The Puppy Raising Journey

Introducing...

2012-01-15T10:06:00.000-08:00

KATRINA!

Suzanne/Jenkins 10.8.11 Right Shoulder Female Yellow Lab

Happiness is a warm [guide dog] puppy.

There is something about being handed a warm, squiggling bundle of fur that makes everything seem right with the world. Thursday was quite the memorable day for me. Knowing that I was driving over to Guide Dogs right after school got out, it was such a long day. My friends probably got sick of me talking about my little Ms. K every minute (I kinda got carried away looking up my pup's parents and grandparents and greatgrandparents.. It just so happens that I know the breeder keeper of my pup's grandfather, Russo,.. my friends don't exactly see the excitement in that news).. but new puppy thoughts definitely took precedence over atomic theory and chemistry equations :)

At Guide Dogs I waited not-so-patiently for my new puppy. In the kennel kitchen I saw the bag with "Katrina" on it. I love this pretty name. When I got my puppy assignment for letter "K" I was worried Guide Dogs might name a dog "Kat" haha- it was a close call!

Waiting with me in the kennel kitchen was my family and Don's owner. As you may remember, Don (my first puppy) was career changed and adopted by his instructor at Guide Dogs. It is the perfect home for him and we've stayed in touch.

So, there was quite a large crowd waiting for little Katrina to arrive.... Time never passes so slowly than when waiting for a guide dog puppy... then the door swung upon and a tech walked in carrying my puppy in her arms. She asked for someone strong to hold her, she so was so big. But fr 13 weeks, she's a petite little girl.

Puppy love is like no other! Katrina put her paws on my chest and gave me a big kiss :) What a sweetheart. She was so happy to be pet and cuddled in my arms- it was adorable. She is a beautiful color- more of a tawny, golden color; her coloring is pretty similar to Don's when he was a pup. She's got a little pink spot on her lips that looks like lipstick, the softest ears, and a tiny speckled nose.

Katrina was a bit shell-shocked out in the "real world". Above, the guide dog puppy "veterans" check out the new guy :) Do you recognize the dog on the left? It's Don! (now Sanford). It was great to see him and have him meet Katrina. Don still does the same happy dance with his ears :)

Back at home, I discovered what a little cuddlebug Katrina is! She wants to be with you every second, with her head on your lap or (her favorite) sitting on your lap and staring right at you... like "hey, lets have a talk!".

So far, she hasn't been very mouthy (knock on wood!). We've been working on pottying on command (today I think we're finally getting there!) and sit (she's so cute- she sits and then when you tell her "good job" she gets so happy she runs to you and plops herself on your lap :D ).

She is such a little cutie! But put her on a tie down or in her crate, and you will hear it! She's quite the vocal little girl.. we're working on it though. As hard as it is to ignore her adorableness, I think we will need some more "ignore the adorable puppy!" sessions.

Above, I think Katrina finally realized that the "tie-down monster" wasn't going to eat her :) She was a tired puppy after her first day at home, and slept soundly through the night.

Saturday morning, Katrina attended her first puppy meeting. She was a very good girl. She has a softer personality, but was fine being in new surroundings. She got to meet Bella, a 10 week old black lab puppy; they were so cute together!

Then, on to her first outing- Panera Bread! Our group of 4 adorable puppies was quite the attraction in the restaurant. Lots of people came up to pet Katrina, and she did great. She was so exhausted that she fell right asleep, next to her "mentor" France, a 1 year old black lab. Good dogs!

Back at home, Katrina was not very happy to be put on her tie down.

But she soon fell fast asleep!

A tired puppy is a good puppy :)

We're having a lot of fun together!

She is a sweetheart and I'm looking forward to a wonderful year together. Let the puppy raising journey begin, round 2!

Puppy Assignment!

2012-01-12T11:51:00.000-08:00

Suzanne/Jenkins 10.8.11 "K"

I'm so excited for my new puppy! I can't even tell you how much I've missed puppy breath :) In a couple hours I will have my new pup :) Get ready for a photo filled post!

I'M GETTING A NEW PUPPY!!!

2012-01-01T17:52:00.000-08:00

Sooo I might not have been the best blogger these past couple months, but I'M BACK... and I will have a new puppy to raise in 2 weeks! Long story short, this past year was rather hectic with school, sports, and my other animal/vet volunteer activities. I was hoping to get a new pup right after Don left but things were just too busy. Luckily, thanks to puppysitting, I wasn't always puppy-less :) As the title of the post might suggest, I am so excited to be raising a puppy again :) I can't imagine a better way to kickoff 2012!

More details are on the way! Plus some good news about Don, pics of the puppies I've been sitting, and.. best of all.. my puppy assignment! (maybe a name game/ contest too)

Stay tuned!

Happy 2nd Birthday, Don!

2011-05-08T00:28:00.000-07:00

Happy 2nd Birthday Don! I can't believe its been 2 years since this special boy came into the world!

A Different Kind of Happy Ending

2011-04-29T16:36:00.000-07:00

It's been a couple weeks now since I got the call from my leader that Don was career changed. It came as such a shock; after passing phase 8, being deemed class ready, and performing as the 'demo dog' at a GDB graduation, I had little doubt my big boy would be up on the stage in a few weeks... but things didn't work out that way. Hearing that news was devastating- I felt drained and exhausted. I couldn't think of anything but the words career change over and over; it was all over- Don wouldn't be matched with a blind person, Don wouldn't change someone's life, I wouldn't get to hand his leash over or watch him walk off guiding someone...

But as my mind cleared up, as the reality of things set in, and as things got a little less muddy, I saw the "woulds"... Don would go on to change someone's life (and already has :D ), Don would be happy, Don would continue to be a positive example of, and advocate, for GDB, Don would being doing what HE loves and what HE wants to do, and that Don would make a very good pet for someone. And when I found out who that someone would be, I couldn't have been any happier.

At first, Don's career change was upsetting. It was hard news to hear. GDB said he was inconsistent with dog distractions- some days he was perfect, and others he needed a strong handler to stay in line. In the end, it was Don who decided, he decided guiding was just a little too hard, and that's OK.

I didn't reach the ultimate goal. The truth hurts like crazy, that Don will never be a guide dog. But I know that the process of raising Don was success in itself.

I'm so proud of Don- he passed his tests, he was demo dog.. I couldn't be happier with the effort Don put into his training. These past 6 months, as Don rose higher and higher on the phase report, picturing him working in harness always brought a smile to my face. Though I never saw him training at GDB, I know who Don is, and I know how hard he always tried. What I asked from him wasn't easy, and I could tell that he was giving it all he had. I couldn't ask for any more than that.

Sometimes things don't go as expected- it is heartbreaking to let go from the dream of Don up there on the stage at GDB, harnessed next to his new blind partner, but I need to move on. I didn't have the experience of giving a guide dog to someone firsthand, but Don's impact on me and the community is just as important. Maybe this experience of letting go is just as important. When I think of Don, I think of the strapping big boy who was always up for learning something new, I think of my classmates who continue to ask about Guide Dogs and getting involved, I think of the disabled man who shook my hand, who's "thank you" was the most touching I've ever heard. Don didn't need to become a guide dog to impact everyone around him- all he needed was to be himself- whether that was a guide or pet.

You don't always reach your ultimate goal. Don helped me to understand that. Don was so so close, and I am SO proud of him for that. He didn't become a guide, but I've realized that raising him was a lot more than that. He taught me how to teach, how to work hard, how to face a challenge, and I'll love him forever for that.

The choice to have Guide Dogs place Don was a difficult decision. I am so grateful for GDB and their placement department, because Don ended up exactly where he belongs. Last week, I reviewed news that Don was adopted by an instructor at GDB! I was ecstatic. A person who works at Guide Dogs, has an active lifestyle, and owns another CC guide dog, I can't think of a more perfect home for this dog. Today I received news from her about the new member of their family- Don. As I read about him going to work at GDB everyday, playing with his new doggy friend, and doing his "happy dance" for breakfast, I can't imagine a better home and life for him.

The end to my journey with Don was different than expected— but it is just as perfect. I think of Don playing with another dog, being an "ambassador" for GDB as a career change dog, and loving life as a pet dog... I can't even describe how happy I am to know that Don is where he belongs. Thank you Guide Dogs, thank you to Don's new owners, and thank you to all of you for your continuos support throughout our journey. I have my fingers crossed that I will be started the journey with another new puppy sometime soon!

Don as Demo Dog at a Guide Dogs Graduation :)

He's Class Ready!!

2011-02-12T22:42:00.000-08:00

I was SO SO SO happy to find out that Don passed phase 8!!! It definitely made my day! I am so excited for Don and hope to see him sometime soon at graduation :) :)

Love you Don!! I'm so proud of you and all your hard work :D You're going to make an awesome guide.

Don Update!

2011-01-29T11:39:00.000-08:00

Don's in phase 8 this week! It's getting so exciting and I couldn't be happier :) Go, Don, go! I know he's having a great time working in the busy SF streets, navigating around cars, and doing advanced guidework. and I think he'd make an awesome guide :)

I'm having a great time puppysitting Missy during the week. She is such a sweet little girl and has been doing so well. She already knows sit and just LOVES people. She follows us around the room and when I sit on the floor, she'll crawl into my lap. ahh how I love baby puppies :D I got to puppysit Silky a couple weeks ago and had a great time with her, too. And before that, I had Nougat for the holidays. I miss being a full time puppy raiser, but puppy sitting is great for now.

Sweet little 8 week old Missy. Don't you love her calm, loving expression? She is such a smart puppy.

Missy enjoyed playing with the Jollyball (Missy in a sit, with the Jollyball rope in her mouth).

It's hard to tell in these photos, but she is sooo tiny. She's been sleeping a lot and makes all these cute little puppy grunting noises.

Sweet Nougat- she did a great job at my house!

Unfortunately, I don't have any Silky pictures, but she was super good and went on an all day shopping trip with me!

and.. a post couldn't be complete without a picture of Don. Keep it up, big boy! I love you and I hope you know how proud I am of you :)

The first of many Missy pictures

2011-01-19T22:28:00.001-08:00

Samuel/Lani litter puppysittee!

2011-01-18T16:59:00.000-08:00

I am no longer puppyless— for 3 weeks! As many of you know, Lani and Samuel had a litter. A raiser in our club is the breeder keeper for Samuel and just received her new pup. However, due to the Parvo outbreak at GDB (if you haven't heard about it, please view their website) their little girl has to be quarantined for 21 days... so, when her raiser goes to work during the week, I'm the lucky one who gets puppy breath :D :D I'll be writing a huge update about this little girl later tonight, but for now...

Welcome to Mt. Tam Guides MISSY!

(adorable pictures to come soon- this girl is so sweet and is just melting my heart... And at only 7 1/2 weeks she's doing DYB great. such a cuddle-bug I AM IN LOVE )

Happiness is Phase Report Thursdays

2011-01-06T22:13:00.000-08:00

Don's in phase 6 this week! :) Go Don! gooood boy

I miss this big handsome guy but I couldn't be more proud of him. Don's brothers Diablo, Delaware, and Donner are doing awesome too!

More to come later about my recent puppysits. I hope everyone had a happy new year and holiday season.

Quick Don Update :D

2010-12-16T21:44:00.001-08:00

Again, sorry I have been such a blogging slacker! Finals have eaten up all my spare time :) No puppy yet.. .though I am doing a lot of puppysitting and other fun things with the club. Just thought I'd update you on Don's progress- he's in Phase 4 this week and I couldn't be happier!! His brothers have all just arrived, too- the D litter boys must be having a fun time at GDB!

