Playing Keep-Away for a Good Reason

Last blog, my PR Mom was "teaching." This time, I guess I am. But first... let me show you how we celebrated Easter Sunday here. My PRs have told me about my Creator's Resurrection... but I had an idea that there was also supposed to be a little springtime-and-flowers ambiance. Right?



I ask you! Does this look like spring?

Well, all right. Now I'll put on my teacher's hat.



(At least it isn't a Gentle Leader.)

Mom picked up a little booklet a the vet's office when she was getting me some Heartguard. It's called, "101 Things You Didn't Know Could Harm Your Pet." Although the booklet is selling pet insurance, it warns about things Mom says every pet owner should know. Every pet, too.

As marvelous as we canines are (especially CCI dogs), there are actually things out there that can hurt us! Can you imagine? So, my fellow four-footies (including MEE-YOWs, I guess), let's keep away from these things this summer. Happily for you, I'm not gonna list all 101. But here are some of the good ones:

HOME, SWEET HOME: Maybe I'll never get into the medicine cabinet (it's too high up), but if I find a pill on the floor I'm liable to check it out with my tongue. So don't let me find aspirin, ibuprofin, or any such thing. Keep me away from vitamins and any kind of people medicine. Keep me away from diet pills and insulin. To us dogs, the stuff looks like doggy treats!

(These are dog treats.)

(These are not.)

Keep us away from detergent, fabric softener, disinfectants, drain cleaners, any kind of bug spray, mouse (or rat or snail) bait, and mothballs. (What the moths are doing playing with balls I don't know.) Keep us away from paint thinners, tobacco, and liquid potpourri. Let us have carrots, puppy biscuits, and peanut butter, but not Drano, cigar butts, or dryer sheets!

NOW GROWING IN A YARD NEAR YOU: I'm (ahem) much too grown up to nibble on plants... except maybe that little one over there. Oh, and that one looks good, too. This is part of the HUGE no-no list: Lilies, ferns, ivy, bittersweet, morning glories, daffodils, hyscinths, honeysuckle, iris, lantana, lilies of the valley (they're cute), oleander (nasty!), privet, tulips, wisterias, and yews. They may look good, but plant 'em where we just can't get to 'em.

The TRUTH about CCI Dogs!

Yawwwwwwn! I'm not writing today. Here's why: I have a friend named Gamay. She is famous as the only CCI puppy being raised in Buena Vista, Colorado. Her PR Mom threw out a question for all the PRs around here to answer, and my mom answered it. It's far too grownuppy for me. In fact, I don't even think it's about me. It's about some dog named Rover. Does anybody really name a dog Rover?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Why do you spend hundreds of dollars, and invest a year and a half of attention and energy, to raise a puppy you'll give away once it is well-behaved and a huge part of your life - knowing all along that there's no guarantee the pup will 'make it'?"


This query has three questions in it: Why part with your dog? What happens to the dog? What's in it for you?

First things first. Canine Companions for Independence puppy raisers take CCI puppies into their homes, raise them, teach them basic obedience, socialize them thoroughly, and then send them away for advanced training, preparatory to their becoming service dogs and helping persons with mobility problems.

But this conflicts with popular ideas about Rover. After all, isn't your dog your pet, your property? Existing for your pleasure is Rover's job description. (Rover may not see it that way; he may see you as existing for his pleasure. Maybe you're his pet. More likely you're his wait staff and play partner. But let's not go there.)

So people ask me - sometimes in tones of reproach - "How can you get rid of that dog?" As if I had no heart and no sense!

My answer is: "Sending my dog to advanced training is not like sending him to the pound. At the pound, his future and even his life are in jeopardy, and he'll feel abandoned because he has been. Here's what it's really like: sending your child to college. And, like that child, I hope he'll graduate and get a job!"

Once in a while, there's a second question: "But aren't you attached to that dog?" The answer is really too rude to say out loud, but here it is: "Yes! What does that have to do with it?"

When my husband and I applied to be puppy raisers, we went through three interviews. Invariably, the first question was, "Are you going to be willing to give the dog back to us?" This still reminds me that Rover is my puppy only temporarily (and with strings attached). I'm privileged to have him as part of the family for a while. But he isn't my dog - he's CCI's.

