Recall, Breeder Evals and Waiting...

So, 3 weeks ago, I sent Partner back to San Rafael.

Since then... 

I have heard that he has been pulled for breeding pending his final medical exams!

This is great and hopefully means that he has passed all of his behavior tests and they are just waiting on the more extreme physical tests before passing him as a breeder.

Unfortunately... 

It will most likely be weeks before we hear anything more.

Oh well, no news is good news for now and I am crossing my fingers that he passes these last few tests because I am dying to raise one of his puppies!

Until then...

Puppy sitting!

Lots and lots of puppy sitting! So far, since Partner's recall I have gone only about 2 full days without a dog! It has been awesome working with some of the other dogs in our group and it's great to have something to keep me busy while I am waiting to hear about Partner.

Taos

Krista

Kingston

Recalled

The other day I received the news that Partner will be leaving me on July 21st.

I am going to miss him so much but I am really excited to see where he ends up! He is still unaltered and will go down as a potential breeder.  Because of this, I am waiting on getting my next puppy until I know for sure what he will be doing. If he does make it as breeder I am going to wait for one of his puppies! 

No matter what he ends up doing with his life, I know that someone is going to love him to pieces! He is SUCH a lovebug. 

Today's the Day!

Today's the day! 

After 5 months of training, Carrie is finally graduating!

I'm so excited to get the chance to meet her new handler and say hello (and goodbye) to my pretty girl before she leaves for Colorado!

FINALLY!

I'm so bummed with myself that I haven't kept this blog up! It has just seemed like so much work- but really, how long does it take to type a few sentences and post a few pictures?

Well... I am Finally posting! Yay!

And for good reason:

Carrie is in class!!!

Tuesday night on my way home from work I got a phone call! It was my Guide Dog group leader letting me know that Carrie has finally found a match and will be graduating on November 17th!

I am so incredibly proud of her! After 2 months sitting in phase 8, Carrie has finally found a match!

Ventana and Ruby Graduate!

Today, two of our group's puppies graduated as working guides at Guide Dogs' San Rafael campus!

Ventana and Ruby are both now official guides and will both be staying in California.

Graduates lined up

Ventana's head in the front right corner

It was a great day for a graduation- not too hot which is always nice.  Unfortunately, GDB is redoing their dorms and graduation stage so this graduation was set up in a relatively tight area.  It was very hard to see and I was unable to get any pictures during the actual ceremony (Except a few of Partner).

Handsome Partner

After the ceremony, it was totally chaotic with so many people in such a tight space so I was only able to catch one quick (and not very good) picture of Ventana. 

Ventana in her GDB harness

I couldn't even find Ruby!

But Partner did get some pets and loves in by a whole bunch of people. It always surprises me how calm he is when people greet him.

A group of people surrounding Partner 

Rough Pets

Good luck in your new homes girls! And congratulations to your new handlers!

Top 2 pictures borrowed from Stanislaus County puppy raisers :)

Phase Report!

I wanted to share the good news with you all that this week Carrie has jumped to phase 7! 

I'm so so glad that she has finally moved out of phase 5! Hopefully either she worked through whatever was keeping her there or, as Ashley said, it is possible that her trainer has just been behind on her paperwork.

Carrie's sister Cavalia is in Phase 2

Her brother Chip is in phase 5

As for the rest of our club:

Loomis:

Was removed from breeder evaluations due to a littermate having a luxating patella. 

He has been altered and transferred to the Oregon campus.

He is in Phase 0.

Cameo:

Carrie's sister Cameo has been pulled for breeder! Yay! 

Their other sister Cammie has been pulled for breeder as well!

Spruce:

Spruce was removed from breeder watch due to 2 of his siblings being diagnosed with some form of dysplasia. He will be altered and placed into phase 0.

Ventana and Ruby are both graduating this weekend!

I am hopeful I will be able to attend- If I do, I will be sure to take pictures and post about how Partner does!

Gone.

This morning, we dropped Carrie off at the Guide Dog's campus in San Rafael, CA.

This past week has been nothing less than perfect- Carrie has been behaving wonderfully and we have spent these last few days doing a few really great outings and taking several long walks a day.  It was the perfect last week.

On Friday, our Guide Dog group had it's annual picnic- but this time, it was more like a party!  We got Carrie a cake:

And everyone brought enormous amounts of food! Everyone had a great time and I am so happy that Carrie's last puppy meeting was such a fun one!

That night Partner went home with one of our club's puppy-sitters so that we could give Carrie some one on one time.

We drove to San Rafael Saturday morning and checked into a hotel. We spent the day taking her on an amazing walk along the ocean and giving her some time to just be a dog before her formal training.

I bent the rules a little Saturday night by dragging the hotel mattress onto the ground and letting her sleep with me "on the bed"-Ssshhh!

This morning- after yet another walk by the ocean, we took Carrie back to the Guide Dogs campus. It wasn't as hard as I always expect it to be. I'm sad that my time with her is over and that she is leaving me but I also know that she is as ready as she is going to get to begin the next step in her life.  

I don't know how she will do in training- I never know- but I do know that she is probably having the time of her life right now! And I am so happy that it was her that they handed to me last summer.

I think that doing the internship at Guide Dogs last year has really opened my eyes to what goes on after we drop them off at the kennels. I know for sure now that each member of the kennel cares about the dogs and each decision is made with the dog's well-being in mind. 

I am so thankful to everyone involved in Guide Dogs and the other Service dog organizations. I am so proud to be able to call myself a Puppy Raiser.

Goodbye Hanalei

I recieved Hanalei as a tiny 9 week old puppy.  From the time that I first got her I knew that she was incredibly special.  She slept through the night from the first day we got her and has never done anything intentionally bad.  We called her a "pure soul" because she always seemed to want to do her very best to make us happy.

In August, Hanalei was Career Changed from Guide Dogs due to a very small cataract in one of her eyes. Luckily, the cataract is so small that it is very unlikely that it will ever affect her vision.

Since that day, Hanalei has been in training for a new job- Assisting a woman in a wheelchair.  We always knew that Hanalei would end up working. She loves to learn and has perfect manners in public.  We began teaching her the tasks that she will need to make her new owner's life easier and more enjoyable. 

She learned how to:

Pull on ropes to open or close doors, drawers and cupboards, make and unmake the bed,  etc.

Retrieve fallen objects of all shapes, sizes and textures and place them carefully into a lap without chewing.

Walk safely and confidently next to a wheelchair without pulling or lagging.

Follow a wheelchair through tight areas.

Gently pull pants up and down to make it easier for her new owner to go to the bathroom.

Step up onto a stool so that she can have her new vest put on.

Be calm and quiet during her new owners college classes.

Push cross-walk buttons.

Thoughout all of her training she showed us that she really did love to learn and work.  Even though she couldn't be a guide dog I think that this is what she is meant to do.  She adores her new handler and I don't think we could have matched them better. 

I hope she and her new owner have a wonderful time together! 

Some pictures of my time with her:

Dirty nose! 9 Weeks

10 weeks

8 months

9 months

Lei meets mickey- 9 months

15 Months