's
20 degrees. Sometimes people will experience pain flares, and certainly
(23:11):
the same can be kind of interpreted about animals. So
a lot of the times I, as a vet, will
prescribe kind of year round arthritis support, which usually involves
something that slows the rate of the, um, arthritis progressing
by increasing the protection in the joint space, and then
also something that's providing pain relief for the existing arthritis.
(23:32):
And sometimes in the winter months, I find that animals
will need maybe an additional or a slightly stronger pain
relief component to what they need during the warmer months
of the year.
S1 (23:42):
And so if you are concerned, or if an owner
is concerned that their dog might be experiencing, um, symptoms,
symptoms of arthritis, um, how do you, you know, how
do you, as a vet, work with them and diagnose that?
S4 (23:57):
Um, usually a physical exam can tell us a lot
about whether or not an animal is arthritic. But then
the the next step would be x rays, or if
it's a quite complicated area or there's a lot of
injury and other things going on, um, something like a
CT scan or more advanced imaging can tell you a lot. Um,
but a lot of the times, you know, just with
aging patients, it can be as simple as having a
(24:18):
physical exam with your vet and having a chat about things.
S1 (24:22):
And so you did kind of mention, um, some of
the treatment options. So in terms of that medication, is
there anything else that you'd like to share about, you know,
kind of how you might work with an owner to
treat um, either. Well, the symptoms I guess.
S4 (24:35):
Yeah. So, um, certainly medication and supplements are one component.
If you have an aging animal, it always helps to
get them on to the supplements that help reduce the
wear and tear. Um, or even if you have a
very high performance, um, like, athletic dog, you know, something
that's doing agility or, you know, you're a quite active person.
You're going on long walks, hikes, whatever with your animal. Um,
(24:57):
maybe investing in a little bit of a protective, um,
supplement might be worth your while. Um, Um, the medications
for when they are arthritic can be quite specifically tailored
to the individual animal and to your lifestyle, and how
easy it is for you to access veterinary care on
a regular basis. And then the other aspect is environmental change. So, um,
(25:17):
you know, if you're having an animal that has difficulty
with stairs, maybe looking into getting a ramp, um, or
getting a certain harness if you have a quite large
dog that needs arthritis support, but it's hurting your back
to help aid them to lift them up, you can
get different styles of harnesses to help you make it
more ergonomic for yourself as well. Um, or even sometimes
having like slippery floorboards in the house make it really
(25:39):
difficult for an arthritic animal to get around because they
have to use more muscle to stay upright. Um, so
looking into rugs or non-slip yoga mats or something like
that can can make a lot of difference.
S1 (25:51):
And I'm guessing as, as you said before, kind of
one of the bigger factors is that weight. Um, you know,
excess weight is keeping a good body condition score. One
of the ways that you can, I guess, reduce the
risk of problematic arthritis symptoms.
S4 (26:07):
Yeah, certainly maintaining a good body condition score is always helpful.
And if your animal is overweight, um, looking to get
them down to an appropriate body condition score, um, which
you can get help from your vet. There are certainly
medical conditions that can prevent animals from being able to
lose weight on their own. Um, once an animal is
starting to get arthritic, I suppose the other thing to
(26:27):
keep aware of is that increasing exercise may actually just
exacerbate the problem. Like, you know, you think that, oh,
I want my animal to lose weight. Let's walk a
little bit more. But if they're already suffering from arthritis pain,
that might actually be doing them more harm. And you
may need to do more of a dietary change in
order to get that weight loss, to help provide them
that support.
S1 (26:47):
And I guess even is the type of exercise going
to have a bearing on how problematic that might be?
S4 (26:54):
Yeah. So typically, um, you know, things that require a
lot of jumping, a lot of excess force, um, will
will be worse for the joints. But things like, um,
you know, walking or low impact walking, like a hydrotherapy
situation where they have the buoyancy of the water, um,
to assist them, even if, like going to the beach
and maybe walking your dog just through the part of
(27:15):
the water where it's kind of reaching their chest so
that it gives them a bit of support, or even swimming,
things like that. Swimming can be really, really good as
long as they're not kind of going mental jumping in
and out of the pool.
