Having Angel in Vegas was Awesome! Have you ever been? Just in case you are unaware, there are a LOT of people in Vegas! Some of which you don't want to have anything to do with. A not-all-that surprising benefit to having a "giant breed" service dog is that she is easily noticed. Whether we are here in Austin, at a mall, or walking the streets of Vegas; Angel can part a crowd like Moses parted the Red Sea! No need to weave through crowds of crazy people because even the drunks stumble out of our way when Jackson and Angel are in the lead!
Angel did great in Vegas! She walked through the casinos like she owned the place and sun bathed at the pool like she was on vacation! She was an awesome celebrity attraction for me at the All Baby and Child expo (which is why we were there), and went back and forth on the monorail like a champ! We went to multiple shows, restaurants and hotels and she tagged along like always being very attentive and protective at first, and then relaxing and waiting patiently once she felt comfortable there was no threat in the area. I've pointed out the difference between Angel (an Autism Service Dog) and a typical service dog for someone that is hearing impaired or blind many times. Angel NEVER STOPS WORKING. When we get somewhere new, Angel takes a while before she relaxes enough to nap or lay down completely. She will table (meaning- go straight under a table at restaurants and stuff) right away, but she won't lay down and relax till she has scanned the entire room and all the people in it. I swear she makes a mental note of the emergency exists, what route she would take, and who she will take out first to get us to safety if need be! (You know, like a good, very efficient, Aspie dog will do! ;) ) We have all adjusted and grown patient to this. We know that it is because of her loyalty and commitment to her job, and her boy, that she does it.
AND THEN WE WALKED TO THE TOURNAMENT OF KINGS SHOW!!! :/
If you don't know already, The Tournament of Kings is a dinner show! It's one of those cool medieval shows where you cheer for your assigned knight while eating a traditional renaissance dinner with just your hands! But of course we are in VEGAS, so it's not just jousting, singing, and eating.... it's fireworks, screaming, fire breathing dragons, fair maidens dancing on your table, sword fights, fake blood, smoke, bombs, lightening!! It's really a very cool show!!
We were in the front row, dead center of the arena!
Walking down the stadium to our seats everyone was excited and then.... I realized where Angel was going to be! :/ The seats were set up where every other row was a table where your food was served and of course since we were in the front row there was a solid black wall on the back of our table that kept all the dirt and such from the horses from flying up at us while we eat and enjoy the show! That black dark pit of an area was where our service dog was going to need to lay down and she wasn't going to be able to see ANYTHING. It was a tight squeeze, but she has dealt with way worse! The tight quarters were not the problem; you won't believe
the small spaces she can squeeze her giant white self into!
The problem was the dark.
Because of the wall dividing us from the arena and the extravagant dark lighting of the show, Angel was stuck down into a black hole where she could see absolutely nothing but our feet, and she could hear EVERYTHING!! She was immediately nervous that she hadn't had a chance to scope out the environment and I was immediately wishing I had spent another $60 on a seat just for Angel! I tried bribing her with pieces of food she would NEVER get anywhere else, but once the screaming people, the sword fighting knights riding around on horses, the maidens yelling to be saved, the fireworks that made everyone jump and the loud dramatic music of the show started.... I knew we were in trouble. Not only was Angel freaking out with what she was hearing, and couldn't see, but she could also tell that her boy was stressing out too. Jackson did a great job. He could feel Angel at his feet and that is almost always enough to keep him from going into full on sensory overload, but he had his fingers in his ears and I know she could tell his little heart was pounding.
The next thirty minutes were rough. Angel was a nervous disaster. She was trying so hard to get out of her dark hole. She was shaking like a leaf and drool was pouring out like a faucet. She was pawing Jackson's legs to tell him "it's ok" while also pushing with all her might against me to say "I WANT OUT! I CAN'T PROTECT ANYONE DOWN HERE AND IT SOUNDS LIKE WORLD WAR III IS HAPPENING THREE FEET AWAY FROM MY FAMILY!!"
We ended up moving her to the top of the seats, as far away from the arena as we could get. Our "fair maiden", that was assigned to our section, was kind enough to let us know that the end of the show would include a giant fire breathing dragon that also set off an unbelievable amount of fireworks that could light up a stadium, let alone an indoor arena. However, it was too late. Angel was in her own full on sensory overload breakdown and when the show was over she literally DRUG all of us out of that casino faster than we can even remember walking!
She wasn't satisfied with being out of the casino either. She didn't stop pulling until we were safely on the other side of the bridge that took us over the big bright Las Vegas Strip!!
Poor Angel was so traumatized by the Tournament of Kings show that when we would leave the MGM Signature (the hotel we stayed in) and go sightseeing she would absolutely REFUSE to walk up the stairs that led to either of the bridges that took you towards the Excalibur Hotel! And when I say "refuse", I really mean REFUSE!! She went from 90 pounds to 1090 pounds. She was a stone statue that wouldn't budge no matter the pulling, yelling, bribing or threatening! We had to walk several Vegas blocks out of the way to get where we needed to go. If we were even pointing in the direction of the Excalibur Angel was not happy about it!
I bring up the crazy Vegas show experience because this weekend we were reminded of the terror we put our poor broken service dog through! ;) It was my baby girls first dance performance of the year. We were in a gym, there was stadium seating... Angel and the boys were sitting next to me and she was refusing to lay down. I was embarrassed by her lack of obedience, but too excited to see the sweet smile of my Jovie-girl! I decided to give Angel the time she needed to scope out the environment before I gave her the "mom look of death" which would make her lay down and chill out! But...
Then the music started!!! :/
I'm pretty sure Angel went into full on Post Traumatic Stress Disorder because the shaking, drooling, and pushing with all her might started right away. I was holding her lead so tight as she pulled that my knuckles were turning white; all the while snapping picture after picture of my sweet little dancer!
Eventually, I gave into her fears (Jackson's therapist would be very disappointed! I can hear her saying- "every time you give into his fear it will be 1000 times harder to help him get over it"). It was one of those "choose your battles" times and I chose dance!
My dog with Aspergers Syndrome could wait!!
I sent the boys and Angel up the elevator to the balcony and decided we would deal with it later!
Here's the problem (and the reason for this giant random rant)! For the next three weeks my ballerina has her very first dance competitions and because I attempt to stress supporting the ones we love, Jackson and Angel should also be in attendance! THIS. IS. A. PICKLE!!
Stupid Tournament of Kings Show!!!!! .\/.
