Fun Day 2015

It's been a while.

I don't know why I haven't been poating much, but here's a rundown of the V-man.

He's growing but I don't think he will be the big guy we originally thought. He's about 55 lbs at 8 months and pretty active as of recent. He used to sleep all day, now he'd much rather be going going going.

He loves to go to work and see everyone there, and especially loves his mid day walk around the duck pond.

He recently started coming to the class Im teaching.  He was a little noisy at first  (especially in a silent ASL classroom.) But is great at sleeping all 2 hours now.

He's also got a wild streak in him as of about 3 weeks ago.  He's decided that hea going to take on the teenage months with gusto and likes to pick everything up. Lota of bones and one teeny, tiny piece of grass on the floor and the grass gets eaten. We are working on it though...

Last weekend we went to SR for Fun day and he did great! San Francisco was a breeze for him, and he did awesome on the activities.  He got to meet his brothers, Vancouver, Valet, and Vinnie (aww). It seems like they all have very different personalities, but all fun dogs! We will watch for them on the reports in a few months!

We also got to see Phoenix! He's looking good and is getting ready to join the ranks of "Sires on Ice". (Sounds like a bad figure skating performance!) Which means basically they want to keep him around :) We are super lucky that he has the best family that brings him down! 

Our club also did a booth for the first time! We will be launching a new Etsy shop thia week with our items so look for that!

5 months and some change

V is FIVE months old now! He's a sweet dude with a fat head. I love him!

A few weeks ago he weighed in at 42 lbs. I think he will be a nice size.

5 things about Valko at 5 months:

1. He loves to play outside. He would probably hike all day long if we let him. (And we could take it.)
2. He does great out- especially when I have the baby too. The other day was a long day for him- the park, then a few stores, riding the train downtown, the mall, a baseball game then back home on the train. He did AWESOME!  I was super impressed with this dude.
3. He loves to chew. Bones, Kongs,... ehm... baby toys. I've even found him chewing on his lost baby tooth. We just keep bones out for him and he's pretty good.
4. He's a little slow but once he gets it he's great! He *just* figured out sit the other day and now he's awesome at it. Next? Down. Just dont judge the remedial 10 month old who *still* doesnt know Down.
5. He's a snuggly guy. If I'm on the ground, he's trying to get on my lap and lay down. Poor King is the same way so that's a bit of a struggle. 

Happy 5 month Valko Velcro!

Feeling left out

King has been feeling a little left out of the blog. Living the life of a Career change has its pros and cons... one of the cons is that he isn't featured on the blog as much. I don't think he really cares all that much... and there's not a whole lot new with him other than we are starting up a nosework class with him this week. I think he will love it. He needs a little one-on-one time every so often and this will help with that. I'm sure there will be an update on that soon.

He's an awesome co-raiser for the puppy and human variety. He is definitely warming up to Camden and isnt as jealous as he was. He gets special privileges when it comes to baby- like when I'm feeding the baby he can on the bed to snuggle next to me or because he doesnt try to steal the baby toys *ahem Valko ahem* he gets to hang out when we are playing in his bedroom. He's a good guy.

4 months old

This cute black labrador is already 4 months old. He's a fun guy and has been super nice to have around. He takes advantage of the fact that King is a wimp so they don't get a lot of interaction, but they do get to play outside together and go on walks together.
Valko has gotten to go to work and a few other places. He got his 16 weeks shots and is weighing in at about 35 lbs!

#valkovelcro

I know it's been a minute since I've updated about the Wolf. He's a fun little guy.  Just when you think you've got this puppy raising thing down...they send you a puppy that changes all that.

Valko is a sweet guy. He likes to cuddle and play tug. He's not one for praise (maybe I thought he was deaf for the first 2 weeks because of the lack of response to anything I said.) but has learned to love the word "nice!". He's been a great sleeper since day one and is now waiting for his food and has been on a few outings. Here are a few pictures of Mr. V:

The Wolf of 650 North

And the newest V boy to join the line up is... Valko! (It means Wolf in Bulgarian.) He's a little spitfire who loves to be held. He did sleep all night last night so I'm not complaining. Here's a few "first bath" pictures until I can get a few good ones. I forget how hard it is to photograph a black dog- especially a tiny one!

King is not a fan. He will learn to love him, I'm sure... once King starts standing up for himself.

Patience is a virtue that I don't have

Well... I didn't quite make it to spring- BUT we are getting that Make Black Lab I've been wanting for the last few years.

Mr. "V" will be making his way to Utah via Delta Airlines next Tuesday afternoon- about an hour before I have to teach my first ASL class for the semester. Not great timing, but we will make it work (my younger brother is excited to get to play with Mr. V for a few hours while I'm gone.) I don't have parents or birthday, but that will come next Tuesday.

We are pretty excited... and having a playmate for King again will be good for him.

Here's the short list of names we would love (therefore guaranteeing that we won't get them.) :

-Vinnie (I would LOVE another Vinnie)
-Valiant
-Varsity
-Viking
-Vault
-Voltage

Any other suggestions?

Saying Goodbye

It's never easy to say goodbye to one of your best friends...

Unfortunately, dogs just don't live long enough.

Judith had been sick for about a month. She decided to stop eating and we could tell she was uncomfortable. A few days later she was diagnosed with a severe bladder infection and hypothyroidism. She was put on meds and improved slightly- but never went back on her dog food.

For about a month I cooked for her and begged her to eat for 20 minutes every morning and night.

I left random pieces of food (that I had carefully measured) throughout the kitchen in hopes that she would get hungry and eat it.