S1 (27:26):
Yeah, bouncing through the waves like a dolphin is probably
not what you need. You've been listening to the Seeing
Eye dog show on Vision Australia Radio. I hope you
enjoyed my interviews with Jamie McMurray, Seeing Eye Dogs handler
and a national Access technology manager at Vision Australia. And
(27:49):
with Doctor Ash Mooney from our Seeing Eye Dogs vet team.
If you'd like to find out more about seeing Eye Dogs,
the work we do, or how you can help, head
to our website at australia.com. If you'd like to get
assistance with your access technology or at. You can reach
out to Vision Australia's Access technology or at helpdesk. You
(28:10):
can call one 384 7466 and ask for the At
help desk. That number again one 384 7466 or email
help at Vision Australia. If you are interested in finding
out about Vision Australia's other services, you can head to
(28:32):
the Vision Australia website at Vision Australia. If you would
like to find out more of this podcast and other
great podcasts, you can head to your preferred podcast provider
or our Omni FM page for more interviews, including my
part one of the interview with demo, where we spoke
about his partnership with Jenna. Thank you for listening to
(28:53):
the Seeing Eye Dog show. Don't forget to tune in.
Same time next week for another episode. Have a lovely week.
On Vision Australia Radio. You're listening to the Seeing Eye
dog show. With me, your host, Harriet Moffatt. Today I'm
going to be joined by two guests. The first is
Damien McMorrow, Vision Australia's national access technology manager. He is
also a seeing eye dog handler. He's going to be
talking to us about access technology, to be used with
your dog guide, and how he uses access technology to
(00:34):
work with his own seeing eye dog, Jenna, to help
him navigate, orient and find, you know, different even things
like a store within a shopping complex. So lots of
really interesting tips on how you as a dog guide
team can work as well with that technology to really
enhance your experience. Then I'm going to be joined by
(00:56):
seeing eye Dogs vet doctor Ash Mooney to talk about arthritis.
We're going to be talking about what it is, how
to spot it, and how to work with your vet
to kind of treat or help manage the symptoms of arthritis.
So lots of interesting tips for you to use. I
hope you enjoy this episode and thank you for listening.
S2 (01:22):
Talk to us a little bit about some of the.
S1 (01:24):
Things that you.
S2 (01:25):
Use.
S3 (01:25):
Sure, definitely. So probably one of the other game changers
in the last sort of 12 months or so have
been the Ray-Ban meta smart glasses. So these are they look,
for all intents and purposes, like a regular pair of sunnies,
you know, with, um, they're a Ray-Ban. So they're, um,
(01:46):
come in a few different styles and colors and all
of those sorts of things, but they have a tiny
little camera just above the left eye. So the top
sort of left hand corner of the frame. And they're
also equipped with built in AI. So there's little speakers
in the arms of the glasses that when you. So
when you're wearing them, those speakers are very close to
(02:07):
your ears. And you can then use that. Use the
built in AI to ask questions so I can say
things like, uh, you know, common one that I'll do is, hey, meta,
look and tell me what you see. And if I'm, um,
you know, then if I'm looking for a particular shop,
I might say, look and tell me if there's any
signage or look and read me any text if I've
got a menu. Um, so a good example of that. Um,
(02:31):
we were, we had a weekend away in Melbourne at
the end of last year, and, um, we wanted to
do a little bit of shopping. And those listeners from
Melbourne might know the Block Arcade in Collins Street and, uh,
so I, we went into the The Block arcade and
we were looking for a couple of things. We were
looking for Haig's chocolates, and we were looking for the
Charles Dickens Tavern to go and have some lunch. And
(02:54):
then we were also looking for a, um, a Birkenstocks, um, shop.
And so what I did was I would sort of
come up to a shop window or a door And
I would say, look and tell me what you see.
And it would tell me that glasses would tell me
what you know, what was on display, perhaps, or, um,
you know, so or it might say, I see, uh,
(03:16):
what looks like a cafe with lots of tables and chairs.
