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70 BCBUSINESS NOVEMBER 2019 COURTESY OF CORNUCOPIA + APPETITE BY RANDOM HOUSE professionally trained autism and PTSD service dogs, as well as guide dogs for the visually impaired, at a symbolic cost of $1 to the recipients. A registered charity, British Columbia Guide Dog Services relies on vol- unteers (supported by BC Guide Dog staff) at every stage of breeding, raising and training its dogs— golden and Labrador retrievers—which do not live in kennels. Volunteer families board males and females in the breeding program, plus mothers and puppies. At seven weeks, the youngsters go to live with puppy raisers, who socialize them, take them out into the commu- nity to get used to different environments and teach basic obedience skills. When dogs are ready for advanced training, at 15 to 18 months, they move to new homes closer to the BC Guide Dog offices in Ladner, where profes- sional trainers pick them up each morning and drop them off in the afternoon. At this stage, the pooches receive about five months' training to spe- cialize in autism or PTSD service or guiding the visually impaired. Train- ers teach tasks specific to each career stream, such as telling a guide dog to find a bench. If trainers of autism service dogs have questions about the behaviours and sensory challenges of people with autism, they might visit the PAFN centre to chat with Lisogar-Cocchia. There's a wide variety in the spectrum, she ex- plains. "It is important for the dog and the trainers to understand that it's not a real straightforward pat- tern sometimes. A child or an adult might not be feel- ing well for an hour or a day, and then improve lat- er on, so it's not a clear-cut path any day." The main role of autism support dogs is to stop a child from bolting, known as eloping. The dog is tethered to the child, whose parent holds the leash. It's also trained to apply deep pressure, lying across a child's legs to ground them if they're overwhelmed. Service dogs are care- fully matched with their owners. "It's never a case of presenting, Oh, here's your dog," Lisogar- Cocchia says. "It depends on the individual what re- quirements they're going to have. At different stages, they would meet the child, the family, the child's care- givers or aides to get lots of information, making sure that the training was personalized and custom- ized." Trainers work with families for at least two weeks, with followup visits throughout a dog's work- ing life. "People should know that it's an absolutely invaluable gift," notes Lisogar-Cocchia. "It truly takes a village to raise a guide dog for any chal- lenge." • Mountains of Food Run as a charity to benefit the community, Cornucopia, Whistler's Celebration of Food & Drink is 11 days of culinary workshops, winemaker dinners, food and drink seminars, health and wellness events, parties and presentations. Learn how to cook and eat sustainably, experience a global night market, go to a Warhol Factory Party or enjoy drinks from scotch, gin and vodka to B.C. craft beer and ciders, and wines from around the world, at a Poured Grand Tasting. November 7-17, ticket prices vary Local Flavour Burdock & Co: Poetic Recipes Inspired by Ocean, Land & Air is a story about where food comes from and the community of farmers, foragers, provid- ers, cooks and servers represented by the "Co" in the Vancouver restaurant's name. Owner and chef Andrea Carlson has organized the recipes according to where the main ingredients originate–ocean, island, garden, air, farm, hidden places and city–starting each chapter with insights from the likes of Ocean Wise founding chef partner Rob Clark, Burdock & Co wine director Matt Sherlock and Harvest Community Foods managing partner Gabriella Meyer. Appetite by Random House 366 pages, hardcover, $35 • A F T E R HO U R S BCBUSINESS provides quality, need-to-know business content, reaching busy professionals when and how they need it. BCBUSINESS.CA TWIT TER FACEBOOK LINKEDIN eNEWSLET TER MAGAZINE EVENTS