Goodbye Baby Girl...

We are getting ready to leave for the truck. I have checked off the last of the things to do, made sure I have "Fun Things About My Puppy" and a picture cd attached. A cozy blanket is packed for her to snuggle in. Last breakfast has been eaten. She is ready, and I guess so am I.

Good luck Millie, I know you will do amazing things, but I am going to miss your incredible spirit.

Puppy Delay...

Well it looks like I am going to have a break, albeit a short one, between sending Millie off to college and getting my new little pup. I had originally thought I would be getting my pup on the 29th and sending Millie back on the 31st, giving me two fun days of overlap. Instead Millie will be leaving (most likely in a training van) on the 21st, and my new pup will arrive on the 29th as the puppy truck makes its way to Colorado.

That will make for one sad send off as no one will be getting a cute little pup to cry into. I will probably end up watching another pup while I wait for my own to arrive.

No word yet on what I am getting though!

Recall: but not defective!

Recently I posted about Millie returning for recall on my Facebook page. Many of my friends, unfamiliar with GDB terminology, immediately responded, asking what was wrong, and just what kind of a recall affects a dog anyway....

I had to laugh as I corrected everyone on my wording, but it did make me think. Usually we here the word recall in other aspects of life, and it is always something defective, or bad. Like my Mom's Prius floor mats which had a recall this past week.

But with the guide dog pups, it is something good! It means you have done what you are supposed to do, done all you can to prepare them for college (formal training), and are now ready to say good bye. Well, maybe no one is ever READY to say good bye, but we know it is coming and can now look forward to watching our pups progress through formal training and whatever career they choose to undertake.

Millie will be my first dog to actually return for formal training. I did have to say goodbye to Sterling, but knowing he had chosen the pampered pet life. I just found out today that Millie's recall date is now the 21st of this month, instead of the 31st. That leaves me with just under two weeks to pack in final outings, lots of play and snuggle time, and lots and lots of pictures.

Puppy News, Millie and Paris

Well, it looks like Paris will be sticking with me.  Only 6 of 11 pups went to the HS program, and so Miss Paris will be finishing her time here in PC!   Yay, no snow housebreaking!!!  We have an eval with our CFR tomorrow night where Paris's progress will be evaluated and Millie will have her final eval before her recall.  Paris is completely recovered from her spay surgery and second eye surgery and is doing GREAT!  Millie is just fantastic, and I am trying to pack in as many things with her as I can before she goes back.  

It has been fun, now that Paris is older and more reliable for public outings, to go everywhere with two pups.  I hope it is helping to teach them better control around dog distractions, and more self control in general.  We get many more comments on the girls, especially the difference 6 months makes in their calmness and control (though no one believes Paris is only 6 1/2 months!).

Paris is still very vocal and rough when she plays with the other dogs, resulting in lots of time outs.  Has anyone had this problem before, and if so, any other suggestions to helping her control and moderate her play behavior?

I will not be getting a puppy on the truck (unless somehow I was offered a golden pup ;)  and plan on getting another puppy in the spring.  If Millie is pulled as a breeder, I will raise one of her pups when they become available.

Hopefully I will be able to post an update after our eval tomorrow night!

News, news, NEWS!

So, once again, a very long over due post.

I will start by wishing Millie a very happy BIRTHDAY today! She is such a fantastic dog, and I wish I could keep her forever...but our time together is drawing to an end. She will most likely be leaving for her breeder eval at the end of October. I will post more info as it becomes available.

Paris is growing, maturing, and loving life! She turned 6 months last week and is such a fun puppy to work with! I always feel like yelling "incoming" when I ask her to down, as she just throws herself on the ground, looking up eagerly at me. She has her spay surgery and entropium (round 2) surgery this Thurs, so we are trying to pack in as many fun things as possible, as it is 2 weeks of crate time after her surgery. Her evaluation for the school program is Sept 15th, and I will find out whether she goes to a high school student at the end of Sept or stays with me.

I will most likely be getting a puppy on the Sept or Oct truck if both my girls are gone. Details will follow at a later date...

Marley continues to progress well during obedience training. We now go to different places around town in order to socialize the dogs and proof behaviors in different environments.