And you think, okay, well, that could be the tavern.
So then I would say, look and tell me if
there's any signage. And it might say, oh, you know,
I see a sign that says. And it may or
may not be the business that I'm looking for. So
that sort of stuff is really helpful. Um, because it
means that, um, I can sometimes give Jenna more meaningful
(03:38):
directions if I can tap into some of the visual cues, um,
that might be there, you know, and I can know. Okay.
Do we want to go into this shop or is
it not the one that I want? So, for example,
when I was looking for the Birkinstocks shop, I stood
in front of the shop window and I said, look
and tell me what you see. And it said, I see, um,
a shop window with with shoes and boots on display.
(03:59):
And I said, um, look and tell me if there's
any signage. And there was, but it wasn't the shop
that I wanted. So it meant I didn't have to
go into that one. I thought, okay, I've had a
look on my GPS and I'll talk about that in
a second. Um, I know it's in this block somewhere,
so we'll just go a couple of shops further down
and repeat the process. And then I found it said,
you know, I see a shop with, um, leather sandals
(04:20):
in the window. And I said, you look and see
if there's any signage. And it said, I see a
sign that says Birkenstock. So I was able to to
find the shop that I wanted. So that one's definitely, um,
a bit of a game changer, I think. Um, and
just sometimes being able to, um, get descriptions of things,
you know, looking at if you're standing at a table,
(04:41):
you're not sure if it's occupied or not, you know,
look and tell me if there are any people at
this table, that kind of thing. Um, and you can
also use it in conjunction with services like Be My
Eyes or IRA to get hands free assistance. So you
can be put through to if it's be my eyes,
a volunteer or if it's IRA, one of their agents.
And you can make a video call through the glasses
(05:03):
and they can essentially see what you're looking at and
give you directions that way. So that's pretty handy as
well because it's hands free. Um, probably the other thing
that I use a lot with Jenna is my stellar
Trek GPS. Um, there are a couple of things, even
on familiar routes. Um, I used it a bit with
with in training just so that I could start to
(05:24):
cue Jenna, you know, to find a crossing or those
kinds of things. It just gave me a little bit
more information about what was around. Uh, so I found
that that actually worked really well. Um, and also things
that were maybe a little bit difficult to find initially. Um,
you know, I put marked it, put a few more
landmarks in the device so that I could, um, uh,
(05:45):
find them easily and give her the, the reassurance and
the confidence to sort of find it first time. So
I found that.
S2 (05:50):
Type of.
S1 (05:51):
Um, landmarks out of.
S2 (05:52):
Curiosity.
S3 (05:52):
Ah. So things sometimes an entrance to a business that
was maybe a little bit hard to identify. Um, you know,
a particular crossing where you, you know, it's maybe halfway
down a street. So, uh, crossing the road in front
of my house, there's not really any landmarks, you know. Um,
so I marked that so that when I came up
(06:12):
to it, I would hear an alert on the GPS,
and I could start to tell Jenna to to find.
Right and find the crossing sort of thing. Um, so
things like that where you might be crossing a road
and not at a corner. So it's not, you know,
it's not obvious. Um, those those kinds of things. Um,
I found really helpful. But also with that, it means
that I can, um, use things like the map browsing mode,
(06:36):
and I can, um, have a look at a map,
and I can, I can have a look at. Okay.
So to get from here to here, I'm going to
need to cross three roads. And then at the third
one I'm going to need to turn left on the
up curve and that kind of thing. So having being
able to look at that ahead of time again, it
means that I can be more confident in the directions
that I'm giving Jenna. And so that makes her job easier.
(06:58):
And also, um, you know, it means that she doesn't
lose confidence. Uh, so I can be a little bit
more sure about where we're going and what we're doing. Um.