Mt. Tam Guide Dogs Website!

2010-11-11T13:49:00.000-08:00

It's been three weeks since Don left now. I miss having a pup in the house! Recall wasn't easy, but I knew Don was ready for the next step. He was so excited when he got there, which helped. I think he's having a good time at GDB :) He's still in phase 0, as of last week. I was starting to get worried, but apparently how the timing worked out with the number of instructors, he just wasn't able to get assigned to a string. My leader said he should be assigned an instructor by this week- I guess I'll find out when we get the phase report today.

My school has Veterans day off today, so I got to spend the whole morning finishing the website I made for the Mt. Tam Guide Dogs Puppy Raising Club. I started in a long time ago, in summer, and I hadn't had the chance to work on it for awhile. I think it turned out pretty well. The address is http://mttamguidedogs.yolastie.com/ I'd love it if you would check it out and tell me what you think!

Sorry I haven't been getting around to any blogs lately! I'm looking forward to getting back to blogging. I'm going to be doing some puppysitting until I can get back to raising. Hope everyone is doing well!

Less than a week...

2010-10-12T16:33:00.001-07:00

...until my big boy goes back for formal training. On Sunday we'll be driving Don to Guide Dogs and I will say my final goodbyes. I felt like these 1 1/4 years with Don went by so fast. I remember picking up Don and thinking how it would be a long, long, time away when he went back. Now, we're only 5 days from recall day. I know I'm going to miss his a ton- the way his ears go back and he gets all wiggly when I come home from high school, his adventurous spirit, his beautiful brown eyes and big black nose, his big puppy kisses, I could go on and on. Most importantly, I love how Don tries his very hardest and gaives being a puppy in training his all, even when it's hard. Maybe he doesn't ignore the dogs every single time, maybe he steals an object every now and then, but he has come SO far and every time I work with him, I can see his will and effort to do the best his big, confident self can.

Don, I hope you have a great time in formal training. I love you and my greatest hope is whether you are happy wherever you end up, and I know Guide Dogs will make sure of that. Don, thank you for the best year ever!

Above: Don at my volleyball game last week. He's a big fan :D

I hope to post everyday until Don's recall. A couple of questions- any tips for recall day? and for those of you who have raised GDB puppies, how do you do the "Fun Things About My Puppy" sheet? Can you attach other pages?

I have so much to write about; more will come later. I think Don is ready for formal training and really hope he makes it as a guide.

Go DON!

I'm Still Alive :)

2010-09-14T23:35:00.000-07:00

No worries- I'm still blogging, I just haven't had much time lately with fall sports. I'm really sorry I haven't gotten around to commenting on any blogs- hopefully sometime soon. I really miss it! This weekend I am hoping to have a good chunk of time to write about all our MANY adventures this month- from Don going to a horse farm with the puppy club, helping out at a fundraiser, going to Tahoe (with Don!), and so much more! As for Don's recall date, my leader is guessing early October, so we still have some time together to work on a couple things and get those guide dog skills polished! Don's maturing into a nice boy, and he had an awesome time at Lake Tahoe.

more to come...

Puppy meeting! (and new puppy Danelle)

2010-08-15T20:31:00.001-07:00

Saturday was puppy class, so we headed off to Guide Dogs. We got there a little early so Don could play with Silky (she has a blog now). Nougat and Quebec were there too! Don didn't get much playtime in, but he had a fun time running with Silky and playing tug with Nougat. Isn't Nougat an awesome name? And she's the color of nougat! (above, Don sits next to the grape vine on our porch)

Silky taking a break in the shade.

Don get's all his puppy energy out in a battle of tug with Silky.

Nougat galloping across the play yard, ears flapping and tongue hanging out. Isn't she cute?

Nougat :) The only one who would smile for the camera. GOOD GIRL!

The puppy class was excellent- the theme was "a walk in the park". We practiced taking left and right turns with our dogs, without any verbal cue, to teach them to be more attentive.

I was so proud of Don! He did really well- there is hope yet for his dog distractions!! Actually, he really wasn't dog distracted. He's always been great at turning and stopping- but I was a bit nervous about how he'd do with tons of other dogs around him. ... and, we had to do the exercise with the leash on the flat collar. I had visions of Don pulling in the direction of other dogs; of me correcting like crazy! but, have no fear... Don was great :) He turned when I turned, ignored the other dogs, and stopped the second I stopped. He did well when another raiser handled him, too.

While Don was walking with another raiser, I got to work with Danelle (sp?) (Dagan's sister!) who was just transferred to our club. She was really sweet, and did great as well! She ignored the other dogs and had some pretty awesome turns!

Overall, puppy class was great! Don's 15 months now!- which means he's going back soon- possibly even September :( I'm starting school next week, so I'm not sure if Don will be going for a while. The other day, I had a school orientation, and my mom had forgotten that she had jury duty. So, Don went to jury duty with my mom! She said he settled well :)

I can't wait for the next puppy class- it's going to be at a horse farm!

Check out this new GDB blog!

2010-08-14T09:52:00.000-07:00

i guys, just wanted to share with you a new GDB puppy raiser blog. Silky's raiser, who is in my puppy club, has started blogging! Her blog is "Puppy Raising in Point Richmond". She also raised Maren, a female black lab who was career changed. So, go check it out and welcome them to the puppy-raising blogging world :) Their blog is awesome and photo-filled. Do you remember Silky? I puppysat her awhile ago and she is also Don's favorite puppy pal! She goes on many adventures, you can read about her latest outing to Cal.

(Silky when I puppysat her)

I am no longer puppyless; all is well!

2010-08-08T20:51:00.000-07:00

After a fun week in San Diego, I am back and have my puppy again! With the Give a Day, Get a Disney Day program, my family and I got free tickets to Disneyland for volunteering with Guide Dogs :) It was a fun vacation, though it felt really weird going places without a dog. The other day I wore my "Ask Me About My Puppy" shirt from Fun Day, and then I realized I had no puppy with me! One guy said, "so, what about your puppy??" oops.

Don was at the GD kennels for the later half of the week, so we went to the puppysitters house first to pick up his stuff, then headed to GDB. Don did really well at the puppysitters. Of course, he had his Don moments (eating tanbark in the yard) but I was glad to hear that he played well with their career change dog Bente, and they said he was super on outings! And they said he was very quiet, good on tie-down and crate. He really loves dogs, they said he had a blast playing with Bente and that they got along well.

A question for you- how do you stop your dog from picking up tanbark, grass, etc. in the yard? I usually don't let him in the yard, only on-leash when practicing his "come". But, they said he was picking up stuff in their yard, so now I am wondering if I should let him out in the yard more often and work on not picking stuff up. Any suggestions?

Without a puppy, I had lots of time to work on my club's website. Below is the logo I've been working on. I think it's finished now!

Don was really happy to see me :) He had his "happy ears" on. Unfortunately, Don is having some diarrhea trouble since I picked him up. I am hoping it'll be better tomorrow, if not I think I'll put him on the bland diet.

I'm glad to have my puppy back! Don got a bath, so now he smells like Mango Tango shampoo. He's had a fun time with his new Kong, and is exhausted now. With only one more week of summer left, I'm hoping that Don and I will go on lots of great outings!

Super fun, photo filled, FUN DAY 2010 post!!

2010-08-04T11:36:00.001-07:00

Don and I had an awesome Fun Day!! What can I say, but it was FUN!! really, really, really fun :) This was my second fun day, but first fun day with a puppy! Last year, I was out of town, which was pretty sad considering I live so close to GDB! To kick off the Fun Day celebrations, I attended the Follow the Trainer. It was really cool being able to see how they train the dogs in formal training. I never knew how the guide dogs are expected to walk from curb to curb and it was really neat seeing them teach "Left" "Right" and "Hop up". First I saw Apple, who did really well. The trainer was really impressed with her performance (it was her first lesson!), and she seemed so happy and eager to please. I never knew how fast the guide dogs go! Don is going to like that :) I also saw Dex, who was a huge, handsome black lab, and Salsa (isn't that a great name?).

It was a pretty hectic afternoon for me after the Follow the Trainer because I needed to pack for my vacation to San Diego (we were leaving right after Fun Day). Miraculously, I managed to get everything done and I got to Fun Day before the opening ceremonies! There were so many presentations, I didn't know what to see first! I watched the opening ceremony (the speeches were great!) then the fun began! I saw photos of Don's parents (Bosworth and Gail). Then I got my green leash from Megan (thank you!), which I love. It gave me something to do in the car ride to San Diego- I broke it in quite a bit!

Above, Don in the car on our way to Fun Day. He was soo tired, but he knew something was up. When we got there, he was so eager to jump out of the car!

Above, Don's father, Bosworth. He definitely got his father's coat!

Above, Don's mom, Gail. Don looks just like her!

I really wanted to see what the vendor booths had, so I headed there. It was SO cool. I was in heaven with all the GDB shirts and puppy raising things! I got a Born to Lead shirt from Mimi and Cabana and Cassie and Dagan, which I LOVE. The graphic is so cool! I also got an "Ask Me About My Puppy Shirt" with all the answers to common questions on the back, which I thought was pretty funny. I got to meet Dagan, which was awesome!

Hi, I'm Don. You must be Dagan!

Don sitting next to Dagan. Isn't Dagan handsome? I loved getting to say hi to him. Thanks to Mimi for taking this photo!

I also got to meet a lot of other people from the blogging world. Standing in line for lunch, I ran into Sarah with Rafferty, Mandy with Cancun, and Megan with Kyle!! I also met Kaytlynn with Ryder (he is SO handsome and sweet). Later, I met Halette and Tenaya! And of course, Don wanted to say hi to Silky from my club.

Don with Rafferty, Cancun, and Kyle as we waited in line for the BBQ lunch.

I think the highlight of the day for me (and Don) was getting to meet his littermates. I was having a bit of trouble finding Don's litter, but then two GIANT black lab look-alikes walked towards us, and I knew they had to be Don's brothers. Sure enough, they were. Delaware and Diablo look so similar. And they all have the big heads (apparently Bosworth is known for his head :) ). Don was actually the smallest one there (Diablo was 85 pounds!!) but Don had the biggest head.

It was so cute- Don, Delaware, and Diablo got so excited. I think they remembered each other. Above, Don and Delaware are both doing their "happy ears". It must be a family trait!

Don: I've missed you sooo much! Above, Don displays some brotherly love and happiness :)

It was really nice meeting some of Don's littermates. Dinah's raisers were there too, but they just happened to be on vacation and didn't have Dinah with them. Dinah sounds really sweet.

I talked with the other raisers, who were all really nice. Delaware and Diablo are both really calm dogs, and all the dogs like to lay on their back in really funny positions! It also appeared that dog distractions are a family trait :) They sound like really great dogs.

Diablo

Delaware- doesn't he look just like Don (well, minus the black coat...)

It was sad to leave, but we plan on staying in touch. Don gave everyone a goodbye kiss. Good luck to the Bosworth/Gail "D" litter as they enter formal training within the next few months!

The fun day activities were great. I really liked the Juno walk. I'd always wondered what it felt like to hold a harness. And of course, I had to look at all the adorable puppies in the kennels.

Can't wait for next years fun day! I wonder what the theme will be?

Check out this new GDB blog!

