Kelda the Therapy Dog

Remember my saying that I passed the test for my Canine Good Citizen certificate?  Well, I've done more.  Attention, please:  Kelda the Wonder Dog is officially Kelda the Therapy Dog!

The proof is in the picture above.  (I have certificates, too.)

When you are any kind of service dog, you wear a cape.  That's so people know they can let you into their building.  (All dogs are too cute to keep out of any building, but there are rules.)  I'll wear the red cape for the Paws to Read program at the Orinda Library; I may have an adult day care job, too.  The Purple vest is for the Valley Humane Society Pet Therapy Program; I'll be in Paws to Read (yes, I like books) and hopefully some other activities.  The summer-yellow one is for Tony LaRussa's Animal Rescue Foundation Pet Hug Pack.  I'll be part of birthday and learning-center parties that promote animal awareness, and other events, too - like Stars to the Rescue, where I may meet some celebrities!  Rrrrrowlf!  Is Rin Tin Tin still around?  Marley?


I'm going to love these jobs!  I can hardly wait to get to work!


Speaking of being official, three of my sisters have graduated from CCI puppy college and become Canine Companions:  Keilus, Kerris, and Kiwi.  Way to go, Special Ks!

Here's what else has been happening.  I have a friend at the fire department now.  We met at the Bodega Bay Fisherman's Festival in April.  I don't know if that will make any difference if my MEE-YOWs should set Grandma's house on fire.  (But why should they do that?  It would burn up their dinners as well as mine.)



In May I went with Grandma to Carmel-by-the-Sea, California, to meet my Aunt Lori.  We had dinner at the Cypress Inn, which Grandma says is owned by an animal-lover named Doris Day.  I'd never heard of her, but maybe you have. 

Carmel is a town that loves dogs.  Here I am on the famous Carmel Beach Walk (yes, that's really the ocean back there)... 

...and on the dog-friendly beach!









There was another special day in May.  It was my birthday!  I am now two years old.  My age count is half my paw count.  Once you read down to the bottom of the page, you'll see my official birthday portrait - complete with pearls.

I had a party with Grandma and my buddy Alexis, whose PR is named Deb.  We had permission to do Ups on her!  I received a "cool" collar (Grandma can soak it in water and it will keep me cool)...






... and the inevitable, um, hat.



Then I had a big surprise.

My PR Dad walked in the front door and said, "Hello, Big Ugly!"  I hadn't seen him since last August when I started puppy college.  (Don't worry about the "Big Ugly" business - he says that to any dog who is a Lab instead of a Golden Retriever.  We must forgive him for not being too bright.)

I got to sniff my car again, and even get in it (actually, it's my mom's car).  It had fragrances not just from Colorado but also from other dogs.  My dad had brought five CCI dogs out to California so they could start their advanced training.  Too bad I didn't meet them.

Then we had another party, and there was a cake just for me which Grandma had bought from Dog Bone Alley!  It was made with things that are yummy and safe for dogs to eat.  It was as hard as a hockey puck, but Dad pretended he was going to share it with me.

Then he helped give me more birthday presents that Grandma had picked out.  I love how she spoils me.

This is the best one.  It plays, "Happy Woofday to You."  Oh, wait... that's "Happy Birthday."  Sorry.

After my party, we went to my class.  Dad got to take me through my paces.  I don't think he expected to do that, but he remembered everything.  I taught him how to go around the cones.  That was new for him.  He did well, don't you think?


The summer should be fun - stay tuned!

California Living

Everybody says living in California is easy and laid back.  They talk about lots of sunshine (when it isn't raining); healthy outdoor living (when there's not a fire); and friends to - say - look out the window with to see if it's snowing (oh, wait... snow in April happens in Colorado, not California).

I'm sure enjoying it.  I have quite a big social calendar and I've made some new friends.  Here's my friend Marvin with his person, Auntie Ada Beth.  We're showing her what good listeners we are.  When she's done talking, maybe she'll give us treats.