And you normally. Then you've got a better chance of
getting it right the first or second time. So, um,
you know, and I think particularly with a new dog,
that's actually really important. Um, so using some of those
tools in conjunction with, um, with my dog just makes
(07:21):
a difference to how smoothly you travel. Uh, it makes
a difference for me in terms of how willing I
am to wander around somewhere unfamiliar. You know, I'm from
Brisbane and I'm wandering around the centre of Melbourne, for example. Um,
and therefore, you know, it means that Marion and I
can go off exploring new places, have a weekend away
in Melbourne and actually enjoy, you know, zipping around and
shopping and, you know, seeing the various sights and trying
(07:43):
the various restaurants and things.
S1 (07:46):
I mean, it's amazing, especially like it makes me think of, um,
you know, a spy film or like a spy TV
series from the 90s where everyone's got, you know, it's
like your phone, your shoe was in your phone and you're,
you've got these high tech glasses. It's quite cool, isn't it?
And quite. I think the thing that is, I don't know,
I think is quite cool about it is it. It's
like it's quite discreet and easy. It doesn't. Sounds to
(08:08):
me like something that, um, you know, you can really
use with kind of total confidence. It's not like some,
you know, massive, bulky, you know, you don't have to
bring out a melees and, you know.
S3 (08:18):
Try.
S1 (08:19):
To, um, you know.
S3 (08:21):
And that's the thing, you know, some of the, the, um,
those types of devices that have gone before kind of
make you look like an alien with a, with a,
a camera sticking out the side of your head. Um,
the other thing about those glasses, too, is that they
are a consumer, a consumer item. They're an everyday piece
of tech, you know, that that, um, works for someone
(08:43):
with a vision impairment. You know, they that wasn't what
they were designed for. They were designed for people to
post to their Instagram or their Facebook feed and things
like that. But it just sort of happens that they're
actually something that we can use. But the nice thing
is that you can get them at any sort of
standard sunglass or eyewear type store, um, you know, and,
(09:03):
and that they'll, they'll work quite well out of the box,
whether your iPhone or your your Android phone. So it's
nice to have a sort of a mainstream, off the
shelf piece of tech that actually works and is a
real enabler for us in terms of navigating the environment.
S1 (09:19):
And can you claim that on NDIS as well?
S3 (09:22):
Not really. Um, well, okay. I would say you could,
but you would do so at your own risk because
they are an everyday item in the same way that
a phone is an everyday item or that type of thing.
And so it's one of those things you could try
and you might get away with it, but you might
not because it technically doesn't meet the guidelines. Um, so
(09:46):
my my advice to people is don't I didn't. Um,
but you know, I can I know there'll be people
who'll who'll jump on me and say, oh, but I did,
and I, you know. So look, if you want to
risk it by all means. But the reading, the Ndia guidelines,
my advice would be that they don't meet the guidelines
and that I would generally not recommend that you try.
(10:09):
And if you do, you do so at your own risk.
S1 (10:11):
Out of curiosity, do you have a ballpark of how
much those would cost?
S3 (10:15):
There are about $450.
S1 (10:18):
That's not too bad for something that can enable so much.
S3 (10:21):
Absolutely. When you think that most of the other blindness
specific wearables come in at 4 or $5000.
S1 (10:27):
Yeah, that's what I was wondering if it would be.
S3 (10:30):
Yeah. No. Um, and that's and that's the thing, you know,
that that's the the advantage of it being mainstream tech
is that the price comes down because obviously they can
sell them by the million rather than by the thousand. Um,
but the disadvantage is that the you know, they though
a lot of those things are regarded by the agency
as a non-disability specific item or an everyday item, and
(10:53):
therefore they're not covered, but the fact that they are
of a much more reasonable price tag means that, you know,
most people could probably save up and, and still, you know,
get themselves one.
S1 (11:05):
I think your point about it being an aid for
Jenner as well to make as it will. As an
aid for you. But, you know, in terms of making
her work easier, I think it's really interesting because, you know,
I'm sure, you know, we've had that there's been that
long lasting kind of debate about will AI or will
robots replace dog guides. And then you get on the
flip side of, you know, um, oh, the dog is
(11:26):
just guiding you around and you don't do any navigation.
It's kind of amazing to highlight how these two things and,
and you kind of all navigate together with your different responsibilities,
like your use of the technology.
