Take me home for the holidays....

And then forever, of course!  Hi, my name is Brutus, and I am a 13 week old Chihuahua.  I was turned into the shelter after the person who bred my mom found out breeding is expensive, and good breeders don't make any money!  (My mom's c-section was $600.)

Now I am staying with a nice family and all their dogs.  I really like the other Chihuahua here, but I get along with the lab and Great Pyrenees mix too!  I am learning not to chase the cats and to go outside to do my business.  

I will be about 6lbs when full grown.  Do you know anyone who needs a small dog to warm their heart and lap?  Contact my foster mom!

Utah v BYU

What an awesome game! Utah is now 12-0 for the season.  Sterling became our section's official mascot.  He is the only dog I know who can sleep through part of a football game.  

Post 101!

Wow, this is my 101st post!

Updates...

Shaw is moving along like the star he is....phase 3 this week.

Sterling will be with me for a least another month.  Melrose and Motown are heading back Dec 1st.

Parsons will be joining Sterling, Dante, and I next weekend.  Marley will have a mini vacation with Tom.

And I am fostering a 12 week old Chihuahua.  Talk about cute!  He is black and about 2 1/2 lbs.

Thats all for now.

Dog Distracted Guide Dog

I ran into a tricky situation today. I was walking with Sterling, and as we came to an intersection, there was already a guide team waiting there. As soon as the guide saw Sterling, he started jumping up and down and became VERY distracted. The handler gave him corrections, but the dog continued to focus on Sterling. I called out that I had a dog and backed up several feet (I was already 10 ft away!) to give them space to work it out. When it came time for them to cross, the handler told the dog forward, and the dog almost ran him into a car that was blocking the cross walk (stopped car).

The dog also ran his head into a pedestrian that was passing by the team. I followed behind them...unfortunalty this is the way I had to go...and the dog kept spinning around to look at Sterling. When we got to the crub, the team stopped, and I called out my position as I passed behind them.

I am wondering if I should call the school so that the handler can get some help reworking with his dog? I would say maybe they were having a bad day...but one other time we ran into this team, the guide ran the handler into a railing looking back a Sterling.

What would you do....any suggestions? Also, was what I did in the situation correct, anything that would have been more helpful? I did make sure Sterling did not stare at the other dog, nor did bark or anything like that....

Phase 1

Shaw, Sterling's brother, is officially on the phase report! Phase 1, but he should have some fast progress!

I just wanted to say thank you to everyone who has comment on my last couple of posts! Blogging really does extend your friend network!

After talking to my leader, I do not think Sterling will be one of the top picks for this go-around. Since he has had some issues, it seems better to leave him to mature a little longer! This means I will probably be looking at getting a new pup in the middle of winter, oh joy!

Thanks again, and I hope everyone is having an awesome week.

Uh Oh.

My CFR is coming Mon.  Two dogs may be going.  There are three to choose from.  Sterling is one of them.

Time to do all the final pictures, paw prints, and lots and lots of loving.

What do you do when you know your dog is going back?

Club Website

I have created a blog site for my club, Summit Guide Dogs.  It is just a basic thing, but it does have dog info on there!  So check it out.

summitguidedogs.wordpress.com

Imposter

There is a women in my town who has a large golden retriever.  She brings this dog everywhere.  He has a service dog vest on, but is usually not on a leash.  When asked what kind of service dog he is, she says that he visits chemotherapy patients.  Now I love therapy dogs:  they are amazing dogs who bring joy to people in hospitals, nursing homes, ect.  However, they are not service dogs, and DO NOT have public access rights.

This has gone beyond people impersonating service dogs; this dog is a liability risk!  Yesterday I pull up to the grocery store, park, and go to get Sterling out.  This women is across the aisle form me, and just lets her dog out of her car, not on a leash, in the parking lot.  The dog runs over and growls at my dogs, and growls again at Sterling.  The women chased him 3 times around the car before she was able to get him back.  I start to walk into the store, Tom with me so we can block any further attempts of the dog to get to Sterling.  The women follows behind us into the store with her dog unvested, and....OFF LEAD!  She stands in line at the coffee shop while the dog wanders freely around, sniffing people and objects, dropping its tennis ball and then diving for it.  

I waited by where she was while an employee went to get the manager.  I tried to educate this women about the illegality of what she was doing; it is a class B misdemeanor here, and punishable by up to 6 months in jail or a $1000 fine.  She did not want to listen to anything I had to say, and kept saying, "No thanks, we are fine."  (what?)  And then she tells me the dog is going through chemotherapy!  Even a qualified person with disabilities should think long and hard about whether to continue working a very sick service dog; it is not fair to the dog!

The manager finally came over and told her she would have to have the dog on a leash or leave, but by that time she was done with her coffee and so left.  I talked with the manager, and he said she is in there all the time, with her sometimes being at the check-out stand and the dog being back in produce.  She brings him in wet from the dog pond, and he is almost never groomed. They ask her to leave, but she keeps coming back.

I am writing to my local paper, and will hand out ADA briefs at the local stores, any other suggestions? 

Winter is here!

More snow today...about 6 inches total in the yard!  Both the bog dogs were loving it, they will take a big snort of snow and then go running around like crazy.  Marley, being the mountain dog he is, loves to lay in the snow.  

On campus, Sterling kept sniffing the snow and then trying to do labby laps!  I felt so mean correcting him, but working time is working time.  After class I got out the long line and let him have his fun.  I cannot wait to start going on winter hikes with the dogs, hopefully I can get some good pictures of Sterling in the snow.

In other news.... Maggie, Madden and Sage will all graduate on Sat.  Fairmont's partner was unable to finish training, and so Fairmont is back in class.  Hopefully they have sunny skies in California.

Election Day

Today we woke to swirling snow.  Despite the crappy weather, at 9:30am I was the last one in my family to vote.  Sterling came with me to my very first election, and was a great boy during the 15 min we spent there (10 min was spent talking about Guide Dogs and how amazing they are with the poll workers).  Getting in and out, he was not as impressed.  Snow is not Sterling's favorite, and he was so not going to sit.

BARK

I get BARK, the magazine.  They have a cover contest to have reader's dogs on the front.  If you win, your dog gets a professional photography session!  I have thought about who to send in, and decided to send in Marley's picture.  I just don't think there are many dogs out there that look like him.  However, there are over 6,000 entries, and just 6 covers for next year, so Marley's chances, while not 'one in a million', are not awesome either.  He is beautiful either way.

One in a million

Nov 3, 2008

Either way, History will be made tomorrow.  So here are some completely non-political pictures!   

I love these chairs...they are old and funky!  This is Sterling hanging out in my photography class.

The puppy truck was fun, but really short.  They were early, so when I got there, pups had already been handed out, and one of my group members had already left!  Thursten and his raiser were still there, and so I attempted (!) to get some pictures of this wrinkly little guy!
Meeting Sterling...oh yeah, time to play.
I love Sterling so much, he is my puppy sitter!  He is so gentle and sweet with babies!
Oh, only a nose as Thursten tries to examine the whole world.
Finally he sits down...
And time for puppy sleep...
Angel hanging out, waiting to go home!
And retired guide Ellis going home with Angel.  Their mom is going to be busy!
Winter is coming, and we have had some spectacular skies recently.
Sterling is NOT a happy cowboy....
The group doing the dog parade on Main St.  Left to right...Angel Stella, Riley and Koda as dogs, Deso as Sarah Palin, cowboy Sterling, and robot Hugo.
Me with my cowboys...and Hugo robot hazard...
Driving out of a cloud this morning.  Snow is on the way!