October-April

From October through the end of April: Rafferty has grown so much, both Marley and Hugo got their therapy dog certifications, and Hugo has started search and rescue training. Dante hibernated and is now ready for warm weather! Rafferty has been a great puppy and in less than two weeks he will have a younger 'brother' or 'sister' to mentor. I am once again starting a puppy for the high school raising program. We are going to have one busy summer...Rafferty continues to mature, Hugo works on wilderness/cadaver search training, Marley gets started on therapy work (and hopefully Splash dogs!), and a new puppy from Guide Dogs for the Blind joins into the mix.

Spring Time in the Mountains...

Things have been a little crazy around here lately. We had the biggest storm of the season over the past weekend and the dogs enjoyed the snow. I, however, did not enjoy snowblowing the driveway. Though I did get in some pretty amazing powder skiing on April 1st (no joke!). On Tuesday Rafferty got to show off his snow skills by plowing through powder and then knocking me over while I attempted to capture his snow frenzy on camera. Our Paw It Forward package arrived from Natalie and Bob yesterday and the Marley and Hugo had a lot of fun playing with their new throw toy while Rafferty bounded along behind. They were rather irritated when I made them sit and pose for the picture rather than letting them have all of the new treats.

All that powder "skiing" makes for some tired pups at the end of the day.

Leave a comment with the word "Spring" if you would like to particiapte in the Paw it Forward! First 3 will get a gift from the Pack!

Graduation

Friday morning we left bright and early. The car was packed, the dogs were fed, and it was time to leave. We dropped Marley off at my parents house and started on our trip. We were about 30min in when I realized I had forgot my phone! So we backtracked, grabbed my phone, and re-started the trip. We drove through northern Utah, the bottom part of Idaho, and across Oregon. We battled tumbleweeds, drove past many farms, and marveled at the drive through the Columbia River Gorge (getting very excited for rafting and kayaking this summer in the process!). After about 12.5 hours, the last 2 of which were spent in pouring rain, we arrived at the hotel. Exhausted and excited, we went to sleep early.

Saturday morning I woke up early, excited for the day ahead. After a quick breakfast and park session for Rafferty and Hugo we drove to downtown Portland to checkout the sights. We drove around looking at all the cool bridges and finally found a market along the river's edge. It was the Portland Saturday Market. We walked along enjoying the gorgeous morning and looking at the city in general. I grabbed an awesome crepe with Marion Berries while we both ogled the Rogue Brewery booth.



Next we set out to head to Boring and the Guide Dogs for the Blind campus. We arrived right at 11:30 and headed down to the kennel kitchen to check in Rafferty. Next we met up with other raisers in the visitors center and prepared to head over to the dorms to meet our puppies and their new handlers! There were 6 dogs graduating, and with 4 of the raisers being local, there were some larger groups waiting for their reunion. We settled in a corner and waited for Millie and Mike to appear. Other guides walked by, and many happy reunions occurred.

Finally Millie appeared with Mike and an instructor walking down the hall. For this first reunion they have the graduates heel the guide dogs without a harness as they know how excited the dogs will be when seeing their raisers. When Mike reached us I had just enough time for a handshake and "Mike, I am Sarah" before Millie went wild! She was so cute: wiggling, jumping, sniffing, and licking all in a burst of excitement. I sat on the floor for a couple of minutes loving on her. Then she went over to Tom and had another excited reunion. Afterwards we sat down with Mike and just got to know him. Millie is his 6th guide dog over the last 3 decades. He seemed very happy with her, and she with him.






Millie was on a different collar than the other dogs graduating. She only had a martingale because she was just so easy to handle. This is perfect for Mike as he has some other health issues that would not work well with a very strong dog. He kept describing walking with Millie as "taking a relaxing walk in the park." We did formal pictures and then I was left alone with Millie before the actual graduation ceremony. We hung out in a small room with the other raisers and guides while we waited for our chance to go on stage and present our pups. I don't actually remember all that I said. Something about how we always hear about how great of a match GDB makes, and just how amazing it is to see with a pup you had raised. I also joked about people asking me why I was driving 13 hours for a dog graduation and my response that is was not just any dog...it was Millie!

After graduation we hung out and chatted a little more with Mike. I gave Millie her presents (a sterilized bone, Nylabone, and Kong with peanut butter stuffin), and exchanged phones numbers and addresses with Mike so I could send a completed photo album later on. Mike lives just about 2 hours from campus, and by this time his son in-law had arrived to pick him up. We said our final goodbyes, snapped a couple of pictures, and watched Millie walk away.

Afterwards we went down to the kennel kitchen to pick up Rafferty. There I met Martha and Kristin, her current puppy. After chatting and getting the customary picture of the board we headed back to the gift shop, where I met the couple who had volunteered and driven down to pick up Millie and the other "recalled" dogs back in October. Finally, all good-byes said, we headed back into Portland.

There we had a great dinner at the Rogue Brewery public house. We loved the growlers you could buy (they had a lab on them!). Then it was time to go back to the hotel and sleep so we could make the long drive back the next day. Graduation was such an amazing experience...I would not have missed it for the world!!!

In Class!

Thats right, Millie is in Class with her new person. She is in a two week class with her future partner. She is set to graduate next Saturday. Now, something can always happen, but right now she is with her person and in the final stretch to becoming a Guide Dog! I am working to figure out how I will get there...either fly or drive. My first graduate, I am so excited! What do you do when you find out your pup is in class?

Some Sunday Stills

Birthday Outing

Sunday was Hugo's 3rd birthday. In light of his special day we took all the dogs on a hike. Fun was had by all: Hugo played with his frisbee, Rafferty played in the snow, and Marley found a deer pelvis. Yup, that's right, not just a leg or a joint, but the whole pelvis, with vertebrae still attached. Rafferty turned 6 months on Monday and continues to be a great pup, even if he does like to wake me up at the same time on weekends. Here are some pictures from our fun day!

Thank you Mimi for the help on getting the "Big Pictures". I love it!

Phase 10

Millie is in Phase 10. Of 10. Time to start looking at graduation dates and make sure I keep those weekends clear. Of course something could still happen...but I am so excited!!!!

Millie is my first phase 10!!