S3 (11:39):
That's right. Yeah. I mean, you still you still have
to operate as a team. You still have to have
good O&M skills. You still have to be listening to
the traffic around you and all of those things. I mean,
that's why we call them a seeing eye dog team,
because you you can't rely solely on the the dog,
and you can't sort of be overriding the, the dog
either to get the best result. You're using your own skills,
(12:00):
whatever technology is available and the skills that the dog
has to give you the best outcome. And you know,
even though I'm a tech guy, I sincerely hope that
we never get to the point of our dogs being
replaced by robots because you, you cannot, um, go past
the emotional bond that you form with another living being,
(12:21):
you know, and, um, and I, I mean, there are
there are devices like the glide coming out, which is
sort of essentially a guide robot. Um, but I think
that that does not interest me at all. Um, I'm
happy to use technology in conjunction with my dog, but
I would never want to, um, substitute my dog for
any kind of, um, piece of AI.
S1 (12:44):
Yeah, it is fascinating. And there's really there's no point when,
you know, um, robots will really have that. I mean,
have any of it, you know, they're just. It's just
not the same.
S3 (12:55):
No, I did see, uh, the other day, um, that
in the States, someone has brought out a robot dog
that doubles as a flamethrower. Now, that's something you know,
I wouldn't mind having, but.
S1 (13:07):
I.
S3 (13:08):
Can control it from your phone. What?
S1 (13:10):
For what purpose? I have to know.
S3 (13:12):
Um. I think they use them for, um, things like
fire suppression, you know, so going in and setting fire
to undergrowth that might otherwise cause a bushfire, for example. Okay.
S1 (13:24):
Um, interesting.
S3 (13:25):
You know, things like that. So the, the, the application
is more industrial than, than anything else, but, uh, you know,
sometimes when you run across someone annoying, you think, oh, yeah,
I wish I had one of those flamethrower dogs, you know? But, uh,
you know, that's a different story, but I don't think
I would ever want a robot, uh, seeing eye dog.
S1 (13:44):
Yeah, no. Well, I yeah, I think it sounds more
and more like some of the technology that's coming out is,
you know, it's it's just a game changer in some ways.
S3 (13:53):
Um, it absolutely is. You know, all of this AI tech,
you know, is, is incredible really in terms of things
like just image descriptions, even, you know, being able to
take a photo and then ask the AI what's in
the photo? Is the photo straight up? Marrying my wife
had some usable vision until her mid 20s and used
(14:14):
to like to take photos. And she has, because of
the AI, been able to get back into that using
apps like Be My, Be My Eyes and so she
can take a photo and she can say, you know,
ask it is the dog looking at the camera? Is
the photo straight? Uh, is the photo well lit? You know,
so she can ask all of those questions and be
pretty confident about the photo that she's going to send
(14:35):
to her family, or post to Facebook or whatever it
might be. So, you know, there's all of those sort
of side benefits for us as well. And things like
reading menus to be able to, um, you know, photograph
a menu with your glasses or your, um, an app
on your phone and say, uh, tell me the vegetarian options,
you know, rather than having to listen to it from
(14:56):
top to bottom and hear all of the things you
don't want. Um, I, you know, I'm, I'm a bit
of a car nut as well. And so sometimes I'll
hear something go past with a nice throaty V8 rumble.
And I'll say to the classes, hey, meta, look and
tell me what kind of car that is, and it'll say, oh,
it's a 1969 Mustang or something. So you know that
just having that kind of incidental information about your environment,
(15:18):
I think, can be quite enriching and just just cool, really,
at the end of the day, I.
S1 (15:22):
Mean, that type of thing is, is like because it
goes beyond a lot of human intelligence, because if, you know,
if you asked, you know, for example, if you were
with someone sighted, if if we were walking together and
that car went past and he said, what is that?
Our car would be my answer. Maybe a blue car.
You know, it's it's kind of it's an incredible bank
(15:43):
of knowledge that these things have access to that. Um, yeah.
Not everyone does.