Happily for my peace of mind, CCI's breeding program makes a difference. CCI breeds Labs (yellow ones and black ones), Golden Retrievers, and mixes of the two. While other dogs may - and do - serve people well, Labs and Goldens are known for their ability to adjust their loyalties. They will love you all to pieces! But when you're not there, they will love somebody else all to pieces. (Dog treats help.) Given good treatment, they're perfectly willing to adapt, not pine.

Some of the training we give our puppies is socialization. We take them to public and private places appropriate for their age and degree of training. (CCI gives us a list of places where they may and may not go.) The idea is to make them feel comfortable, not frightened, wherever they are. Since there are many puppy raisers where I live, we trade pups with one another to give them even more experience.

By the time Rover's ready for advanced training, he's so socially secure that "going off to college" isn't a big deal. When he gets there, he's surrounded by trainers and volunteers who make sure all the dogs are happy and healthy as well as schooled. Monthly "report cards" let us know how Rover's doing. If I have questions, I can call the training center. We are treated with respect and support.

If our pup does indeed "make it," we'll be told at first that Rover's in the running for a job. If all goes well, we'll hear that he has been matched with a person. That's not a guarantee that he'll graduate, but it's close enough to make plans to go to the graduation in California, where we'll meet the person Rover's going to work for and present Rover at the ceremony.

It would be hard to describe a graduation in high enough terms. To know your dog is going to change someone's life - well, it's humbling and exhilarating at the same time. You can't help but be proud of Rover, and excited that the pup you raised is going to have such an impact - and such a future - because you had the guts to do the work and then say good-bye.

But that's a success story. What about the ones who don't make it? What if Rover's a failure?

Well, Rover's definitely not a failure. He's just not cut out to be a CCI dog after all (you can't tell when he's a puppy). But most dogs aren't. A CCI dog's life is more physically demanding than the average dog's. Hip and elbow problems are common in large breeds; even if they may not be serious enough to handicap Rover's average doggy life, they may be too much for him as a service dog. A CCI dog needs to be emotionally unflappable; many dogs have fears built into their genes, as it were, that would make service work too stressful for them. Some haven't the placid nature to snooze by their person's side for three hours if that's where they're needed. And some dogs just can't say no to a passing cat, bunny, or tennis ball.

Since more dogs are released from advanced training than graduate, what happens to them?

CCI doesn't let release dogs fall through the cracks. Many go right back to the people who raised them ("Hooray - Rover's coming home next week!"), and many of those dogs serve their communities in some way or other when they get back home.

Some qualify for other jobs; CCI also has a hearing dog program, and some dogs go into training for drug-sniffing or customs work.

In addition, there's a waiting list of people eager to adopt a release dog, and why not? Wouldn't you want a dog who is already house-trained, obedience-trained, and as loving and friendly as can be? Adopting a release dog means agreeing to certain conditions that ensure Rover a happy life - and plenty of folks are willing to meet those conditions.

Is Rover a failure because he doesn't wear a blue cape? No - he has simply made a wise career change.

Not every pup in whom we invest our time and energy (and dollars) will become a service dog. But every dog will serve in some capacity - even as a beloved, um, family superintendent. Consider all the dogs turned over to shelters because of behavior problems - either their owners' or their own. CCI release dogs, on the other hand, have a tremendous record for staying with the families who adopt them. Isn't that in itself worth time and energy?

I'm Trying to Be a Lady

In my endeavor to become absolutely the best CCI Service Dog I can, I've been doing a lot of "out and about" stuff. I go out here, and I go about there. Nobody takes pictures of me doing it, but I do it anyhow.

We have to be willing to go anywhere and do anything with anybody. No, nothing silly like climbing trees with a MEE-YOW! But since I must use my wonderful manners everywhere I go, I go everywhere to practice them.

I need to get used to sleeping in different houses. I need to go up and down different steps, travel in cars and on buses, sit quietly in noisy rooms. I need to boldly go where no dog has gone before, or - this is harder - where lots of other dogs already are. Can you believe that there are some places where I am not the center of attention?

So I vacationed a few days at the house of some puppy-raising friends, and got to go with them for long walks. VERY long walks! That was a lot of fun. They have dogs but I still behaved like a lady (except, um, when I was playing like a dog).

Then I went to another friend's house, and her dogs and cats declined to play! It's their loss. This lady - Mrs. Gorman, who works at the CCI office - also took me to a meeting so I could help her talk about Canine Companions for Independence. Since lots of folks ask about the four-footed caped wonders they see around town, I was able to show them what I can do now... and then Mrs. Gorman told them what I'll learn later on so that I'll be able to help someone with a mobility problem.

