ESU student's worker dog asked to leave

MAN'S BEST FRIEND BANNED

By RYAN WILSON

Special to The Capital-Journal

EMPORIA --- Emporia State University senior Matt Braden will have to complete his studies without his best companion at his side.

For the past seven years, Schaum has protected and warned Braden, who uses a wheelchair. Now, the yellow Labrador is no longer allowed on campus.

Braden, a communications major from Wichita, will study to be a minister for the United Methodist Church after he graduates in May.

"I've noticed a lot of people are afraid to approach a person in a wheelchair," Braden said. "But they're not afraid to approach a dog. The dog seems to allow people to see right though the chair and see that there's a human being inside.

"Schaum is a part of my identity," he said. "They've made me lose my identity, and that really hurts."

According to Diane Bailiff, vice president for student affairs at ESU, Schaum's forced retirement was the result of a series of incidents during the past year and a growing concern that Schaum was becoming more of a pet than a working dog.

"For lots of reasons, it is not good for Schaum to be on campus," Bailiff said. "(The series of incidents) had to do with the fact that Schaum was becoming more of a pet than an employee."

Since Braden can't see well, one of Schaum's most important duties was to warn him when she sees anything unusual. To warn Braden, Schaum barks or jumps toward what she thinks is unusual, Braden said. Braden then follows the direction in which Schaum jumps to determine what she is responding to.

According to Braden, the final straw for Schaum was her lunge at children related to Jim Williams, the director of residential life, last October.

"I hauled Schaum up by her collar after I saw Jim and the children and warned them to stay clear," Braden said, recalling the incident. "When she jumped forward, she understandably frightened them, and their reaction frightened her."

The incident went before the ESU Office of Disability Services, where Schaum was accused of attacking the children, Braden said.

Williams declined to comment.

Keith Frank, coordinator of Disability Services, said he had hoped the situation could be resolved by refresher training, which Braden and Schaum received at the dog's training school, Kansas Specialty Dog Service, at Washington, Kan. Bailiff said KSDS did an assessment test on Schaum.

"The test concluded that Schaum is just unpredictable enough, and with the stimulus there is on campus, that it's probably not a good idea for her to be there," Bailiff said.

Frank said he was the one who asked Braden's family to take Schaum off campus and retire her.

"Since the dog's behavior was in question, we asked Matt's mom that the dog be taken off campus and that the dog experts (KSDS) do a total evaluation. They did that, and they were the ones who recommended the dog be taken off campus (permanently). The university simply accepted that recommendation," Frank said.

Braden said he doesn't think Schaum tried to attack the children.

"Does she usually see children that young (age 7 and 8) on campus during the day?" Braden asked. "She sees children at football games and is just fine, but this wasn't a football game. If she thinks something is strange, she will bark just to warn me."

Braden said he is easing Schaum into retirement, but she won't be fully retired because he still will use her at his family's home in Wichita. Eventually she will serve solely as Braden's pet.

Braden is eligible for another dog trained by KSDS, but he has decided not to get another dog while he is at ESU because of the time needed for training.

And this man's best friend won't easily be replaced.

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