S3 (15:48):
That's right. Yeah, that's absolutely right. Um, you know, and
as I said, even even in the car, you know,
something will pull up next to you at the lights
and you go, oh, that sounds cool. What is that thing?
So you look out the window and say, look and
tell me what sort of car that is. Um, you know,
so just having that, you know, because if I could
see and I was a car nut, I would be
looking out the window. Oh, look at that Mustang, you know. Yeah. Um, my, my,
(16:10):
one of my cab driver mates does that all the time.
He'll go, oh, that's a 68, you know, fastback or whatever.
And so it's nice to kind of be able to
do the same thing.
S1 (16:19):
Yeah.
S3 (16:20):
Using using this tech that isn't obtrusive and that you
just have, you know, you just where.
S1 (16:28):
I'm just to finish off. Do you have, I guess,
any um, I was going to say just to finish
it off, do you have any advice for anyone who's
looking for, I guess, a help with the access technology or,
you know, how might they get in touch with Vision
Australia's team to help?
S3 (16:44):
Sure. Well, they can certainly call the the Vision Australia
at help desk. Um, and um, all of the, um,
people who, who were on the help desk are themselves
blind or low vision. So they bring lived experience as
well as, um, a fairly broad range of technical knowledge. So, um,
you can access that by calling the one 308 4746
(17:08):
and one 300 vision phone number and asking for the
At help desk. Uh, you can also email them at
help at Vision Australia. Org or you can obviously contact
your regional office if you want to meet with one
of our access Technology specialists face to face. And we
can certainly step through the options with you. We've got
a all of our specialists have a good understanding of
(17:30):
what's funded or fundable. Um, and, you know, can can
step through the different options with you, the pros and
cons of each, all of that type of thing. Because
it is a, a minefield and it's a, it's a
it's ever changing as well. And so sometimes just having
access to that sort of information can be pretty helpful.
S1 (17:48):
When there are so many good options. It's it's nice.
It's nice to have. It can also be quite overwhelming. Absolutely.
It's not like everyone has unlimited funds to buy every
single thing and check which one's best.
S3 (17:59):
That's right. Absolutely. And so that's part of what we
offer as well, is the ability to try some of
these things out and test them and see what you
think is going to work for you.
S1 (18:08):
Some it's it's a very it's a very cool thing
to be able to have. Um yeah. As well people
with lived experience really, um, help you work out what
works has worked for them as well.
S3 (18:18):
That's right. And they can share that information with you
and say, well, I use it in this way. I
don't find it good for this particular thing. And they're
not salespeople. They're not there to sell you product. They're
just there to give you the the advice or the help. Yeah.
S1 (18:30):
Amazing. Well, thank you so much for coming on the show, um,
again and talking about you and Jenna and your story and, um,
and about some of the very exciting and kind of
mind blowing at.
S3 (18:41):
Yeah. No, thank you for having me. It's always, always
fun to catch up with you, Harriet. And always, uh,
good to be part of the show.
S1 (18:53):
You've been listening to the Seeing Eye dog show on
Vision Australia Radio. I hope you enjoyed my interview with
Damien McMorrow. Seeing Eye Dogs handler to Jenna and Vision
Australia's National Access Technology manager. If you'd like to find
the other part to our interview where Damo spoke about
his partnership with Jenna, you can head to your preferred
podcast provider or Omnia FM page. If you'd like to
(19:15):
get access technology help or find out about some of
the At solutions that might work for you, you can
head to Vision Australia's website to find information about the
Access Technology Help Desk. Or you can give the At
Help desk a ring at one 384 7466. That number
(19:35):
again is one 384 7466 and ask for the At
help desk. Or you can email at help at Vision Australia.
Our lovely At staff are all blind or have low vision,
so they have lived experience and are a kind of
no obligation form of assistance so that you can get
(19:55):
the best out of your technology. Then I'm going to
be joined by seeing eye dogs, doctor Ash Mooney from
our vet team, who's going to be talking about arthritis.