2010-07-30T16:22:00.000-07:00

Hi guys, just wanted to share with you a new GDB puppy raiser blog. Silky's raiser, who is in my puppy club, has started blogging! Her blog is "Puppy Raising in Point Richmond". She also raised Maren, a female black lab who was career changed. So, go check it out and welcome them to the puppy-raising blogging world :) Their blog is awesome and photo-filled. Do you remember Silky? I puppysat her awhile ago and she is also Don's favorite puppy pal! She goes on many adventures, you can read about her latest outing to Cal.

(Silky when I puppysat her)

My Best Friend (by Don)

2010-07-29T19:31:00.000-07:00

Everyone needs a best friend....

Someone to sniff grass with

and run and run and run

Someone who delights in chewing your jowls and doesn't mind when you pounce on them

and will roll in the dirt with you

and cool off with you

if you are lucky, they might rub your belly when you roll over

Someone who you can sneak attack and roll over on the ground,

and she will still be your friend

Someone who you can steal toys from!!

Someone who you can play chase with and will never, ever tire!

Thanks for being my best friend, Silky!! That was a fun playdate :)

pant, pant, pant... I guess I am sorta tired :)

Lauren: Don and I are busy getting ready for Fun Day! Only 1 more day- we can't wait! Tomorrow I get to do the follow the trainer, so that should be fun!

Almost forgot- I took this cute picture of Don in his cowboy gear.

He didn't like the hat though, so I won't make him wear it to fun day. It sure looked good on him, though! :)

Training at the Airport!

2010-07-28T14:14:00.000-07:00

My brother was leaving for a trip yesterday, so I took Don so he could experience the sights and sounds of the airport. He did really well, walking through the airport and waiting in line while my brother checked in his luggage. I didn't think I'd get to go past security, but the lady gave my mom and I escort passes, so we could go with my brother. I was so happy that Don would get to experience security check! (Below, Don sits calmly as lots of people and suitcases go by)

In my excitement that Don would get to go through the beeping metal detector, I forget to take out my cell phone and bait bag. oops. The metal detector didn't phase Don- he walked right through- and then we waited in this little room for them to scan both of us (Don's collar had set off of the metal detector). Don waited patiently in a down while they checked me. I was actually glad I had left everything in my pockets because Don got to hear the beeping a lot which was good for him to experience.
Above, Don waits calmly next to a security officer. They checked Don next. Much to my dissapointment, they didn't scan him, but they padded him down. Don was great- he wagged his tail but stayed in the "stand" position, and was very happy about the attention he was getting.

Above, Don does a nice down stay inside the airport. I walked him through the terminal and he got to see a man pushing a ton of luggage carts, a couple rolling trashcans, and lots of people! He was a good boy :)

To end Don's visit to the airport, we stopped at the baggage claim so Don could watch some luggage go round and round. It was a great outing- and really tired him out :)

Don Visits the California Academy of Sciences

2010-07-27T19:59:00.001-07:00

The other day, I took Don with me to spend the day at the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco. This is a really neat museum- it is in a giant, beautifully designed building with an eco friendly green roof. There is an aquarium, rainforest dome, planetarium, and more! My favorites are the Philippine Coral Reef and Elephant-Nosed Fish (no kidding- they have really long noises that look like an elephant's!). It was a great experience for Don with all the people, and he handled it like a pro! He stayed really focused the entire time, and did a great job of navigating the crowds. It's really nice having Don with me- the crowd seems to part when Don walks through :)

Understandably, Don was not allowed in the exotic bird/butterfly aviary, so Don and I walked around the exhibits while my family went inside. The staff there were really nice about having Don there- they were really sorry he couldn't come in and even offered to take him to their kennel facilities (but Don and I were fine with going to another exhibit). Above, Don is sitting underneath some giant prehistoric mammal (I think that's what it is...).

Don could definitely see the fish. He liked watching the staff feed these giant catfish.

Above, Don watches the waves in the Pacific Ocean sea life tank. Poor Don- he wanted to go for a swim!

Next we saw the albino alligator then walked downstairs to the aquarium. Don was great at the stairs!

Don with the Philippine Coral Reef in the background

Me holding Don in front of the fish tank.

They had this little tunnel you could walk through, so Don and I went in. On the other side, you are in this glass sphere, and you can look up and see all the tropical fish. Don was more interested in the air vent than the fish though.

What's that?? Don saws these two fish (I think they are Angel Fish) and it caught his attention. It was pretty cute :)

They had a bridge that went over the entry way of the museum, so I took Don and it didn't phase him. Later we went to the planetarium (again, they were really nice about Don and showed me where a seat was with extra room for him to stretch out). Don was pretty tired for the long day, and fell fast asleep while I watched the show Journey to the Stars. It was amazing- it actually felt like I was moving and you could see all the stars and planets in 3D.

Don and I both had a fun time!! We'll be back again.

Sleepyhead :)

2010-07-27T00:32:00.000-07:00

Jelly Belly Fun Day and Amici!

2010-07-23T19:40:00.001-07:00

Don and I woke up early yesterday (...well, 7:30— early for summer) and headed off to Fairfield for the Solano County Puppy Raiser's Fun Day at Jelly Belly. I've been looking forward to this for quite a while- would could be better than Guide Dogs and candy? It was so much fun! If you haven't been to the Jelly Belly factory, you should go! It's a pretty cool building, with giant Jelly Bellys hanging from the ceiling and free factory tours.

Don was really tired in the car on the way there. He's used to waking up a 10, and wasn't too happy about his sleep being interrupted.

He rested his big head on the floor, then on the chair, but couldn't seem to get really comfy. After awhile he made this really cute grunting noise and curled up into a ball.

We got there- checked in- and I got a little booklet that you put stamps in after going to a station. The first station was a man playing a trumpet- Don was pretty interested in this. He wasn't scared though, just curious like hey, what's that? Above is a picture of Don next to the surface station, which I thought was really cool. Don had no problem with that. He seemed to like the POP of the bubble wrap. There was also a kiddie pool, which Don went in and did NOT want to get out. There was a toys station too. Don was really good with all the balls, though he was sort of interested in this one that had a toy ferret on it and moved by itself.

Next- inside for some pictures! Here Don is, sitting on the big Jelly Belly sign.

Don did not want to look at the camera today. See the giant Jelly Belly's on the ceiling? Aren't they cool? :)

Here is Don with the cherry flavored Jelly Belly mascot in the background and a Jelly Belly mural of Ronald Reagan. They said he was a really big fan of Jelly Bellys and had all this memorabilia from him.

These pictures where taken when I had just arrived, pretty early in the morning. There weren't many people then, but it got SO crowded!! It was great for Don, with all the young kids running around and eating. Lots of people pet Don and he stayed really calm. I made the mistake of not taking the tour first thing (the GD activities looked really cool, so I did them first...) An hour later the place was packed- the line went out the doors and even outside! I'd been on the tour before (it was awesome!) so I didn't go :( ...but I got to say hi to all the other GD pups instead.

Don with Mr. Jelly Belly! Of course, he is looking in the complete opposite direction of the camera.

Next, we climbed the candy-pattertermed stairs to the Berry Blue room- where the Guide Dogs event was.

Here's Don with all the Jelly Bellys behind him.

I helped make a fleece puppy tug toy, that are going to be donated to the GDB kennels. Above, Don watches all the other dogs go by as I make a rope toy. Next, Don had his eval with the CFR. Don did really well, looking up at my CFR when he walked Don past the other dogs.

Lunch time at Jelly Belly's cafe! They have these really cool jelly belly shaped pizzas. I was going to take a picture... but, I forget and ate it first. oops.

Don sounds asleep as I eat lunch.

Afterwards, I took Don to the designated dog walking area. How nice of them to have a spot just for relieving your dogs, and there was a water bowl, too!! ... You know you're a puppy raiser when you get excited about designated doggy relieving areas- and take pictures of them :)

Look at all those different flavors! That's the sample bar.

Here's Don in the shop- he was a really good boy!

Though he was a bit distracted by this other puppy in training. I believe her name is Tika.

Don in the shop- waiting patiently as I get some orange sherbet Jelly Bellys :)

Belly Flops are the "reject" jelly beans- they're too big or stuck together and they sell them in bulk half off.

Mr. Jelly Belly!

We were taking Amici back to the kennels for the Puppies with a Plan Club. When we met up with the club leader to pick him up, I met Erin and Rocco!!! Her blog is My Time As A GDB Puppy Raiser. Rocco is such a handsome, sweet boy. Don enjoyed saying hi to him.

It was really good for Don (with his dog distraction issues) to have to settle in the car while there was another dog. He did a really good job. Amici was such a sweet boy. It was nice to have a cuddly puppy :) Amici was so calm, too! And he had a blast playing with Don's nylabone wishbone.

Here they are sniffing each other in the car ride back to the GDB kennels.

I think Don got a little jealous- here he is resting his head on my seat.

Don and Amici.

Not only was Amici so sweet and cuddly- he smiles for the camera!! I like this dog a lot!

It was a fun car ride with the two pups. We got sort of lost, and Don accidentally knocked over the bag of Jelly Bellys- but we made it :) I dropped Amici off at the kennels- he seemed pretty excited- and then I looked at all the adorable 7 wk or younger puppies. There was a golden retriever litter there (it was Pebble's litter)- they are beautiful and so fluffy!!

Don and I had great time! It's less than a week till FUN DAY!! YES!

Nerice's Graduation and Upcoming Jelly Belly Event

2010-07-22T15:07:00.000-07:00

Last weekend, Don and I went to Guide Dogs to watch a dog from our club, Nerice, graduate. It was a great graduation; the speeches were all so nice and I loved seeing Nerice walk with her new partner. I got to puppysit Nerice a long time ago, before I had Don, and she was so sweet. She'd sleep and sleep, and walked so nicely on a loose leash. I remember a couple months ago at a meeting, our leader asked her raisers if they were having any troubles with her and they said, She sleeps too much! I wouldn't mind having a pup with that problem :)

Above is Nerice, her new partner, and her puppy raisers up on the stage. I don't know if you can see Nerice, she is sort of hidden behind the rail, but she looked so grown up in her harness!

Don was very excited to sit next to his Guide Dog pals Silky, Primrose, Honeydew, Sherman, and Quebec. Here he is, looking at Silky. Don got to spend a couple of days with Silky- they are the best of friends and are so cute when they say hi to each other!

Afterwards, we all went over to the GDB play yards- they are awesome! Don got to play with Primrose (who's a little older than Don) and Silky. Here is Don putting his paw on Silky, while Primrose runs off to find a bone.

Don panting after running, and running, and running!!! I love how his forehead is almost always wrinkly :)

Primrose. Isn't she cute? I love that look on her face, hey, look at my bone. She found it in the grass and was so pleased with herself. Primrose is such a sweet girl. She didn't seem very excited about playing with Don and Silky, she was content to chew her bone in peace :)

Above, Silky shows Don a rope that she found. They had a fun time stealing each other's toys.

CHARGE! Don and Silky run into each other and play.

I've been working on a website for my puppy club. I needed a picture for the "Links" page, so I took this one of Don on my laptop.

He makes a very cute business-dog, don't you think?

Don sits for the camera before we head out on an outing to the farmers market. I love his big, wrinkly eyebrows... he always looks worried though. Don had a fun time today, we walked around the farmers market (which was a great training experience with all the food and kids). Then, we walked around San Rafael- and even saw a couple of guide dogs in formal training!

I'm so excited for the Guide Dog Jelly Belly FunDay tomorrow. It is being hosted by the Solano County Puppy Raisers, and there will be free factory tours, a puppy wading pool, pictures of your pup with Mr. Jelly Belly (!!!), and best of all, free samples :) It's from 9:30 to 3:30 at Jelly Belly in Fairfield. If you're on facebook, there is more info on their page. Is anyone going?

