Wrigley the service dog visits LOP classroom for demo
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Wrigley, a service dog, demonstrates how he returns dropped items—keys, in this case—to their owners.
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 Wrigley likes to bum around when he's not on the clock. But when the time comes for him to assist his owner in some way, the black lab is alert and prepared to obey any voice commands thrown his way.
The service dog demonstrated some of his skills alongside his owner, Beth deRivera, on Sept. 8 in the Learning Opportunities (LOP) class. Toting a red backpack filled with deRivera's supplies and sometimes even his treats, Wrigley picked up pencils, water bottles, keys, and even a dime off of the floor to return to the student owners who "accidentally" dropped them. He also demonstrated how he can turn on and off the lights.
deRivera, daughter of special education teacher Gail deRivera, has owned Wrigley for three years. The 28-year-old Arizona resident was on a waiting list before she finally was matched with Wrigley, who was trained to meet her muscular dystrophy needs.
Gail deRivera said she arranged the guest visit with LOP teacher Maureen Wynne to explain to the students the purpose behind a service dog, what service dogs can do, and how they differ from seeing eye dogs. LOP is a class designed to equip certain special education students with worldly skills. |