A demo (short for demonstration) like this is a great way to get attention. Of course, you have to behave yourself to get the right kind of attention. Otherwise my PRs get comments and I have more practicing to do at home.

As any teacher of etiquette - that's my new word; be impressed - will tell you, you need to be a gracious hostess as well as a gracious guest. So when my PRs' daughter let us take care of her kitten for a few days, I was all set to make her feel welcome.

Well.

She fussed and yowled and spit and growled! Her tail got as big as my pink loofah toy (do you see me in the background with the distressed-hostess look?)...





...and she was using words she never learned at home. She didn't like me, she didn't like the other MEE-YOWs, and she didn't even like my PRs! She would look at us and growl - impressively, up and down several octaves - and then she'd go hide and growl some more.


If this is MEE-YOW etiquette, I don't think much of it.

After a couple of days, the girl must have thought, "Hey, I'm not dead yet." So she started "prowling around, just prowling around," like Sneakers the Rapscallion Cat in the stories.


Pretty soon she was going after tails. (That's the back of Nonny. He's healthier than he looks.)



Then she was popping out from under furniture - to try to scare us, I think.


I guess that's what kittens like to do, so I was a good hostess and let her do it. She still growled at me, but it was under her breath, like, "No matter how I look, I'm bigger than you, you silly-looking cat substitute, you." Good manners is not correcting your guests' opinions even if they need it.


So I let her alone.






A service dog does not offer help unless requested (well, commanded)... so I'll keep quiet about what I think of her!

I'm Trying to Be a Lady

In my endeavor to become absolutely the best CCI Service Dog I can, I've been doing a lot of "out and about" stuff. I go out here and I go about there. Nobody takes pictures of me, but I do it anyhow.

We have to be willing and able to go anywhere and do anything with anybody. No, no anything silly like climbing a tree with a MEE-YOW! But since I must use my wonderful manners everywhere I go, I go everywhere to practice them. I need to get used to sleeping in different houses. I need to go up and down different steps, travel in cars and on busses, sit quietly in a room full of noisy people. I need to boldly go where no dog has gone before or - and this can be harder - where lots of other dogs already are. Can you believe that there are some places where I am not the center of attention?

So I vacationed for a few days at the home of some puppy-raising friend, and got to go for long walks. VERY long walks! That was a lot of fun. They have other dogs, but I behaved like a lady (except, um, when I was playing like a dog).

Then I went to another friend's house, and her dogs and cats didn't want to play! It's their loss. This lady - Mrs. Gorman of the CCI office - also took me to a meeting so I could helpher talk about Canine Companions for Independence. Lots of people ask about all the four-footed caped wonders they see around town. I was able to show them what I can do now, and then Mrs. Gorman told them what I'll be learning to do later on, so that I can help someone who has a mobility problem.

This is called a demo (short for demonstration), and it's a great way to get attention. Of course, you have to behave yourself in order to get the right kind of attention. Otherwise my PRs get long notes and I have more practicing to do at home.

As any teacher of etiquette - that's my new word; be impressed - will tell you, you need to be a gracious hostess as well as a gracious guest. So when my PRs' daughter let us take care of her kitten for a few days, I was all set to make her feel welcome!

Well.

She fussed and yowled and spit and growled. Her tail got as big as my pink loofah toy and she was using words I don't think she learned at home. She didn't like me, she didn't like the other MEE-YOWS, and she didn't even like my PRs! She would look at us and growl - impressively, up and down several octaves - and then she'd go hide and growl some more.

If this is MEE-YOW etiquette, I don't think much of it.

After a couple of days, the girl must have thought, "Hey, I'm not dead yet." So she started "prowling around, just prowling around," like Sneakers the Rapscallion Cat in the stories.

Pretty soon, she started going after tails. (That's the back of Nonny. He's healthier than he looks.) And then she was popping out from under furniture to try and scare us.

I guess that's what kittens like to do, so I was a good hostess and let her do it. She still growled a little at me, but it was under her breath. It was like, "I'm bigger than you, you silly-looking cat substitute, you." Good manners is not correcting your guests' opinions even if they need correcting. So I let her alone.

A service dog doesn't offer assistance unless requested (well, commanded), so I'll keep quiet about what I think of her!

Kelda Catches Up!

Hello! Hello...? Anybody there? I'm baaaack!