Yum...

I'll be taking lots of photos to put on my blog!

Awesome Green Leash Giveaway!

2010-07-18T21:17:00.000-07:00

Megan is doing another green leash giveaway- yay! Her blog is about her guide dog in training, Picassa. These leashes look so cool- they are service dog type leashes and braided for extra strength. Also, they can adjust to two different lengths.

Don't they look great? And, she'll even make one for you in other colors- blue, red, green, or black. So, go check it out!!

Em-Bark-Adero- Guide Dogs Galore!

2010-07-16T13:42:00.000-07:00

Guide Dog's Em-Bark-Adero event was great! I got to meet lots of puppies, guide dogs, volunteers, alumni, and I got the chance to talk to people about puppy raising. The traffic getting into the city was pretty bad, and we had the hardest time figuring out the new electronic parking meters, but we eventually got there. By this time, I was SO excited. It was sort of like a mini Fun Day— and there were 7 1/2 week old puppies!!!

We got to the Epic Roasthouse, and it was already crowded. It seemed like most of the people were Guide Dog alumni or volunteers. Don and I walked around all the dogs- it was really good practice for him. For some reason, he is barely distracted by GDB dogs. Probably because most of them weren't interested in him... Don and I mingled with the crowd, looking for someone to explain the puppy raising program to. Later on, people started coming in. I talked to this one lady, who asked me when I would get to sell Don to a blind person (???) So, I spent quite awhile explain the whole program to her, and how Guide Dogs gives clients their dogs free of charge :)

Don and I said hello to Primrose (14 1/2 mo.) and Pantene (5 mo) who are in our puppy club. Both are such sweet girls!

Then, I got to see Mars again! When I was dropping Don off at the kennels the other day, I saw 8 wk old Mars and his new raiser. He is such a cutie- look at that sweet little face and big black nose :) Above, Pantene says hi to Mars while Don and Primrose look on.

Then it was Don's turn to meet baby Mars. Don was a very good boy- no play bowing or pulling!

This handsome boy is Quebec (don't you love his name?). He's only 7 months old, and almost bigger than Don! His feet are giant and he's got this really cute pink spot under his nose.

The restaurant was located right by the bay bridge, next to the water. My brother took this nice photo of Don by the bridge.

Don and I enjoyed talking to a very nice lady and her guide dog, Donna. Don got to meet Donna :) It was so cool watching Donna guide her partner through the VERY crowded event. It was fun talking to her about her guides and the training she does with them on a daily basis.

Here is a close up of Donna- out of harness. She's a really pretty girl!

Every half hour they had a clicker training/guidework demo. This was really neat to watch! Above is the guide dog in formal training they were working with. She did a great job stopping at the fences and walking in a perfect straight line. It was amazing how she'd follow a line, then detour around and object and go right back to the line she was walking on.

My leader was the lucky one who got to hang out with the puppies :) I think they were the highlight of the event- everyone wanted their picture taken with one. They were "J" puppies- I can only remember two names, Jaguar and Jeanette.

This is Sherman, the only golden in our club. He is 3/4 golden and his parents were CCI's Alijah and GDB's Brazil. I just found out he is Butler's brother (if you follow the Raising Miracles blog). He looks nothing like Butler.

Above is one of the puppies who were playing in the x-pen. She was really tired by the end of the day- and fell asleep in my leader's arms.

"J" puppy meets golden retriever Jingle. CUTE!

Next, I said hi to Ricki from Growing Up Guide Pup. I love her pink gentle leader :) I had never followed the series before, but she was handing out cards about the videos. I watched one the other day and it was great!! I couldn't believe what I had been missing!

I'm not sure who this guide dog is (possibly Bamboo) but I love this picture with the little kid saying hello.

The next training demo showed how Guide Dogs uses clicker training. The trainer was showing the dog how to "Find the Chair". I couldn't believe it- after only a couple times he had the command down! And he hadn't even been introduced to it before! It was really cool- the dog would race to the chair and tap it with his noise. It was funny because all the working Guide Dogs started perking their ears up and even drooling. Even Don seemed interested- I think he'll do well with the clicker :)

Above, Quebec watches the clicker training demo.

Afterwards, we met an amazing guide dog and his amazing partner- golden retriever Will and "M". You may have seen them at a Guide Dogs event before as he is on the speakers bureau. They are such a great pair- and you can just tell that they love each other so much!

Don said hello to Will and "M". Will's harness was taken off and he got to greet everyone. He is one of the happiest dogs I have ever seen. He's pretty old- 8 years. His partner talked about how Will loves to guide, and that when he retires he will join his family and other retired guide dog, Fantom.

When Will's partner said "harness" will walked right into his harness, his tail went down, and he went right to work. He also knew how to "scoot his but" and sat right behind his partner.

It was so amazing to see the special bond between the two of them. Above, Will jumps up and gives his partner a big hug, with a happy smile on his face.

This is what makes puppy raising so worthwhile!

A post about Nerice's graduation and a playdate with Silky and Primrose to come!

A Year Ago Today...

2010-07-13T22:41:00.001-07:00

I picked up "Mr. D" from the GDB kennels. I remember walking into the kennel kitchen, seeing the bag with "Don" written on it, and being handed my first puppy. I could only hold him for a few minutes before I was overtaken by his weight. Today, Don is now 14 months (and 68 lbs!). I swear, this pup doesn't stop growing! At every puppy meeting, people see Don and say, "hey- I didn't think you could get any BIGGER!"

Looking back at the year we've spent together, Don has improved in so many ways. From the headstrong "Mr. Beasty" who'd mouth and mouth away- to the well traveled "big boy" who is so calm on outings, reliable anywhere we go, and a lot better with distractions, Don has definitely matured. But, he will always be Don. Yes, he still isn't that big on affection, and on the occasion decides stealing something would be great fun (but now he drops it when I saw "no")

Today, the official 1 year mark that I have had Don, we went on an outing downtown and Don's accomplishments were so evident. I love how he watches me so carefully, matching my pace exactly. And he's still as confident as ever! Little phases him, even the noisy train that zoomed past us today. We're definitely getting somewhere with all our dog distraction practice, I can tell Don is trying his hardest to look away from the dogs.

Below are some "baby" pictures:

He's begun to show affection in his own "Don" way: resting his head on my lap, giving me "kisses" and doing his "happy ears" when I come home.
In honor of today, a couple of things I love about Don:

1. The adorable little grunting noises he makes in his sleep

2. His size!

3. His sense of adventure- how he's always ready to get outside and GO!

4. His handsome face and coloring

5. How smart he is- I accidentally taught him the word breakfast and dinner; he's also learned to recognize the sounds of our prius beeping and looks around for my mom when he hears it, even if it's not our car :)

6. How fast he charges towards me when he hears the word "come"

7. How excited he gets when he finds someone is hide and go seek or when I bring out his jollyball

8. He is so NOT a morning pup- he wakes up at 11 a.m.- and even then he'd rather stay curled up on his bed. Also, he always stretches 3 times before walking upstairs.

9. His big smile!

Below is me holding Don one morning last year, getting ready to take him out to go potty.

Me: "good morning, Don." Don: grunt, grunt, grrroan (these noises are so cute) This is how Don looks every morning- eyes half closed and curled up into a really tight ball in the back of his cage. [below]: stretching 3 times is a must for Don in the morning!

Who knows where Don will go in the future- whether it be guide, pet, or some other career! Don has improved so greatly, and that's what matters most!

Love you, big boy!

Summer vacation and Fun for Don!

2010-07-11T13:56:00.000-07:00

I've just returned from a long trip to Grand Teton National Park and Yellowstone in Wyoming. It was beautiful- the mountains, wildlife, and lakes were AMAZING! Don couldn't come as puppies in training have to stay within the puppy raising states, so he went to the GDB kennels and the puppysitters. Don is always very happy to go to the puppy sitters- he loves it! He enjoys hanging out with his pal Silky and getting to play, play, play. The Saturday before I left, there was a puppy meeting. A member of the training department came to talk with us and tell us about the different phases. It was really helpful and she talked about everything- from what we can do to prepare our dogs best for training to how GDB matches the dogs. We decided Don would do best with someone who works in a busy city and travels- A LOT :)

Aren't the mountains beautiful? That's Jackson lake below it.

One of the days we went for a hike up Cascade Canyon. You can see Jenny lake and all this wildlife- I saw a moose, marmots, and pikas!

This picture was taken along the North Fork of Cascade Creek, looking back upon the snow-topped Grand Teton mountain range.

I went wading in Leigh Lake (above). Brrr... it was so cold!

We saw this young male moose . . . in the town of Moose! Pretty cool name for a city :) It was lying down right on the sandbar of the Snake River. It was really lazy and didn't want to get up, and kept stretching its neck, trying to eat. The guy next to me (who acted like he was an expert in moose) started telling everyone it was hurt and that a park ranger would come and shoot it (???) so it was pretty funny when it stood up and trotted off.

They are incredibly big! He had really adorable, fuzzy antlers. I've decided that Don looks a lot like a moose.

. . . or maybe even a bison :)

Don got a great report from the puppysitters. He got to go to the club meeting at a marina, and got to board a couple boats. Don and I are SO excited for this week as we will be attending GDB's Em-Bark-Adero event in San Francisco. Its a public event at Epic Roasthouse to raise awareness for Guide Dogs. I'm looking forward to meeting other puppies in training and working guide dogs. Is anyone going? Also, Don (Mr. December) and I are going to help sell GDB's 2011 calendars. I just got mine the other day- it looks great! It was really cool seeing all the puppies I know from blogs.

Below are the pictures from "puppy playtime" before the meeting.

Hey guys, can I join in the fun? Look at me- I'm in the middle!

[Don plays a game of 3-way tug with his pal yellow lab Stefano and BFF black lab Silky]

(pant, pant, pant) that was fun!!

sniff, sniff, sniff... so many doggie smells!

[black lab Desta and her golden friend join in the fun]

I leave you with this photo of extreme cuteness: two chipmunks I saw at Old Faithful in Yellowstone.

Aren't they adorable?

Only 20 more days till Fun Day!!!!

[My] graduation with Don, New Friends, and Hiking!

2010-06-22T11:54:00.001-07:00

Don walked across the stage with me to graduate from middle school- after all, he was a student too. It was sort of a last minute idea, but I thought it would be a great experience with Don with all the people and noises, and he was a big part of the school year for me, and many others. Don was great- though he didn't want to go up on stage at first. (I later realized the steps were really hot- poor guy).

Here is Don and I walking up to the stage. I love how he trots when he walks :)

Don loves the principal- here he is up on stage, getting some love. He got a bit excited. After the graduation, Don said bye to all his friends. I'll probably have Don for the start of high school, and I'm hoping he'll get to go there with me. Don and I are really enjoying summer! I'll be blogging more often- and Don will be going LOTS of places. Don is doing well with his training, though we are still working on his stays and dog distractions. Some days I see great progress- he will walk right past a dog! hurray! but then other days, he will try to play with them.

We had a family reunion for my grandfather's birthday, and Don soaked up all the extra attention. He loved playing with my younger cousin, and enjoyed having a playmate his size. We all went hiking to a lighthouse with great views of the Golden Gate. My cousin was ecstatic when I let him walk Don a ways.

Here is Don at the start of the walk, full of energy and ready to go!