Here is my Auntie Denise.  We're at the park to show you Grandpa Weldin's tree.  Where?  Oh, well, I had to crop the picture so the tree's, um, out of sight.  You'll have to tear your eyes away from (ahem) us and look at the little plaque to the left of us (your left).

Here I am with my friend Sophia.  The decoration is really a toy.  Aren't we gorgeous?


This is Betsy, who came to visit us.  She lives in Ohio, and she raised my Mama, Jenni!  She also raised my sister Kiwi.  She's very nice.  This (on your left) is called "cradle."  This (on your right) is called "play with your guest's hair."  

Since she raised Mama, and since I already have a grandma, is she my great-grandma??

I went with Grandma to a wine-tasting party.  I prefer white myself, but....  (This is a joke, folks!  Grandma knows, just as you do, that even a little alcohol is toxic for dogs!)

My friend Alexa is a CCI pup.  She has so much to learn to be a service dog that I knew she would need a little recreation.  So I very kindly gave her some.

Then there are times I just like to be goofy.




It's not all play, though.  I just passed obedience school!  


This is another step toward becoming a therapy dog.


And thinking about that, I'm wondering if all the crazy costumes Grandma puts on me might not be a good thing.  After all, I'll be visiting people who need some good cheer.  My Creator forgot to provide humans with tails to wag when they're happy, so they have to smile instead.  Maybe my costumes will help people smile.

That being said... 

...we, um, celebrated Easter.

I took the ears off for dinner.  C'mon, Papa Jack, hurry up with the food!






The Easter bunny never looked this good.

After the festivities, of course, came another California tradition:  chilling out in style!  Zzzzz....

Kelda Does This and That, Not to Mention the Other

Mocha, Muffin, and I are sitting in my office - OK, it's really Grandma's office - talking over the past several weeks. (They like me now that I don't chase them down the hall.) There are events from those weeks that I haven't told you about. I've been a lot busier than the MEE-YOWs, but of course they have more supervisory work than I do. I don't think this household could run without them.

I go to obedience school. Not that I'm disobedient, but I need to get classwork in so I can get my Canine Good Citizen standing, which I need in order to apply to be a Therapy Dog. Grandma decided not to take pictures during class so as not to distract my other classmates... or make them jealous.

We practice the things that all dogs should do. We sit, we stand, we wait (staying put, no matter what our person is doing!), we walk politely, we refrain from chasing MEE-YOWs, squirrels, and other riff-raff... oops, better not tell Mocha and Muffin I said that. I do like to go to class.



After all that work I'm pretty tired, so I take a nap... oops, better not tell the CCI folks about this. (These flannel sheets are great, though.)






Once in a while I supervise the mail. Grandma can have the envelopes with the little windows in them; I prefer packages. This was a good one. My PRs sent her a picture they found (it's not of me but it could be), and they sent me toys which don't have a lot of stuffing but do have a lot of squeakers.

That reminds me of Grandma's birthday party not long ago. And even though it was her birthday and not mine, look what I got! Row-WOOO!



I went to her Valentine's Day party, too. (Just call me a Party Pup.) And I got to wear pearls! See? (Look closely.) They're not for every day! Here's Grandma wearing them. Who says I don't know how to share? Oh, wait... am I sharing with her or is she sharing with me?

Did I tell you about my vets? I have lots of veterinarian friends. When I lived in Colorado I was buddies with Dr. Wasinger and his staff. At the CCISW training center I loved Dr. Steele... and Dr. Steele. Now I have two more special friends. One is Dr. John Andersen. He's a real good friend of Grandma's.

The other is Dr. April Ervin; she has Dr. Weldin's practice (of course, he was a vet, too). Dr. Ervin makes sure I stay healthy. I hadn't planned for her to look at my ears, but she did. I have interesting ears. They get, um, germs 'n' stuff in them and then I need medicine. It just goes with being a lovable, lively Lab.