I had a great three weeks at the kennel. I recommend it, for whatever reason you may visit. Those are very, very nice people! I made, um, a little work for them, but they liked me anyhow and even took me for walks every day. (I also got busted... for excitable jumping. They told my PRs on me. Oops.)

While I was away I missed a few interesting events. I'm not going to say my PRs were disloyal by bringing other dogs home. I just wish I'd been here to play with 'em.

This is a cousin of mine... or something. He's the very first puppy my PRs ever raised for Canine Companions for Independence! (I'm the eighth.)

His name is Sean. He's ten years old now. I'm only ten months old this week, so that's hard to imagine. He was a service dog for a little while, but he's retired and supervises a wonderful family. My Mom told me Sean was old on the outside, but the same sweet, goofy puppy on the inside.


Some people say dogs forget the past and live only in the present. Not quite. We love living in the moment, but we do remember smells and sounds and the people who love us. How could we not!

Remembering commands like visit, up, and don't - not so much. (No, I didn't snicker... did you?)

Here's another guest. Her name is Kenzie. She stayed here one afternoon because her house was the scene of a party. (For some reason, she wasn't invited. We dogs have a sad life. Sniff.)

Remember that big tree that, well, decorated the roof of our house?


They took it away.









While I was gone, some nice workmen began to build us a new porch. They're still at it.

They built the supports, but not the floor...


...so Kenzie played peek-a-boo. I hope to play with her some time!

By the time I came home, they had laid the floor but there was only a ramp down to the yard.

Now, I ask you: Am I chicken? No! Regard this, please...










Yes! It was fun, and I felt very adventurous!

This new, deck-y sort of porch gives me a great vantage point for watching wildlife...





...and doing other things.


That is not one of my MEE-YOWs! She lives next door. I don't know what she's going on my deck.




Then... they built steps! Oh, my.


Hm.






Can I do this?


YES! Hooray for me! (Hooray for puppy treats.)

How can I be in heat if it's snowing outside?

I'm writing long distance (via my PR mom). I'm taking a vacation!

The other day my mom said, "Kelda, you've grown up! You're not ready to go to puppy college yet, but you'd be ready to have puppies if CCI wanted you to." Well, I hadn't thought about a career change, but... whatever! I'm always up for adventure.

The next thing she said was: "For this, you get a treat - three weeks at the kennel!" Oh, yeah? I'd heard other opinions about the kennel.

So she drove two nylabones, a toy, a filled bone, and me out to the kennel. There are lots of dogs out here! I live next to a very friendly Golden Retriever. I have my own room. My suite falls short in the fabulous decor department, but it does have an attached private patio. The people are very nice. They're going to play with me and walk me and do a little cleaning up after me. This may not be too bad.

So I'll see you all in three weeks!

Here's how to celebrate the Super Bowl

So I started hearing the words Super Bowl, and I started wondering what was in it (the dish, I mean) for me.

No such luck. But it was all right, anyhow.

The Super Bowl, it turns out, is a people game in which grown men play with a ball, jump on top of one another, knock each other down, and run from one end of a big yard to the other.

Hey, we pups do that all the time!













If we knock one another around too much or start growling, our people take us home. But these humans went at it for hours, and nobody cared what kind of growls they made.

Apparently it's important, though - worth a party, at least. So I figured I'd better get ready for it. I prepared myself by watching...



...the Puppy Bowl.






Now, that was interesting.





I did get a little distracted. Maybe football isn't my thing.






Maybe track suits me better. (I like to do sprints.)


So then we went to the party, and, although I was hoping...

...to get a ball game going, it didn't work.



Gus liked the ball (just a big ol' ball - I didn't have one of those pointy ones), but he didn't care to run with it....









... and Rascal II liked telling me off. Just because it's his house.






Finally, we decided that what we really wanted to do was to be with the people.

I entertained them all when they got a little tired of the television. I ran up and down the steps (note, please: up and down the steps!) and wagged my tail at everybody. They couldn't have had a great party without me.


Next Super Bowl I'll be at puppy college in California, I hope (if I haven't - horrors! - flunked out). I'd like to plan a party for all of us advanced-training four-footies! Lots of balls, lots of running, lots of dog treats - it could be terrific.


Oh, before I go, take a look at this. Remember my friend who came over for the day because she didn't have a tag on her collar?

She came over again! See the tag? (Look closely at the edge of her collar on your left.) Isn't it beautiful? So she and I played for a while, and then my mom walked her around the block and took her home. Cool!