It was a short, downhill hike, but the views were spectacular. Above is Don with the Golden Gate and SF Bay in the background.

There were lots of harbor seals up on the rocks. They are so much fun to watch- but sort of hard to see without binoculars.

We had to cross a suspension bridge (which was so old that only 2 people could go at a time- kind of scary) but Don could not care less. He confidently crossed the swaying bridge, then explored the lighthouse with my family and I.

Then, my younger cousin walked Don for a bit. Don was quite confused and kept looking at me like "what am I supposed to do with such a small handler?" My cousin did a great job handling such a big dog. Both cousin and dog had a fun time. Above, my brother gives my cousin a hand in getting Don in the "let's go" position.

Here is the big, happy boy with my cousin.

On the way home, we stopped at the Marine Mammal Center where I volunteer. We looked at the elephant seals and california sea lions. I'm so glad I get to help care for these fascinating animals.

The busy weekend has made Don very tired. Every night, Don comes into my room and chews his Nylabone before going to bed in his crate. But the other night, he was SO tired. I found him like this- sound asleep on his back. I leave you with a picture of Don's "happy ears". His ears go back like this 1) before any meal 2) when he is meeting someone new, or 3) BELLY RUBS!

(above: Don sitting after his bath, which he was not too happy about) Don and I are looking forward to the puppy meeting this weekend- a GDB trainer is coming to speak!! For those of you who wanted a picture of Samuel, I will talk to his breeder keeper this weekend. I'm sure she'd be happy to give me a photo or two.

Hiking on the Beach with Don!

2010-06-09T19:19:00.000-07:00

A couple weekends ago, Don joined us on a hike along Point Reyes National Seashore. It was a really long hike, but Don was a trooper. He loves long walks! I was slightly worried when we first set foot on the sand, because Don went crazy, spinning around and getting super excited wen his paws sunk into the sand. There were also lots of off leash dogs. The first 5 mins of the hike were quite chaotic, but with the food protocol and some puppy handling to calm him down, he eventually relaxed. He actually walked past dogs without getting too distracted!

Don walked a little ways with my brother, and he was well behaved. I decided to let Don swim a bit, and he had the time of his life! Unfortunately, I forgot the longline, so I had to run around in the water with Don. When it was time to continue our walk, Don was not very happy about getting out of the water- and kept trying to jump back in.

We hiked all the way out to the tidepools and back. The hike was about five hours— Don was getting a bit frustrated in this photo. He was tired of having to walk like a good boy when there was so much water to play in and sand to eat!

Don turned 13 months June 7th! He continues to be a great boy at school- there is nothing better than being in class with a dog resting his head on you!

As much as I enjoy taking Don to school, Don and I are really looking forward to summer. More walks, more outings, and more fun! Can't wait.

Don Rides the Ferry to SF!

2010-06-08T16:20:00.000-07:00

Our puppy raising club went to San Francisco the other weekend and all the pups rode the ferry. I hadn't had the chance to take Don on the ferry, so this was a great experience for him. There were lots of new surfaces, stairs, and loud sounds. Don was so excited to see all his doggy friends, especially Silky (who I puppysat a while back). He also liked seeing her raisers, who usually puppysit him. His tail was wagging so hard! I love Don's "happy ears"- he ears go flat against his ears whenever he gets excited.

Don didn't seem to notice that the ferry was moving. He loved sniffing the air, and licking himself when he got sprayed with the salty water. The ground was really got though, so we had to find a nice shady spot as soon as I took this photo.

This handsome guy is Quebec. I just love his name and he is the sweetest boy. He is giant too; when he is older he might even be bigger than Don.

"Hi, I'm Don! What's your name?" Don meets Stefano (or maybe Quebec?) on the ferry.

Here is Stefano, who is Silky's brother. He is so cute, and a LOT smaller than Don.

Sherman! The only golden retriever in our puppy club, this guy is such an affectionate boy. Behind him is Honeydew, who is being raised by two families. One of her raisers is a nurse at Guide Dogs, which is pretty cool. Don went to work with her when he was 3 months old and had a big fan club- he was so cute at that age with all his puppy wrinkles. Honeydew is so tiny, but she was a champ at the stairs.

There was this one staircase that Don did not want to go down. It was right next to the water, and my leader said that from the angle Don might have thought he was going to fall into the bay. Sherman helped Don conquer the scary stairs, and they both walked down together. Yay for Sherman and Don! (above: Sherman and Don hang out together on the ferry deck)

In San Francisco, we were going to take Don on BART, but decided to eat the delicious food at the Embarcadero Ferry Building instead. We went to Taylors for some great burgers and shakes. Mmmm. Don hung out with Ditto under the table. Afterwards, we went to the plaza where Don explored a fountain, practiced jumping on and off of surfaces, and ignored the bird distractions. Good boy!

Getting ready to board the ferry, here is yellow lab Quebec, Ditto, and Alise.

I had Alise for two weeks when she was really little, before she went to her raisers. At only 3 months old, Alise was an amazing puppy. She was so calm and never pulled on her leash. She went to the perfect home. She goes to school each day (her raiser is a teacher), and she lives with Guide Dog breeder Samuel. She is still very relaxed, and slept the entire boat ride.

Alise and Don saying hi to each other. She is such a pretty girl!

Awww. Puppy kisses.

Poor Quebec was all alone while Don was giving Alise some kisses.

Then Quebec decided it was time to clean Alise's ears for her.

And Don decided to watch the water go by.

Don was so tired when we got home. I think he enjoyed this outing- can't wait to do it again!

San Francisco with Don- Go SF Giants!

2010-06-01T09:28:00.000-07:00

The other weekend, my brother's chorus was performing at the SF Giants baseball game, so I decided to go with Don. It was a great experience for Don. I walked him on some busy city streets, and all over the Giants stadium. He loved it! Don always behaves so well in busy cities. For Don, the more distractions the better. He did great with the crowds.

Don in the car, going to SF. Riding in the car is one of Don's favorite pastimes. He loves watching people as they go by.

Don was a good boy walking past all the food stands, then up the stairs. When we got to our seats though, Don is so big that I had a hard time getting him to settle under my chair. He kept standing up and nearly wagged his tail in someone's face. oops. After a while, he sat down and got comfy- that is, until the person in back of us spilled his drink, which cascaded down the rows of chairs until it reached Don (much to his delight). Once that was cleaned up, Don settled and we watched the chorus.

There they are singing the national anthem. Don found the speakers very interesting at first.

We were sitting in the very top row, so when the wind picked up the flags made a lot of noise. This was a great exposure for Don, who enjoyed watching them (pictured above).

Don was getting a bit bored of the game, so I took him for a walk all around the park. We walked by the Coca Cola slide and lots of little kids, which Don was great with. While we were walking, someone hit a homerun, and these big fountains sprayed water in the air. Don enjoyed seeing that.

Then, we walked along the water. Don LOVES water, and I'm sure he wished he could of gone swimming. We practiced a couple down stays then went on to climb the stairs and practice some food avoidance by the concession stands.

Don crashed back at our seats, and slept for the last inning. He didn't even wake up when everyone started cheering because the Giants won.

The stadium was so crowded, it took half an hour to get out of the park, but Don didn't seem to mind. Here he is walking along the sidewalk.

We stopped to have Don do his business, then Don watched the fountains at this park. He wanted to go in the big fountain :)

Back in the car, Don attempted to sit on my lap. Don is not the cuddly type, but there wasn't anywhere else in the car to sit. A second after this photo was taken, Don got up, pushing my head into the window. Clumsy, clumsy Don. He bangs his head on everything in our house.

Don decided that the arm rest was more comfy than my lap.

Don and his sleeping positions :) Life is hard when you're so big!

Lots and Lots of Fun Outings for Don

2010-05-24T17:37:00.000-07:00

So much has been going on lately, I haven't had time to blog! With the end of school coming in a couple of weeks, my life has suddenly gotten very busy. I am really looking forward to the summer and having more time to blog. Don is doing great; I've taken him SO many places recently. We are still working on dog distractions though. He celebrated his first birthday on May 7. His buddy Maya came over, who is a goldendoodle. They had a lot of fun together, chasing each other around. His friend Silky, a sweet black lab being raised in my club, also came over that week. Don and Silky were quite the energetic pair. At first, they wanted to chase and chew on each other, but then they decided to play tug. It was very cute :) Don is so giant; he just stood there with the tug toy in his mouth while Silky pulled and pulled with all her might to try and get it from him. Don went to a SF Giants baseball game two weekends ago. It was a great experience for him, though he had a little trouble fitting under the seat because of his enormous size. This past weekend, our puppy club went on an outing to San Francisco. Yesterday, I took Don with us on a hike along the beach. It was a very windy, 5 hour hike but Don did really well. I have lots of pictures, so I'll put them into another post. For now, here are some birthday pictures.

Don and Silky loved playing tug, though Don had a little bit of an advantage with his massive size.

All Don had to do was stand still while Silky did all the tugging.

Pool time! Don absolutely loves water. Yesterday, he had so much fun swimming at the beach.

I tried to get a birthday picture, but Don wasn't very willing to look at the camera.

Don eating his special birthday dinner.

Playing with Maya, my friend's goldendoodle.

I though this was quite how they both sat away from each other. The second I released Don from his stay, he went right back to playing.

Maya was very nice and brought Don a birthday present- a new kong!

I can't believe Don is 12 1/2 months old now, which means I've only got a couple more months left with him. I am working on his dog distractions every day, so hopefully we will get there. He's doing really well and is even maturing a bit. Only 2 more months until Fun Day! Can't wait!!

I'll be posting about all our other outings soon.

Is he really that old?

2010-05-06T22:16:00.000-07:00

I can't believe how old my puppy has gotten! A year? Already? Don will be turning 1 year old tomorrow. I've only got a couple more months left with the big boy :( We will be very busy practicing our dog distractions until then!

Don is doing great. I'm short on time tonight, but I will be doing a big birthday post soon. Don is having a birthday celebration tomorrow with his friend Maya.

We've been very busy. Don continues to be a very good boy at school. The other day, Don had a playdate with his friend Silky, who I puppysat a little while ago. Today, Don spent the day at the GDB kennels because my mom was chaperoning my brother's field trip. He got a new collar while he was there- his old one had fallen apart. Its so nice and shiny now! When we went to pick him up, he was so happy to see us. He got all wiggly and his did his "happy ears", where his ears go back. He has been sleeping ever since he got home ( I think he missed his comfy bed).

I have lots of pictures to post, hopefully soon. School has gotten pretty busy lately, but I hope to find time to talk about what Don and I have been doing.

Costco with Don! Just one of the many places we've been lately!

Happy birthday, big boy!

Taking pictures of Don is hard... VERY hard

2010-04-15T19:04:00.000-07:00

Last friday I went to the waterfront to get some pictures of Don with the Golden Gate in the background (for the GDB calendar submissions). The weather was perfect for photo-taking, the view was stunning, but... Don was not the most cooperative, to say the least ;) After I finally got him in the perfect position, he'd attempt to walk away- or refuse to look at the camera. My brother jumped up and down, my mom blew a whistle that I brought from home, but regardless, Don did NOT want to look at the camera. Now I laugh thinking about how funny we must've looked, jumping and yelling like crazy to get our dog's attention :)

Then, a man started walking his many dogs, which didn't help. Don was very distracted. I had him on his flat collar for picture taking, so it was hard to keep him from charging towards the dog. Thank God for gentle leaders!

As soon as I was about to take the picture, he'd try to run off. I even had to use the "come" command once- thank goodness he is so good at it.