Finally, here is one of my other jobs.

It's my duty to celebrate holidays - or anything that comes close to being a holiday. I've heard about how St. Patrick drove the snakes out of Ireland. If he'd had to drive dogs, it surely would have been just to the nearest dog party. St. Patrick was a good man. So here I am, um... for, um... I hate to think about Easter coming up...


Aw, shucks, I look cute in anything!

Kelda Dreams About the Olympics....

All together now: "TAH TAH de TAH TAH TAH TAH, TAH tah-da-TAH tah tah da-da-da-da DAH TAH TAH!"

(We didn't make up that picture. Somebody sent it to my Grandma.)

Just like so many other people and dogs, Grandma and I spent the past two weeks at our favorite new activity! Know what it was?


Watching the Winter Olympics, of course!

We stayed up late at night and took naps the next day. Then we started in again. It's all over, but even now it's fun to think about.

If I had been a hockey player, I would have grabbed that puck and run off with it. The players would not have been happy with me. It looked like just the right size to chew on, though.

If I had been at the half pipe, I... um, think I would have backed off. That sport is not for me, I think. But there are some dogs (and even an occasional MEE-YOW) who would love it.

I would have cuddled up with the figure skaters after they finished their programs. They needed me at the kiss-and-cry bench!

Why isn't there a winter Olympics for four-footed people?


Good ol' Sam might be great on a snowboard...









And for personal style, Zebrina can match that red-haired half pipe guy any day....

Here's Olivia, the gold medalist in lady dogs' figure skating, getting points from the judges and great applause from the crowds...


Mr. Grey dreams of being a gold-medal curling skip...








At downhill, Zoe would be perfect (it takes attitude)...




...and Buddy really, really wants to try the skeleton sled competition as soon as he figures out which end of it is the front.

Some dogs think winter is the best season. St. Bernards and other search and rescue dogs spend lots of time on the ski slopes and in the mountains doing their own kinds of events.

Remember Loki and Odin? They love winter. Odin thinks he'd be good at the pursuit races, but his people won't let him compete - they say they're the ones who do the pursuing.

Maybe the summer Olympics is better for most of us dogs. Look at all the things we're good at - sprints, distance running, swimming, long jumps, MEE-YOW and squirrel pursuit (oh, those aren't sanctioned by the IOC?). And think of the ball events! Wow! Think of the gymnastics! I've seen dogs who skateboard. I've seen MEE-YOWs who do high jumps (I've also seen them do pole vaults - without the pole - but I'm not saying anything else about that). Many of us are good at accompanying bicycles, even if we can't ride them.

But I have my sport already picked out:

The STICK EVENT.

Here I am with my trainer. Grandma calls him Mark the gardener, but I know better. By the time the summer Olympics comes along in 2012, I'll be in medal-contending position!







Meanwhile, I went with Grandma to a very special place. She had a CCI National Board Reception at the main headquarters in Santa Rosa. She hobnobbed with the big-shot people, and I hobnobbed with the dogs. Tessa (who is seven months old), Rusty (who's just a baby), and I ran around and played in the big yard.


Here I am sitting like a lady at the sign for Gittenger Park, which is on the CCI campus. I've been here before, a long time ago. When I was a baby like Rusty, I said goodbye to Mama and came here before they sent me to grow up in Colorado.

I acted like a lady when I got to go inside the headquarters, too. As a well-behaved COC (that means "change of career") dog, I remembered my good manners and showed no, um, peculiarities. Dr. Ruth (who's the big boss when it comes to dogs' health) said I have a beautiful girlish figure and look a lot like my Mama. We even have the same natural "eyeliner"!

Well, as Denver CCI pup Mars writes, Ciao for now! (Or is that "chow"? I like chow!) I have some important napping to do...


(I have permission!)







...before I go train some more....