Thank you for listening and I hope you enjoy. So
one of the topics that any older dog owner is
probably all too aware of, particularly those of us who
have had labs or golden retrievers, is arthritis. What is
(20:17):
arthritis in dogs?
S4 (20:19):
Yeah. So, um, arthritis generally refers to osteoarthritis, which is
typically associated with aging. Um, it comes when the the
bones start wearing and tearing the cartilage starts degrading between
your bones. And that's the nice padding that keeps them, um,
from rubbing. And then over time, the changes to the
actual bone structure result in pain, inflammation, reduced mobility.
S1 (20:44):
And what are the, I guess, what are the symptoms
that you might see in your own dog to show
that that's what's going on in the body.
S4 (20:52):
Sometimes it can be something as subtle as taking a
bit longer to get up first thing in the morning. Um,
or perhaps being a bit more hesitant, going up and
down stairs or jumping up and down from the couch
or the bed or the car. A little bit more
hesitation from the animal can often indicate some mild discomfort.
In more severe cases, you might see things like limping,
(21:14):
holding a leg up, whimpering and vocalizing, or heavily panting, um,
or even like seeking out different surfaces to what they
used to. Like maybe a dog used to always lay
on like the concrete floor, and now you're seeing them
always seek out a pillow. Um, that might also be
an indication that they're a bit uncomfortable.
S1 (21:34):
And what might what might make arthritis worse? Either kind
of flaring up or, you know, I guess increase the
likelihood of them presenting with arthritis.
S4 (21:45):
Um, so B being overweight is probably the biggest risk factor. Um, oftentimes,
you know, if you are bearing more weight, there's more
pressure on all of those joints. And it increases the
rate of the degradation. The degradation of the joints can
be normal wear and tear to some extent. Pretty much
all aging beings develop arthritis if they get to an
(22:06):
advanced enough age. But being overweight can really kind of
accelerate that aging process in the body. Um, other things
can also be like being extremely, extremely active. Like think
about the kelpie. That just doesn't stop and would run
until its feet were bleeding. Um, you know, those kinds
of animals because they're overdoing it. They're also putting a
(22:27):
bit too much strain on their bodies. Um, there's other
risk factors, like, um, if they've had ligament injuries or
anything like that often, you know, the injured joint will
be the one that develops arthritis first as the animal ages.
S1 (22:43):
As we reach those cooler months, is that also something
that might pop up more or symptoms might become worse
in in the cooler months?
S4 (22:51):
Yeah. So as a vet, I do notice that there's
an increased trend in cooler months. And humans with arthritis
certainly report, um, increased aches and pains when it's colder
and also when there's kind of rapid weather changes, like
when it goes from being 40 degrees, and then suddenly
there's a thunderstorm and the humidity changes, and then it's
20 degrees. Sometimes people will experience pain flares, and certainly
(23:11):
the same can be kind of interpreted about animals. So
a lot of the times I, as a vet, will
prescribe kind of year round arthritis support, which usually involves
something that slows the rate of the, um, arthritis progressing
by increasing the protection in the joint space, and then
also something that's providing pain relief for the existing arthritis.
(23:32):
And sometimes in the winter months, I find that animals
will need maybe an additional or a slightly stronger pain
relief component to what they need during the warmer months
of the year.
S1 (23:42):
And so if you are concerned, or if an owner
is concerned that their dog might be experiencing, um, symptoms,
symptoms of arthritis, um, how do you, you know, how
do you, as a vet, work with them and diagnose that?
S4 (23:57):
Um, usually a physical exam can tell us a lot
about whether or not an animal is arthritic. But then
the the next step would be x rays, or if
it's a quite complicated area or there's a lot of
injury and other things going on, um, something like a
CT scan or more advanced imaging can tell you a lot. Um,
but a lot of the times, you know, just with
aging patients, it can be as simple as having a
(24:18):
physical exam with your vet and having a chat about things.
S1 (24:22):
And so you did kind of mention, um, some of
the treatment options. So in terms of that medication, is
there anything else that you'd like to share about, you know,
kind of how you might work with an owner to
treat um, either. Well, the symptoms I guess.