To top things off, my camera fell on some rocks and scratched the screen pretty bad. sigh...

Anyways, I got a couple of photos that I liked. I spent all day trying to decide which photo to send in, and finally chose the second photo below, which I thought showed the most expression.

Turns out, I made the right choice. I was SO happy when I found out Don had been chosen for the month of December! I never thought I'd make it with 400 entries. GDB would like me to write a little something about Don- what makes him unique/special characteristics. Hmmm. I'll have to think about his one.

Don got a great report from the puppy sitters. He went to school again yesterday, and was really good. We've got a puppy meeting this Saturday at the skate park, so that'll be fun. Hopefully I'll get some more pictures.

If you haven't watched "Through a Dog's Eyes" on PBS, I highly recommend you do. It's a really heartwarming story about a service dog program and the special bond between the dogs and their partners. I watched it tonight and loved it!

Don wanted to show everyone his new jollyball, which he is happily destroying at the moment :)

Shopping With Silky

2010-04-11T19:44:00.001-07:00

My mom and brother needed to run a few errands, so I decided to take Silky along. I figured the mall would be a good place for socializing and training. Silky did really well. I kept her on the flat collar the entire time because she wasn't pulling towards other people or distractions. She went for some things on the ground a couple times, but not much. I was amazed at how she completely ignored this dog we walked past, staying in the perfect heel position. We practiced some commands too, and when I asked her to DYB on the cement, she quickly complied. Good girl!

Resting in the car...

Hi, Silky. (A closeup of Silky's adorable black snout and nose)

Waiting to get in the elevator. She's a fearless dog- nothing has scared her, even this loud elevator.

Waiting patiently in Macy's.

Sigh. How long does it take for him to try clothes on?

Silky started to get tired. When I put some clothes down on the floor, she curled up and fell asleep :)

Then, we went to Kohl's and got some wrapping paper and looked around.

There are lots of interesting sights and sounds here, Silky!

Silky outside the mall. She did really well with all the people, sounds, and sights.

Closeup of her beautiful face.

After many hours of shopping, Silky is one TIRED dog. When we got back in the car, Silky curled up in a little ball and went to bed. We are swapping back today at GDB. I really hope the rain stops and it gets sunny, because we were planning on having Silky and Don play for a bit. The GDB dog runs can get pretty muddy.

It was so much fun getting to work with Silky. She is such a sweet dog- this morning she laid on my lap and chewed her bone for an hour. Can't wait to hear how Don did!

Silky for the Weekend

2010-04-11T13:23:00.000-07:00

Guess who I've got for the weekend? Silky! She's adorable and SO sweet. She just LOVES people. You say her name, and she acts like it's the best thing ever, getting all wiggling then settling in my lap for a cuddle. She has really pretty light brown eyes and such a tiny face. Absolutely ADORABLE!!! She's only five months old, and she's really tiny compared to Don. Don is spending the weekend with Silky's raisers- we thought it was time for a puppy swap. Don was very excited, and I'm sure he's having a blast. He adores the puppy sitters!

We had a puppy meeting yesterday. I can't believe how big our club has gotten, we get new members and new pups every week. Maureen, a dog raised in our club, is in phase ten after only 2 months in formal training. Digby and Nerice are moving along and are in phase two. We talked about some common issues with the 11-16 month old dogs, and it was really helpful. We also discussed ways to make training more interesting for dogs who has mastered the basics (stays with hotdogs on the floor, teaching them the name of toys and to "go find" certain people.)

Due to the rain, Silky and I haven't done any interesting outings yet, but hopefully we will go shopping later today. We're mainly doing commands, walks around the neighborhood, practicing "come" (which she's really good at), and playing. I've never seen a dog so happy to play with her toys. I get such a kick out of watching her entertain herself. She has really enjoyed playing with Don's toys, especially his sterilized bones. She parades them around the house, then drops them and pounces on them. What a good girl!

Mmmmm. Nom, nom, nom. There's so many new toys to play with!

I will get you, sterilized bone!!! hahaha- There's no escaping now!

This morning, we went for a stroll around the neighborhood. She was perfect and so attentive. She kept looking back at me and making sure she was in the right place. We passed by a person, and she wasn't at all distracted. The best part? She didn't try to pick anything up- ever! And she's so young, too!

Time for some bone-chewing time after that exhausting walk!

Zzzzzz.....

She's a champ at relieving on command. She's so good- she whines if she needs to go potty, then goes as soon as I give her the command. She's been going on cement and dirt, and does great on both surfaces.

She does have her I-wanna-be-dominate moments, and can be vocal at times, but she is only 5 months old. I think she's going to make a really great dog and can't wait to see how she progresses.

More on Silky tomorrow- it's time to take her for an outing!

Ready, Silky?

(I just took her jacket out, and she came running)

First Day of School

2010-04-07T22:30:00.001-07:00

That's right, yesterday Don went to school for the very first time. He was a STAR and was so well behaved.

On Tuesday, I talked to my Spanish class and told them I would be bringing Don. Everyone was really looking forward to having a dog in the classroom, even my teacher. They were a bit disappointed to hear they couldn't pet him, but seemed to understand.

All morning long, I was SO excited. I got to school early to do an announcement over the loudspeaker. Kinda weird hearing my voice all over the school, but I think I got the message across that Don was a guide dog in training and not to pet, feed, or call out to him. My mom brought Don at lunch. I put on his GL, vest, and bait bag and we were off! There were only a couple minutes until the bell, so I walked him through the halls and outside a bit to get used to the atmosphere. A lot of kids were surprised to see a dog at school, and about 5 kids asked me if my dog was blind :) A couple people tried petting Don, but I had established pretty strict rules and once I reminded them, they stopped. All the students were really respectful of Don and his training. There are a lot of kids at my school who have GDB career changes and breeder dogs and are familiar with the organization. Plus, one of the teacher's husband is a Guide Dogs Mobility Instructor.

I got to class early and had Don "kennel" under the table. He watched people come into the classroom. Soon, Don fell asleep- and stayed that way for the rest of the class! Every now and then, he'd open his eyes and look around for a bit, then go back to sleeping. Everyone wondered how he could stay asleep in all the noise and commotion. About 15 minutes till the end of class, one of my classmates looked over at me, his eyes got really big, and he suddenly said, "THERE'S A DOG IN HERE!!!" Everyone started laughing.

After class, I had a WEB meeting (a program at our school where we help the incoming 6th graders). Don was great and got to meet a couple of my other teachers afterwards. My science teacher really liked Don and wants him to come to her class. Hurray!

All ready for school! Don sitting next to the front door, next to my backpack.

My brother had to get to a baseball game after school, so I didn't have time to take many pictures, but I got a few. Here is Don sitting by the lockers in the World Languages area of school.

Don with some classmates in the background.

"Hola, me llamo Don!"

Don is excited about learning a new language :)

Easter Photos with Don

2010-04-04T13:53:00.001-07:00

Happy Easter everyone. This morning, I had to wake up early to get ready for church. Don was not very happy about getting up either, and kept wanting to go back to sleep on his pillow. My church LOVES Don, and most people there have met him before. The ministers are both very glad to have Don there, and one of them even wants to do a sermon about Don, before he goes in for formal training, to bless him and the organization. Don was great at church, better than usual, and took his morning nap sprawled out on the floor. He wore a special Easter themed ribbon around his collar :) Then, we went home and I got a couple Easter pictures of Don and my family minutes before the downpour (that hasn't stopped since).

Don sitting next to my Easter basket this morning, after returning from church. You can sort of see the ribbon I wrapped around his collar.

A close up of Don's festive collar! If you click, it should enlarge. Does anyone know how to make pictures on blogger bigger? I have them on the 'large' setting, but it's not very big. Maybe I need to switch templates? Are there websites with other templates?

Don in his vest, outside on our lawn. I finally got him to look at the camera! Sometime this week, when the weather clears up, I'm going to take some pictures of Don for the GDB calendar in a more scenic setting (maybe Mt. Tam, the bay, or S.F.).

What would Easter be without some pictures of my bunny, Rosie? Here she is investigating my camera case. Its so hard taking photos of rabbits- they're way too fast.

We often make mazes for Rosie with books, containers, and various items around the house. Here she is jumping up on a plastic box and binders. I've just received a couple of blogging awards that I'm looking forward to writing about- I'll talk more about them sometime this week.

HAPPY EASTER!

Don's Going to School!!!!

2010-04-03T21:25:00.000-07:00

... this Wednesday, and I can't wait! It was a long process, talking to the principal and such, but I think it's going to be well worth it. My mom brought Don into the school the other day when dropping off my lunch, and the principal happened to come out of his office and notice them. So, my mom and him decided to talk more about the details and I got to get out of class for a minute to join in their conversation. I think it was helpful for my principal to be able to see Don in person, and we also gave him some references from other schools that had puppy raising students who brought their dog with them. We then went over to my spanish teachers class, who is a big fan of dogs, and she loved the idea- she's even been to GDB graduations before. I'm going to start out slow, and take Don to just one class this week, on wednesday. We'll see how it goes from there! For now, I've got to finish writing a flyer about etiquette around a working guide dog in training and compose an announcement that'll go over the PA system. I'll be sure to write a first day of school post, hopefully with lots of pictures!

The other day Don had to go into GDB for a vet appointment. My mom's friend's husband is a dog trainer there, so we talked to him. I saw two dogs I've heard of before- Pilot and Tahoe. Don LOVES the GDB vet, and is always so excited to see him. Maybe because he knows he has cookies :)

I don't have many interesting pictures of Don, but here are some of him hanging out in my room before bedtime.

Don laying down next to my bed. He wasn't very happy about me taking pictures when he was so tired.

Resting his GIANT head on his GIANT paw.

"Leave me alone!". Don hiding his head under my mattress.

"harumph. I'm leaving!"

Happy Easter everyone!

~Lauren and Don

Question

2010-03-27T13:49:00.000-07:00

Today we had a puppy meeting, but I'm short on time today so I'll talk about that later. On to the question- so, after the meeting I was walking Don through the outdoor shopping mall when I noticed another Guide Dog pup (from the Contra Costa club, headed to a GDB graduation). His name was Avis. We talked for a bit and Don was very excited. Then, Don BARKED! I've only heard him bark once, when he was 8 wks old. He just let out one, loud, bark then stopped. But now I'm really worried. Is this going to develop into a problem? What should I do if he does it again? I've been walking him by the dog park lately, where a lot of dogs bark, is this a bad influence? Any advice would be much appreciated.

We practiced go to bed today at the meeting, but Don was too distracted by the smells and other dogs. Our puppy club has gotten REALLY big, new puppies and raisers seem to be flooding in. Today, we welcomed Nougat (who actually is nougat colored), Honeydew (love the name!), and Janet (an adorable black lab starter pup). There were also a couple of CCI dogs and GDB breeders. There was one person there, I am blanking on her name at the moment, but she was fostering a very cute black lab pup about 9 wks old. The puppy was headed for a service dog organization in Canada. She said that she was a breeder keeper to a dog named Holly, and I recognized this name from one of the blogs I follow. Not sure though. Has anyone heard of Holly?

Sorry I don't have any pictures of the meeting, but here are a couple of Digby, a dog that just went back to Guide Dogs for formal training. I puppy sat him when he was 10 wks old. He has such a soft personality and when he's happy he wiggles his whole body and wags his tail so hard it slaps him in the face.

