Belated Birthday Wishes: Sterling!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY STERLING!

Sterling, my wonderful boy, turned 2 years old last week, on September 10th.  I  know he is greatly enjoying pet life, and is a wonderful boy for his mom as she finishes her last year of pre-med.  
 

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!

Paris and Millie Update

Well, I have just 8 weeks left with my wonderful girl. Millie will be heading back to Guide Dogs at the end of October for her breeder evals. I know she will be amazing whatever she decides to do. She has turned into such a fantastic dog who is just a dream and joy to take anywhere!!!

Miss Paris has an eval for the school program in two weeks, but as there are twice the number of starter puppies for the school program as there are kids, it looks like I may be finishing her training. I have told my CFR that if there is another raiser who needs an older transfer dog that I would let her go and start a new pup. Whatever helps GDB out the most : )
If I do finish raising her it will be so nice to not have to house train in snow! She is a great pup who is very enthusiastic to learn new things, though her personality can be a little challenging for some. I think once she matures and focuses her energy into working that she will make a fantastic guide. Part of her problem has been her entropium: she had surgery at just 14 wks the first time, with one eye turning back in as she grew (chance you take when you do surgery on a growing puppy.). This left her with one perfect eye, and one that she would squint and close on a regular basis. This made her uncoordinated and unwilling to do some things such as jump in vehicles and go down stairs. Now that her other eye has been corrected I have already seen a huge improvement in her confidence moving about. She does love to pick things up off the ground and play a little rough with other dogs, but I am working on focusing this energy into more appropriate activities and hopefully shaping behavior that will leave her well prepared for guide work.

If I finish her or had her off to another raiser, I know this little girl will give her whole heart to whatever we ask her to do!

Both pups are off to sitters this weekend as I am heading to MN with my family. Hopefully good reports will come upon my return, though Paris is in a cone and on leash/crate activity only as her spay and eye surgeries continue to heal.

Have a great Labor day weekend!

150th Post and Pictures!

Here are pictures...enjoy!

Dante hanging out in the sun.

Marley loving the shade and cool ground cover.

Elvis, Jackson, Millie, and Paris at the Fire station.

Jackson, Millie, and Paris on the fire engine.

Jackson, Millie and Paris getting bored with pictures on the fire engine....

Paris by herself.

Hugo, Marley, Sterling, Millie, and Paris.  Family Reunion!

Paris, 6 months.

Dante checking out the sights.

Marley loving desert life!

Moab as a storm rolls in

Hugo relaxing after a day on the river.

Here are pictures from various activites over the last month!  

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!).

Time for an Update

I have been a bad blogger and very slow to update on a regular basis!  Funny how having 5 dogs, two of them puppies, can keep you so busy.  I don't have a yard, so we do ALOT of walking with the dogs.  I have had a lot of fun with my girls, Millie and Paris, but I am also ready to just go back to 4 dogs, and only one of them a puppy.

They are both doing very well with their training.  Millie still has some house manners issues that we have been working on since she came to me, but her work and behavior in public is fantastic!  Paris is such a sweet pup who settles down quickly when we go out in public.  She is hyper still in the house, but will ignore food and doesn't ever try to get on furniture.

Tomorrow our entire club is going to a baseball game with all of the pups (Parsons, Millie, Jackson, Paris, and Elvis).

Here are some pictures from weekend adventures over the last month.

Sterling hanging out with his new 'dad' and sis Deso.  (Sterling is in the middle).

Marley, my "Wasatch Mountain dog".  He blends in so well with the rocks that at times it can be hard to pick him out.  Even when he is running through the brush I have a hard time seeing him. 

Marley LOVES water.  When he can be in the water with one of us it is even better!

Millie showing her patriotic side on the fourth of July.  Calender worthy maybe?

Our club did a recent outing at an outdoor market.  Here Millie is, less than thrilled at being outside when it is HOT!  She was the only black dog and so I tried to keep her in the shade as much as possible.

cc'd Pup Foxboro watches all the going-ons.

Bracken enjoying one of his last outings before heading off for formal training.  Unfortunately he was medical cc'd.  He may go to Dogs for Diabetics or the Hearing Dog program.

Giant pup Jackson hangs out by a big water bowl.

And then passes out in it!

All my pups patiently wait for their food.  And yes, that is drool all over Millie.

And finally...two weeks ago I drove  4 hours to pick up a mamma dog and her 5 pups who were running out of time in a rural shelter.  Here is one of her pups enjoying life at their foster home.

Puppy Sitting and the Puppy Truck!

I have big boy Jackson this weekend. He came on the truck same time as Paris, but is a whooping 20lbs bigger!!! He is 4.5 months and weighs 50lbs. He is like having a little linebacker in the house: he gets tired quickly, doesn't seem to notice pain, and runs into the other dogs. He is a very sweet pup, and I am sure we will all have a fun time this weekend. Me and 4 dogs!

He and Paris came to work with me, and both enjoy hanging out on the big dog bed.
Snoozing away the afternoon is fun after a long morning of non-stop play.

Paris gives up the bed for some cool tile time.





Yesterday my leader got a new puppy. He is a 14 week old Golden Retriever all the way from New Zealand! Guide Dogs got both him and his sister, pictured below. She was on her way to Colorado and her new raising home. Tomorrow my leader will be putting Bracken on the truck to head off to Guide Dogs in CA.

Pretty little girl...she is almost all white!


And introducing.........the puppy who walked off the truck all by himself..........

The pup who can have his own theme song....

ELVIS!

He seems like a very fun pup and a great addition to our club!