S4 (24:35):
Yeah. So, um, certainly medication and supplements are one component.
If you have an aging animal, it always helps to
get them on to the supplements that help reduce the
wear and tear. Um, or even if you have a
very high performance, um, like, athletic dog, you know, something
that's doing agility or, you know, you're a quite active person.
You're going on long walks, hikes, whatever with your animal. Um,
(24:57):
maybe investing in a little bit of a protective, um,
supplement might be worth your while. Um, Um, the medications
for when they are arthritic can be quite specifically tailored
to the individual animal and to your lifestyle, and how
easy it is for you to access veterinary care on
a regular basis. And then the other aspect is environmental change. So, um,
(25:17):
you know, if you're having an animal that has difficulty
with stairs, maybe looking into getting a ramp, um, or
getting a certain harness if you have a quite large
dog that needs arthritis support, but it's hurting your back
to help aid them to lift them up, you can
get different styles of harnesses to help you make it
more ergonomic for yourself as well. Um, or even sometimes
having like slippery floorboards in the house make it really
(25:39):
difficult for an arthritic animal to get around because they
have to use more muscle to stay upright. Um, so
looking into rugs or non-slip yoga mats or something like
that can can make a lot of difference.
S1 (25:51):
And I'm guessing as, as you said before, kind of
one of the bigger factors is that weight. Um, you know,
excess weight is keeping a good body condition score. One
of the ways that you can, I guess, reduce the
risk of problematic arthritis symptoms.
S4 (26:07):
Yeah, certainly maintaining a good body condition score is always helpful.
And if your animal is overweight, um, looking to get
them down to an appropriate body condition score, um, which
you can get help from your vet. There are certainly
medical conditions that can prevent animals from being able to
lose weight on their own. Um, once an animal is
starting to get arthritic, I suppose the other thing to
(26:27):
keep aware of is that increasing exercise may actually just
exacerbate the problem. Like, you know, you think that, oh,
I want my animal to lose weight. Let's walk a
little bit more. But if they're already suffering from arthritis pain,
that might actually be doing them more harm. And you
may need to do more of a dietary change in
order to get that weight loss, to help provide them
that support.
S1 (26:47):
And I guess even is the type of exercise going
to have a bearing on how problematic that might be?
S4 (26:54):
Yeah. So typically, um, you know, things that require a
lot of jumping, a lot of excess force, um, will
will be worse for the joints. But things like, um,
you know, walking or low impact walking, like a hydrotherapy
situation where they have the buoyancy of the water, um,
to assist them, even if, like going to the beach
and maybe walking your dog just through the part of
(27:15):
the water where it's kind of reaching their chest so
that it gives them a bit of support, or even swimming,
things like that. Swimming can be really, really good as
long as they're not kind of going mental jumping in
and out of the pool.
S1 (27:26):
Yeah, bouncing through the waves like a dolphin is probably
not what you need. You've been listening to the Seeing
Eye dog show on Vision Australia Radio. I hope you
enjoyed my interviews with Jamie McMurray, Seeing Eye Dogs handler
and a national Access technology manager at Vision Australia. And
(27:49):
with Doctor Ash Mooney from our Seeing Eye Dogs vet team.
If you'd like to find out more about seeing Eye Dogs,
the work we do, or how you can help, head
to our website at australia.com. If you'd like to get
assistance with your access technology or at. You can reach
out to Vision Australia's Access technology or at helpdesk. You
(28:10):
can call one 384 7466 and ask for the At
help desk. That number again one 384 7466 or email
help at Vision Australia. If you are interested in finding
out about Vision Australia's other services, you can head to
(28:32):
the Vision Australia website at Vision Australia. If you would
like to find out more of this podcast and other
great podcasts, you can head to your preferred podcast provider
or our Omni FM page for more interviews, including my
part one of the interview with demo, where we spoke
about his partnership with Jenna. Thank you for listening to
(28:53):
the Seeing Eye Dog show. Don't forget to tune in.
Same time next week for another episode. Have a lovely week.
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