Digby at 10 wks. He's a golden/lab mix, though you can't really tell in this photo. When he got older though, he got this beautiful long coat and golden retriever like ears. He was one of the puppies in the home litter that my leader had. The mom was Petal. Go Digby- I'm sure he'll do great in training.

This is a picture I found of Dakoda, a dog career changed a while ago that I puppy sat. Her puppy raisers adopted her and she has really settled down and become a great dog. They are now able to start another dog, Honeydew!

Fun with Friends

2010-03-19T18:51:00.000-07:00

Today, Don's best friend Maya came over. Maya is my friend's dog, who lives just down the street, and she's a goldendoodle (yes, goldendoodles can be black). Maya is so well behaved and such a love. Her energy level is a ways lower than Don's though. Since it was hot again today, I filled up the kiddie pool and let the dogs have at it. Maya, being a water dog, jumped in and tried to take a nap. Don wasn't quite as thrilled with the whole water aspect as he'd rather run around the yard in a crazy frenzy. The two played for a long time. Maya wanted to rest, but Don kept initiating play, chasing her, and pouncing on top of her. Maya found 7 ancient tennis balls in our yard, which Don then stole from her, and pranced around the yard in perfect bliss (until I was able to correct him and take them away). Here are the pictures from the playdate:

The handsome wet boy. His fur looks really neat when it's wet- you can't see in this photo, but it gets all curled and makes a white/brown crosshatch pattern.

Maya was the first to hop in the pool, then Don joined her. This was the only picture when they weren't racing around.

Don leaping from the pool onto an exhausted Maya, who is rolling around in the grass, getting nice n' muddy.

Again, Don racing from the (now muddy) water to play chase with Maya. He kept on spilling the water from the pool onto the grass.

Incoming!!! Maya racing across our lawn, with Don in tow.

Finally. Maya gets a nice break the pool from the overly friendly puppy. Good girl, Maya- thanks for playing with Don despite his puppyness.

A Great Week

2010-03-18T22:38:00.000-07:00

OK, so I know the week isn't over yet, but I don't have school tomorrow (staff development day) so in a way it is. As the title suggests, Don and I have had a great week. He's really coming along and finally showing some progress with his house behaviors. He's been a lot better this week about not stealing objects. Today, my mom said he did really well while I was at school. As I mentioned in an earlier post, I am using a more verbal form of correcting him in which I step on his dragline, then shake his collar and say "KNOCK IT OFF". Quite effective. Also, I been watching him even more carefully than usual this week, keeping him on tie-down unless I can watch his every move and constantly staying within reach of him.

Even better, I took a new approach to his dog distractions this week— and it has worked wonders. On our walks we encounter 1 to 2 dogs, which means that Don does not have much of a chance to get his walking-calmly-past-dogs behavior down. It is very important that he gets his dog distractions under control as this will be tested a lot in formal training. My new approach? I decided to walk Don in the most high-dog distraction place I could find- our town's fabulous dog park which is always swarming with people and their dogs. It's a very well maintained park, with a giant grassy field in the center and a really nice walking path around it. On monday, I took Don for the first time and we walked around the outer path. I was really surprised at how well he did. Using the food protocol and lots of talking to him, I was able to get him to continue walking past the other dogs. Yay! Lots of treats for Don. He is getting better everyday on our daily dog park visits. Now, he is even calmly walking past running off leash dogs, and when another dog approached him yesterday he sniffed him without getting overly excited, then continued when I said "lets go". Of course, there are times when he has a bit of trouble, but I think I have found the key to working on his dog distractions!

Don is one tired pup after our dog-distraction excursion.

Today, Don had to go to the vets to get his sore on his elbow checked out. The vet said it was a pressure callus, and that he had laid down on his side too hard. So, during the 3 weeks it takes to heal, he's supposed to sleep only on soft surfaces. Lucky dog! He weighed in at 64.4 lbs- he's getting bigger every day.

Afterwards we went to a frozen yogurt place (they didn't let us bring Don in, so we left and went to a different ice cream place), then because it was so hot we went to Toys R Us to buy Don a kiddie pool, and get the new ipod touch case I wanted.

Don swam (more like tried to dig the water out of the pool) the rest of the afternoon. He was a bit wary at first, but I put some kibblesicles in (ice cubes with kibble) and he had a fun time bobbing for ice cubes. He also liked playing with a plastic gallon milk jug (GDB approved) and raced around and around our porch.

Don in his new submarine themed kiddie pool. He loved sticking his snout under the water and blowing bubbles.

In the end Don decided to leave the swimming pool and his Goughnut for the milk jug.

Time to dry off!

My principal called the other day, he said he was worried about Don being a distraction and Don relieving, but that he might be able to bend the rules for a day or two. We are having the principal of another teen raiser in our club who took his dog to school talk to my principal about how it went, so hopeful that'll go well.

Hope everyone else is having a good week!

Question, Pictures, and Walk to the Park

2010-03-11T12:50:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I took some 10 month-day pictures of Don down at the bay on our usual walking loop. We passed a dog and he had some distraction issues there, but later on we saw a dachsund and were able to work on passing by calmly until he got it (somewhat). He was perfect minus the doggy distractions. I walked home via the steep route, so he was really tired upon returning and slept for a solid 3 hours! Later, we went to Safeway where he was great. Then this morning, my school principal emailed us and said he wanted to discuss more about taking Don to school. Not sure what this means, I'll see! My guess is that there is a bit of worry because of all the legal issues.

Today, after school, I took Don for a walk down to the shopping center by our house. He was great until we saw a Charles Spaniel and he completely flipped out. He really has a hard time when the dog is approaching us- it's pretty hard to get away from the situation and help him regain his focus. There is a puppy club meeting tomorrow morning, so I'll probably get some more suggestions for this. Also, I'm going to be doing a puppy swap with Silky, an adorable 4 months black lab, next weekend. It'll be fun to have a younger dog in the house again!

Most importantly, the other day my mom noticed a red, scabby spot about the size of a quarter on Don's leg. It's right at the elbow part/bone at the top of his leg. It's not really puffy or anything, and Don is in no pain. His fur is gone from the spot though. He hasn't even tried licking it, and it doesn't seem like he is really trying to scratch at it either. We called our leader, and she said not to worry at the moment, but I was just wondering if anyone has seem something like this before? It might be from rubbing or maybe a rash/hot spot? I think it's pretty common, but never having a dog before, just wanted to make sure.

(Top picture is his normal skin)

(This is the irritated spot).

On a happier note, here are some of the pictures I took:

Don got sort of bored after awhile. I love this picture because you can see the whites of his eyes and he has this "when will this be over???" look.

It was actually sunny the other day. (Don on our back porch, squinting in the bright light. You can see his wrinkly puppy face and BIG muzzle and skin folds).

Don at the rocks by the bay. It was sort of cloudy, so you can't see S.F. in the background like I usually can at this park.

A Big Outing for the 10-month old!

2010-03-07T10:34:00.000-08:00

I can't believe that Don is 10 months today! Double digits already? He's going to be a year old in just two months!!- which means I've only got 5 months left with my big boy. We're going to be doing a lot of doggy distraction training until then! I haven't blogged in a while due to a ton of end-of-trimester school projects and tests. There's a lot to cover.

I sent a letter to my school principal regarding taking Don to school. So far, I've gotten no response. Hopefully I'll get an answer sometime this month.

Don went on a great outing to downtown Sonoma. I had to do a "Cultural Participation and Research" project for my Spanish class, and decided to visit a California Mission because 1) I couldn't think of anything else and 2) I knew it would be a good outing for Don. So, this past Saturday (or maybe it was 2 wks ago?) I went up to Sonoma, along with my brother, mom, and of course, Don. Our first stop was a winery that had a California missions museum.

Don outside the museum, sitting in front of a big oak door on the wooden patio. You may notice that Don is wearing a gentle leader- recently, Don was having some issues with it rubbing off the fur on his nose. I put a piece of moleskin on it and now it has healed. Yay!

Inside the missions museum- There is a detailed model for all 21 missions. They were pretty amazing.

Don sitting in front of one of the mission models. I'm not sure what mission it is, but the stained glass in the background was saved from the Mission Dolores in S.F. Also, the "GUIDE DOG PUPPY" coat sleeve came in the mail the other day- it's so great cause a lot of people don't realize he's working until they look at his side.

They've got a lot of animals at the winery, including birds, turtles, and donkeys (which were Don's favorite). You can see Don's perked ears and the curious donkeys looking over the fence. Don really badly wanted to play with them and did a lot of play-bowing and waging of the tail. He was disappointed when the donkeys didn't take him up on his offer.

Don sitting on a stone ledge in front of the Mission San Francisco Solano in downtown Sonoma.

Inside, we looked at the chapel, padres' quarters, and dining hall. Don seemed rather bored with California history, but I got the notes that I needed- and a couple of pictures of him.

Outside, I took a picture of him next to some cacti. Whenever he hears the beep of my camera, he turns his head away- thus explains we he's looking away in this photo. Afterwards, Don and I walked around the square and practiced some dog distractions. Don walked past a boxer dog without loosing it. Yes- success!

Lunch at the Sonoma Cheese Factory. Delicious! They make great sandwiches there. Don wasn't too happy about settling under the table, but eventually he gave in. Afterwards, we got cookies at this great bakery, then headed home.

Don is one tired pup after a long day in Sonoma- and decided to use my leg as a head rest. How else is he going to rest that big head of his?

Friday night, Don and I went to see my brother in a play. Don was well behaved- he didn't fall asleep, but he laid down relatively still- and didn't whine one bit. There were a TON of people crowded into the theater's lobby and Don was so good- ignoring everyone and everything. When it was over, a man came up to me and starting talking about Guide Dogs. He said that he worked in San Rafael and that he saw guide dogs all the time, and that he knew ("absolutely- like always") when a dog was going to fail and not pass. He then goes on to say that this one (pointing at Don) isn't going to make it "because he's looking at me and WAY to distracted with everything, and also because I can just tell." (At this point, Don was looking right at me, and he actually backed away/ignored the person like I want him to when people pet him.) Later, the man came back and said to Don, "Poor dog. I know- you want to be FREE, FREE, FREEEEEE!" My theory is that he was just mad that I told him he wasn't allowed to pet the dog. Who knows. Anyways, it was pretty funny that he thought he could determine the fate of every guide dog he saw. Plus, it was great training for Don to practice ignoring people when they pet/talk to him- and he did really well!

IWYPRS day and our day in S.F.

2010-02-19T13:59:00.001-08:00

Don wanted to wish everyone a happy IWYPRS day! (International Wear Your Puppy Raising Shirt Day). Don was a good sport and modeled my "You See a Puppy, A Blind Person Sees the World" t-shirt. It didn't exactly fit him, but he looked cute with it on anyways.

To celebrate IWYPRS day, Don and I went for a nice, long walk along the bay and marshlands wearing our puppy raising attire. The t-shirt just wasn't working for Don, so he wore his Guide Dog In Training vest.

Don with the shirt that I got for Christmas. I found it here, on the Sidekicks for Sight puppy club website. We just got back from our walk. Don was really distracted today, I'm not sure why, but every sound and movement caught his attention. He was a lot worse with people than he usually is. The funny thing is, he completely ignores people on outings or when there are a lot of people, but on our walks he looses it when he sees a single person. Has anyone had this experience before? Yesterday, Don and I went with my mom into S.F. to do some training and get some city exposure in. We walked around a relatively busy street with outdoor markets and lots of shops. The buses, birds, sounds, food, smells, and yes, people, didn't phase Don at all. He walked so well, staying in the perfect heel position the entire time, stopping when I stopped, ignoring the children. He really is a city kind of guy! I think he do great as a guide in a busy downtown environment. Afterwards, we went to our favorite Chinese restaurant. Don did a lot of sniffing under the table, but then settled down. At the end of our day, I was super happy when Don relieved on command on cement. I know this doesn't sound like much, it probably sounds a little strange actually, but this is something I've been working on with Don for a long time now. I was very proud of my big boy!