Dante is getting better about his shyness at work that seemed to come up randomly and now chooses when he wants to go. Otherwise he loves fetch, car rides, and being top dog!

More stories and posts with pictures to come soon (I hope!).

School, snow, and Recall.

The tenative news for the puppy truck....Sterling will not be on it this winter! Yay! They bumped back some of the dogs from the Oct 1 truck, and now it looks like Sterling will be here for snow (which may happen this weekend). Now if only I can walk (graduation this spring from college) with him, but that would make him an OLD guy when he goes back. I really don't care at this point, I just am happy for all the time I get to spend with him.

This week was the first week of school for me, and with a drawing class, a photography class, and only one major class and an internship, it will give me alot of time to focus on perfecting Sterling's training. He did wear his vest for the first day of each class, but now we have switched off it again, and as usual the difference is night and day. It does require a little more explaining, but I put his "guide dog puppy" vest strap around his leash and that seems to catch most people's eyes. That or the fact that I usually have a hat on that says Guide Dogs for the Blind. I wish there was some way to get him used to a harness so that I can see if that is going to be a problem, because without the vest on he is almost perfect!!!

That gives me alot of time to consider what my next pup will be, or if I will just say, "suprise me!"

Bark City Updates

No, I haven't moved to the Unitas, been kidnapped by a pack of hungry dogs, or decided to join a commune.   I am alive and well (mostly, but who doesn't have a few problems) and just enjoying summer.

We have gone from freezing temperatures (literally 3in of snow on the ground 10 days ago), to really, really, lets go swim in the creek, hot!  Park Silly Market has started, the flip-flops have come out of the closet, and I finally pulled my ski rack off my car.  I think I am going to get Marley a kiddie swimming poll for the summer, since he has taken to laying flat out on the driveway in the shade very chance he gets.  Dante has finally gotten hot enough to pant (that saying something for a breed the originated in Mexico) and went for his first dip in the creek.

Hugo going for a final run in the snow.

I went up to Oregon for the Guide Dogs for the May graduation.  I went up with my club leader, who went to see her twentieth puppy graduate.  He is part of a very successful litter; out of 5 pups, three have been pulled as breeders, one (Bernstein, my leaders puppy) has graduated, and one is finishing up his formal training.  Their sire, Royal Guide Ralph, was expected to do good things for  Guide Dogs, and it looks like this litter may be the key! 

Bernstein relaxing in harness.

We only went up for a day, leaving Friday night, and coming back Saturday night.  It was a very moving day, with may inspiring moments.  When Bernstein saw his raiser, who he hadn't seen since November, he was so happy it made me cry.  However, after he settled down, it was evident how much he cared for his new person, who is a very kind man from Texas.  He assured my leader that they would have many adventures together, alot of the in Walmart, and she only ever had to call if she wanted to see how Bernstein was doing.  We also got to go on a tour of the campus, but not in the kennels, which I was a little disappointed at.  All in all it was an awesome trip.

One of the new guides going back to the kennels; his new partner had to leave a few days early for an emergency, and they were going to be reunited later that week.

150 dogs eat alot of food.

And of course need alot of bowels to eat that food from.  (I know, I know, everyone takes a picture of the bowels, but, look at it!)

And the best part of these last 5 weeks?  Sterling has stopped hating his puppy coat!!!!  He even wags his tail some of the time, and will go on outings.  He has really started to look to me when he is unsure, and is overcoming many of his previous avoidance issues.  I think he would make a sweet, and cuddly guide for a very lucky person if he keeps this up.  

We had a very fun puppy meeting at the local college, and went walking around the grounds and indoor pool.  It was the last meeting for one of the first time raisers in our group before their dog, Moses, went to San Rafael for formal training. 

There is a picture of this raiser, right before she put her puppy on the truck, that makes me want to cry all over again.  It is also a small preview of what I will be going through when Sterling goes back.  They got other puppy the same day, and said it really helped.  I know I want to raise again, but I don't know if I could be happy with another puppy when Sterling goes back.  I wonder how much harder it is to get back into the routine of a baby....

Here is a link to the story about the dogs going back for formal training.

http://deseretnews.com/article/1,5143,700232928,00.html

That all my updates for now.