54Freedom.com

MENIFEE —- Trisha and Joseph were zooming through The Promenade mall in Temecula when Joseph caught a glimpse of his reflection on the shining mall floor. Joseph stopped, blocking her way, and dropped to the ground to peer at the shifting image. Trisha swiveled to the right to clear Joseph’s body and continued toward a coffee shop. Joseph left the spot and strode alongside her.

Trisha Stouder, 19, said the malls in Southern California are nothing like those in Idaho. But when she leaves for her Twin Falls, Idaho, home Saturday, she’ll take something with her that will make all malls more familiar —- Joseph.

Stouder was one of seven people taking a Canine Support Teams final test Friday at the mall. The test marked her successful completion of a two-week period in which she, a woman with physical disability, and Joseph, a roughly 2-year-old yellow Labrador who has been trained to help with daily tasks, have shown they can work together as a team.

Stouder, who was born with brittle bone syndrome, has used a wheelchair since she was 3, she said.

Despite her small stature and weakened bones, the woman with long, auburn hair has managed a life of independence: She drives, lives with her boyfriend and even teases slow walkers as she passes them with a “2 Fast 4 U” bumper sticker on the back of her wheelchair.

But with a dog acting as an extension of her limbs, she’ll be able to turn on light switches that are too high for her, open doors that are too heavy and retrieve items she’s dropped on the floor.

“He’s lazy, but he can be (lazy),” Stouder said, nudging the ear of the dog who will now be her constant companion. “I wanted one who would work when he needs to, but won’t when he doesn’t.”

Canine Support Teams of Menifee has been pairing disabled people with trained dogs for free for 20 years, said the organization’s founder and chief executive officer, Carol Roquemore. Over the decades, Roquemore said, she’s paired more than 300 dogs with people who have physical challenges including seizures, autism, attention deficit disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder. She has also launched a program to pair dogs with wounded veterans.

Having experienced firsthand what it is like to be on the side of receiving a trained dog —- Roquemore has post-polio syndrome, which is an onset of polio symptoms later in life, and multiple sclerosis —- Roquemore and her team of trainers take care to match a person in need with the proper animal.

The dogs, usually golden retrievers and standard poodles, are donated by breeders and are raised from puppyhood by volunteers. They are then taught basic obedience skills by inmate trainers at Chino State Prison. The female inmates, Roquemore said, say they feel some absolution by helping train the dogs.

“They know that they can’t do anything to take back what they’ve done,” she said. “But this is a way to give back to the community that they took something from.”

After their basic obedience instruction at the prison, the dogs are trained for six months by Canine Support Team staff and taught to perform tasks such as paying a cashier or guiding a wheelchair into an elevator.

When the dogs and their eventual handlers are finally introduced, the transition can be choppy, said training director Shara Butterworth. The dogs are accustomed to being handled properly, but the new owners are still learning how to command them.

“They need a leader to tell them what to do,” Butterworth said. “When (handlers) get really nervous, the dogs feel it because it goes right through the leash.”

Stouder seemed to have learned a great deal in the past two weeks. To pass the final test, Stouder led Joseph around a department store and through the racks of clothes, got him to sit when a child wanted to pet him, allowed Joseph to wander free from his leash for a while and was able to regain control of him with a quick command and a treat in hand.

“She’s really been looking forward to this,” said Stouder’s grandmother, Charlotte Stouder, who had flown from Idaho for the final test.

By the end of the test, Stouder appeared just like any other dog owner. She chatted with her boyfriend, who had accompanied her through the training, and stroked Joseph’s head. Joseph closed his eyes and rested his head on Stouder’s lap.

“He’s a good dog,” she said. “The other dogs were kind of excited. He (Joseph) focused on me right away.”

Contact staff writer Nelsy Rodriguez at (951) 676-4315, Ext. 2626, or nrodriguez@californian.com.

Canine Support Teams

Canine Support Teams is a nonprofit organization based in Menifee that trains dogs to assist people who have disabilities with daily tasks such as picking up dropped items or pushing open heavy doors.