Don sleeping in the car on the way home. Aren't outings exhausting, Don?

What's in the box?

2010-02-16T20:28:00.001-08:00

Hurry up, I'm bored...

(Don yawning as he waits patiently for me to open the package the UPS man delivered)

Oooh, what's inside? Is it for me? Please have it be for me....

(Don peering inside box with galileo bone. A curious expression is on his face)

Wow! Look at all these toys! And they're ALL MINE! Mine!

(Don on his bed with his new nylabones all around him)

gnaw gnaw. Mmmmm... I love my bacon flavored nylabone!

Yay! A new shipment of bones from Entirely Pets! Don's bones were getting a bit too short and worn down. They were having a weekend special a couple weeks ago (free shipping $25 or more) so I ordered Don a galileo bone, a bacon flavored souper bone, and a chicken flavored souper bone— all for $25! Their nylabones are half the price than what you'd find at Petco. Plus, the standard ground shipping took only 2 days! I got free shipping, but if you don't, the cost isn't bad at all. Don loves his galileo bone- I think he likes all the corners and bumps. He's determined to eat the entire thing. silly boy :)

Evals, graduation, hike, and lots of other stuff!

2010-02-16T10:16:00.000-08:00

A while back, Don had his evaluations with our CFR. I got some good advice for Don's dog distractions (rewarding him for looking calmly ahead, not up at me) and I explained Don's terrible house manners and behavior of stealing inappropriate items. We decided to try a new method where, instead of correcting him for picking up the items, we would completely ignore him and walk out of the room so he wouldn't get any attention. But, this didn't seem to have much of an effect on Don, and after a couple days he was quite the terror. I even found him with all four paws on top of our coffee table! Apparently, it wasn't my attention that he was after. He simply wanted to have a good time playing with socks, dish towels, and shoes. The fact that corrections were bad hadn't really sunk in.

My leader came over yesterday to give me a couple more tools to work with. We decided to take a more physical, or "knucklehead" , approach. Basically, the second Don picks up an item, I step on his dragline and say "KNOCK IT OFF" while putting both my hands on his collar and correcting him. It works SO well. It's really unbelievable. Every since yesterday, he's been an angel. He didn't even go for my mom's slippers this morning. I'm hoping that the magic won't wear off :) We also worked on dog distractions with our leader's border collie Tango and CCI golden retriever breeder Selene. I got some more tips on how to handle him near dogs, like talking to him a lot, and focusing on walking briskly past them and not slowing our pace. It worked really well and Don was great. In the end, he was walking past both dogs without turning his head! Our leader seemed pretty positive about Don. She said dog distractions should be our biggest focus, because it is something the trainers will notice at GDB, whereas house manners will probably come with time, and if not, they don't have to be perfect. I think Don and I will starting talking walks past the dog park every day.

On saturday we had a puppy meeting at a schoolyard. Don got to practice his off-leash recall and did really well. He also got to meet all the new puppies in our club- Stefano, Quebec, Silky, and Keifer. Afterwards, we walked through the mall and then went to the Guide Dogs graduation. It was a great graduation, even the weather was nice, and I got to see Gabrina and Burgess up on stage. Then, we met Mimi and Cabana and Cassie and Dagan who were in the audience. Don and Cabana have the same father, Bosworth, which makes Don Cabana's half brother. The two got to play one of Guide Dog's fenced enclosures and had a great time. They both had lots of energy and were the perfect playmates. Don was nice and muddy afterwards, and very tired.

Don has gone on some pretty fun outings recently. He went to my volleyball tournament in a giant convention center and yesterday Don and I went for a hike on the mountain with some of ours friends. We hiked to a waterfall and Don had had a fun time splashing around in the stream and getting everyone else wet.

Don at the park at the trailhead. This was towards the end of the hike, which explains why he is sopping wet.

Don loves hiking! He wasn't very cooperative with me in taking photos- there were too many interesting smells and sounds!

The waterfall! I don't know what Don is doing in this photo- I think he might of seen a yummy piece of dirt on the ground and decided he just couldn't live without it.

Don amidst the tall trees and ferns.

Can we stop now? I'd really like to rest on this bench. please?

On the way home, we stopped at the Earthbath self pet wash station (in the pet store) to give Don a good sudsy bath. He didn't seem to mind it and loves the Mango Tango shampoo- he tries to eat it which can make things a bit complicated :) A long hike = a tired puppy. Don took a long nap when we got home. I have this week off from school so Don and I will get lots of walks and training in!

Back on Track?

2010-01-24T22:19:00.000-08:00

I thought Don's neuter would calm him a bit- but apparently not. After the medicine wore off, Don was back to his strong-minded self. He seemed to have regressed in his training after two weeks of sleeping and was really testing me, and my rules, for a while. The week of rain didn't seem to help any either. He has tried to run off with socks, towels, you name it, for the past week, even though he is confined to such a small area with constant supervision. In the past though, I've noticed that some weeks are like this- and some weeks he is much more reliable with house behaviors. Corrections can be tricky as he gets stronger. He is definitely seeking attention when he goes for an object. Maybe, instead of correcting him, I should just walk away and do nothing when he has an object? We have a meeting with our CFR Tuesday, so hopefully he will have some suggestions.

Morning snuggle when the heater isn't on.

I love this picture. I found Don sleeping in his crate like this the other day, belly up with his DuraPlus chew bone under his head.

His relieving schedule was also a bit messed up at first. He relieved in jacket for the first time ever and I was quite shocked. Luckily, it was not in the store and seems to be a one time incident- he was great shopping all day this weekend. It seems like the rain also messes up his relieving at times. When its raining, Don is in such a hurry to get back in the warm, dry house that he doesn't finish going potty. If I stand out in the rain long enough, he will go, so I usually bring an umbrella with me. When Don gets back inside, he takes a nap in front of the heater.

The other day, Don pulled a bit too hard on the leash. My mom was walking him, and when I came out of the door, he pulled so hard in my direction that she broke her finger. I've resolved to use the gentle leader at all times after that incident. My only concern is that Don may not learn how to control himself on the flat collar. Has anyone had this problem?

Other than these issues, Don seems to be getting the hang of things again. We've been working on his commands (stay and stand) this rainy week. He went to Trader Joes Thursday. On Friday, when there was finally a non-rainy moment, I walked Don to the nearby shopping center and back. We walked along the marsh and freeway and Don was great. We sat at a bench near the Woodlands pet food store, and waited for dogs to show up to help with Don's dog distraction. The only dog we saw was a chihuahua in a raincoat, but it was so tiny that Don didn't even notice it. We practiced jumping up on rocks and benches until I decided to walk back home, and it started raining on us.

Don by the marsh at the bottom of my street. Don's wearing his old jacket in this picture- he got an XL on Saturday. He moves up sizes so fast!

Don in the parking lot. You can see the freeway in the background. Its nice having so many sights and sounds on our walks.

Don practicing jumping up on the rock. He loves jumping up and off surfaces, but still refuses to exit our car (which is not at all very high off the ground).

On Saturday, our club had its puppy meeting at the mall. We met outside of Petco. There were lots of new puppies in the group. The newest was 10 wk old Quebec, a very handsome male yellow lab. There were also Silky and Stefano (who are 12 wk old siblings). There were a couple of new families too. Maureen, who Don had a playdate with when he was 12 wks, is leaving for formal training on Friday. She is an incredible dog and is definitely ready for the next step. The group went to Petco and practiced sit stays while a squeaky ball was rolled down the aisle. Don also met some mice and a chinchilla. We went to Target and he ignored the people and popcorn on the ground. We then went to Pasta Pomodoro (who know Don and always offer him a bowl of water), then Tilly's, and Costco. Don was a great sport with the all day shopping. When he's got his gentle leader on, he is another dog!

Don practicing wearing his gentle leader and staying in a down. I want to make sure he can lay still under a desk in preparation for possibly taking him to school.

Don loves saying hi to my two year old rex rabbit Rosie. Rosie is getting a bit more comfortable around him. Don is very intrigued by Rosie and loves watching her eat her salad. What he likes the most about Rosie is that she leaves hay and droppings all over the floor— which Don is more than happy to clean up.

Don says hello to Rosie, who is eating her dinner salad of dandelion greens, radish tops, and blueberries. He has a very curious expression on his face and is not really sure what to think about Rose.

A close up on Don- he has such a broad build.

The big 81/2 month old.

That's what Don and I have been up to this weekend. I have a day off school tomorrow. Yay! We may be going into SF to see Avatar, but I probably have too much homework. Don will be nine months soon- I can't believe it. He seems back on track, we've just got a couple of kinks to work out, and he will be great.

One last picture of Rosie- our sweet little bun-bun.

Goodbye Cone of Shame!

2010-01-24T21:42:00.001-08:00

Its been so long since I last updated! So sorry. First things first, Don got neutered on the 6th of January. We dropped him off at Guide Dogs the night before, and he had his operation early the next morning. Everything went well. He weighed in at 61.5 lbs! When we picked him up, he was on medicine that made him completely zonked out, and he didn't even seem to recognize me. He was wearing a huge cone (he's got a massive head) and the kennel staff said that he absolutely refused to walk with it on. This was a slight problem. So, I ended up taking his cone off, and having him walk to the car with just his gentle leader on.

When we got home he slept, and slept, and slept some more. He was petrified of moving with his cone on, and would stand in one spot and whine until it came off. He even refused to eat and drink with it on, which really surprised me. Thankfully, he had no interest in licking his suture, so he rarely had to wear it around the house. The big problem was sleeping with his cone of shame. The first night, he slept upstairs in his crate. But, at two in the morning, I was awakened by a whining, screaming puppy. When I got upstairs, I found him sitting up- in the exact same position I'd seen him in when I went to bed. He was so scared of moving with the cone on, that he hadn't figured out how to lay down. The poor guy! I managed to get him into a down position, and he immediately fell back asleep.

The next morning, I let him out of his crate and he flopped right down on the hardwood floor and slept for hours. I couldn't even wake him up to eat breakfast. That night, I let him sleep on his dog bed on tie-down and he seemed more comfortable. Whenever he woke up whining, I would help him move back into a down position, and he'd fall asleep. The next two weeks past very slowly like this, but they are now over! Hurray! Goodbye cone of shame!

Don taking a deep snooze the day my mom and I picked him up from Guide Dogs. I propped his head up on a soft pillow to make it a bit more comfortable for him.

Bedtime! Don was very tired for about a week after his surgery, as he was taking pills that would keep him calm. I must say, it was quite nice to have such a calm dog around the house. Staying at the kennels seemed to mess up his schedule though (he had an accident in the house the first night at home). Don didn't seem to mind that his goughnut was on his head- he's not a big fan of this toy. Entirely Pets was having a free shipping sale this weekend, so I bought him a bacon scented souper bone and one of the giant galileo bones. We will see if he likes them when they arrive!

Just another shot of Don sleeping. I love his giant face and muzzle. He still has the puppy wrinkles.

Don's been on lots of exciting outings this weekend as I try to get his schedule and house manners back on track after his surgery. I'll cover our more recent adventures in the next post.