Here I Am!

You never know what kind of talents you're going to have. Who'd guess a five-month-old Lab puppy would know how to write? I didn't know that I knew anything to do with a keyboard except sniff it. Maybe chew around the edges a little.

I thought I had my life figured out when I came to Colorado in July. I was two months old, more or less. My people were very nice, loving folks. They told me I was going to be a Canine Companions for Independence service dog - they hoped. That means that, if I pass all my training, I'll get a very special owner and help him or her do neat stuff.

Actually, my plans were different. I had planned to play all day long and be the boss of everybody. Not so, I guess.

So they started teaching me manners. They taught me how to sit and stay and sleep in a crate. They taught me to sit beside them (on the floor) while they ate dinner. They give me lots of time to play. And I like to play! I like to be the boss of playing.

I'm not sure what happened then, but somebody got sick (not me). So I lived with some neat folks who puppy-sat me (they didn't sit on me - they took care of me) for a good two weeks.

Then today they put me in their car and drove east a long, long way into the country. At the end of the trip there was a strange man waiting. I didn't know whether to like him or not. But he had puppy treats in his pocket so I liked him. He put me in his car. (Am I thankful? Yes! I've heard about some dogs who get out of their cars in the country... and are left there all alone. Yikes.) We drove a long, long, loooong way again. Then he said, "Welcome to your new home."

We were at a brick house with a nice back yard. I like back yards. My new PR Mom was there, and she had puppy treats, too. I got to sniff and play and sniff some more. Then she put a leash on me and asked me to do some things. I wanted to keep playing. So then she told me to do some things. I remembered those treats and did the things.

So this is my new home. There are creatures here I've never seen before. Birds I know. Deer I know. Squirrels I know. These dudes have long tails and pointy ears like squirrels, but they have longer legs and the tails don't curl up, and instead of saying, "CHK CHK CHK," they say, "MEE-YOW." They even come inside my new house! I don't know if I like them or not.

It isn't all different! I still have my yellow cape. I still have that Gentle Leader (sigh). I still have a leash. Some things never change for a CCI pup.

Here I Am...

You never know what kind of talents you may have. Who would guess a five-month-old Lab puppy would know how to write? I didn't know I knew anything to do with a keyboard except sniff it. Maybe chew around the edges a little.

I thought I had my life figured out when I arrived in Colorado in July. I was two months old, more or less. My people were very nice, loving folks. They told me I was going to be a Canine Companion for Independence service dog when I grew up - they hoped. That means that if I pass all my training, I'll get a very special owner and help him or her do neat stuff... like pick things up off the floor, open doors, turn light switches off and on, and lots of things I can't even imagine yet.

I was surprised. I had thought I was going to play all day long and be the boss of everybody. Not so.

So they started teaching me good manners. They taught me how to sit and stay and sleep in a crate. They taught me to sit beside them (on the floor) while they ate dinner. They gave me a lot of time to play, too. And I like to play. I like to be the boss of everything. For some reason my people worried about that. It sounds OK to me.

I'm not exactly sure what happened then, but somebody got sick (not me). So I stayed with some folks I know who puppy-sat me (no, they didn't sit on me - they took care of me) for a couple of weeks.

Then today they put me in their car and drove east a long, long way into the country. At the end of the trip there was a strange man waiting. I didn't know whether to like him or not. But he had puppy treats in his pocket so I liked him. They told me he was my new Puppy-Raiser Dad. He put me in his car. (Am I thankful? Yes! I've heard about some pups who get out of their cars in the country... and are left there all alone. Yikes.) We drove a long, long way again. Then he said, "Welcome to your new home."

We were at a brick house with a nice back yard. I like back yards. My PR Mom was there, and she had puppy treats, too. I got to play, and then she put a leash on me and asked me to do some things. I wanted to keep playing. Then she told me what to do. I thought, "Why not?" and did. For puppy treats I'll do a lot.

So this is my new home. My PR Dad has taken me for a walk around the neighborhood, and I have met some new dogs. There are also creatures here I've never seen before. Birds I know. Deer I know. Squirrels I know. These dudes have long tails and pointy ears like squirrels, but they have long legs and their tails don't curl up, and instead of saying, "CHK CHK CHK," they say, "MEE-YOW." They even come into my new house! I don't know if I like them or not.

It isn't all different! I still have my cape. I still have that Gentle Leader (sigh). I still have a leash. Some things never change for a CCI pup.