Mother's Day in December

Look! Do you notice that my nose is turning pink?

I think it's cute. Pink is my favorite color, maybe. Except when I'm hungry. Then dog food is my favorite color.

(I have a glassy look in my eyes because I was tired. Supervising these people is hard work sometimes. I have to take them for walks. I have to give them other exercise - like picking up my toys in the back yard and putting them away. I have to make sure they go up and down the stairs (good aerobic exercise for them) to check up on what I'm doing. I have to make sure they feed me. I have to take them when they go on errands in the car. Sometimes I have to take them to the office. I constantly have to show them what good manners are. I'll admit that sometimes I wonder: can't they do anything by themselves?)

I said I would tell you about my mama. So I will. It's a pleasure.

A lot of people worry about dogs whose job is to have puppies. But Canine Companions for Independence wants their mama dogs to be as healthy and happy as their puppies are.

Here's Mama!

Isn't she beautiful? She has a pink nose, too. I hope I'll be as pretty as she is when I grow up. (Check out the prodigy pup who's wearing the puppy cape already. Maybe that's me. Or maybe it's my sister Keilus. I honestly don't remember.)

My mama was once a CCI puppy just like me. When she got older - and smarter - she went to puppy college (advanced training), just as I'll do the end of next year. The teachers liked her there, too, just the way they liked my daddy. Not only was Mama smart and friendly, she was also calm - and very healthy. (Calm? How did I get related to her? Maybe I'll be calm when I grow up. Maybe pigs will fly. Maybe MEE-YOWs will fly. Maybe I'll get puppy treats whenever I want them. "No," my PR mom says, "just you wait," so I will.)

The teachers looked at her and thought, "Maybe she'll make a good mama." So they checked her and double-checked her, mostly to make sure she was healthy. I have to be healthy, of course - and service dogs need to be healthy, because they have such important jobs to do - but my mama had to be super-healthy. That makes her Super-Mama! Happily, she passed all their tests with style. She didn't even complain (not even the way I was complaining at the beginning of this blog).

SO... instead of graduating and helping somebody with a mobility problem, she was adopted by some special people in Santa Rosa, California. They loved her right away and were delighted to have her in their family.


Mama had to live in Santa Rosa for two important reasons: 1) that is where the special CCI vet is, and 2) that is where the daddy dogs are!





When the vet thought it was a good time, Mama got to spend some time with Daddy. So then I was born.

And I wasn't the only one!

That's me, with the bright pink collar, looking around for something to get into or chew on.

My mama has had other pups at other times, too. The vet (as well as her family) always gives her lots of time to rest before she has puppies again. After just a few litters of the cutest, smartest puppies you'll ever see (of course), she will retire from her puppy job and spend the rest of her career supervising the family that loves her and that she loves.

So you see - you don't need to worry about my mama. She's just fine!




Interesting things are happening at home. My PRs brought a tree right into the house. And then they hung all these wonderful toys on it - and they won't let me touch even one! Sometimes it's a dog's life.