The day she refused carrots, we realized she wasn't enjoying life anymore- but she still met me at the door with a wagging tail when I came home, no matter what. I don't think I was ready to let go.

2 weeks ago she refused to eat, period. We tried everything: Canned food, rotisserie chicken, dog treats, baby food, cereal... anything to get her to eat. After 3 days of this we realized she was telling us it was time. I called her vet, Dr. Summers, to talk to her about Judi's quality of life- unfortunately, her vet was off until Friday. I knew what needed to happen, but Dr. Summers had taken such good care of Judith these last few years and I thought she might like to say goodbye. I texted her and told her that we would be taking her in the next day to say goodbye. Dr. Summers called me right away and offered her help on her day off. Can I just say, we love our vet? She's fantastic!

When I got home from work the next day was the first time every that Judith didn't meet me at the door- ever. She barely even looked up when I walked in... In the middle of this sickness I told Judith that she needed to tell me when she was ready to go... and when I say they tell you, they really do.

It was one of the hardest decisions I've ever had to make in my life. I'm glad we had the time we did with Judith. She really is one of the best, most perfect, cutest black labs we could have ever had and we were so lucky to have had her in our lives. She touched so many lives and I sure hope Vinnie's taking good care of her now.

This picture is exactly what I think Heaven is like for Judith:


Good Luck my little girl. We love you!

Darn Golden hips!

2 weeks after heading to GDB, Lana took a round trip home.

Her hip scores came back less than perfect and sadly, she can't be a guide dog.

We are super sad about it, but we are happy she has a new home close by. :)

My parents have decided to adopt her and she will get to be a therapy dog for my younger brothers with autism and anxiety. So far, it's like she's lived there for forever. She does well with them, and is fitting in great. She even knows to stay away from their chihuahua, Teddy. (He doesn't play well with others. He's like the dog version of Grumpy Cat.) 

I think it's a good thing.

Senior Pictures~ Princess style

Lana is leaving us tomorrow for Breeder Evals/Training. We are so proud of her and what a good little girl she is. We sure love her and wish her luck in whatever she gets to do in life- whoever ends up with this pretty girl, sure is lucky!

This afternoon, we were able to get a few last minute pictures before it got too dark. She's pretty good at turning her head the second the shutter activated, so we got a lot of fuzz... and not the cute golden kind of fuzz, but the blurry picture kind of fuzz. Here's a few of the best ones:

 

(Wow! This girl sure is pretty!)

Lana goes to college

No, she isn't officially recalled yet. (Although she has an unofficial date the beginning of November) But today was her first day coming with me to teach my night class. 

She did pretty well in my first class, now on to class number two. 

Of course right before we left, she decided to go bobbing for toys in the giant bucket of water the rain left us yesterday. Oh well... She's enjoying being out of the house. Socializations are a little more limited when I have a baby that thinks he needs to eat every 2-3 hours. ;) She usually will get out only 3-5 times a week instead of 7+ times.

This dog really was born to work. She loves going out and is fearless. She's less squirrelly than any golden I've ever met- I really think she thinks she's a Labrador. We can't wait to see how she does at real Guide Dog College... 

The newest puppy raiser

Meet Camden.

We like him... well most of us do. King isn't quite sure yet and Lana has been at the sitters so she hasn't met him yet.

Who couldn't love that face though? But really both of those faces...

House arrest: day 8

I think this one is getting real tired of this staying home stuff...

When I get ready to go in the morning, she will go sit by the door then when I open the door she pushes her head against the glass door to try to sneak out with me... poor puppy!

Last night I took her on a car ride and that seemed to make her happy, but I think she's just one of those dogs that's born to go.

...or maybe she just likes being with me.

Either way, she still has 20 more days of house arrest.

Terrific Two's

In all the craziness I'm a bad dog mom and forgot to wish King-a-roo a Happy 2nd Birthday! We felt pretty lucky to get to raise Phoenix which got us this cute guy- and now we feel even more lucky that he's our forever dog!

We sure love this big, yellow, HAIRY boy- and wouldn't trade him for anything. He's going to be a fantastic big brother!

House arrest: day 3

Poor Lana Lou... on house arrest for the next 4 weeks or so.

It will be a little nutty around here with the baby coming sometime in the next 2 weeks and her in season, but we will get through it... somehow!

All the Single Raisers

It's been a while since I've raised my own puppy... and in the last 2 months we have gotten to experience it again first-hand.

Our co-raiser decided it was time for her to go back to GDB to get a new Guide Dog so in preparation for that, we are now Lana's only raiser. It's still weird sometimes remembering that we will still have all 3 dogs next week. Sometimes when I plan something that would be really great to take a dog to, I still think "Will I have her that week?" then I remember I have her every week.

It's been fun, but an adjustment. A few things that we've learned having 3 dogs again:

- It's easier to have 2 dogs and 1 puppy in training than to have 1 dog and 2 puppies in training (see last time we had 3 dogs- Judith, Placer, and King.)
- Judith is ALWAYS the boss... then King... then Lana. Although Lana sometimes will try to boss her way up to the top of that ladder. King is wimpy sometimes.
- Sometimes crate time is necessary to continue with sanity.
- Cleaning up the back yard more often is critical to having a somewhat alive yard.
- There is never enough water in the water dish.
- When people come over, at least one has to be on tie-down or in the crate... usually two. 
- There's always a dog around.
- There's always a dog around.
- There's always a dog around.


We sure love all 3 of our pups, even if it gets a little nuts.  I will be a little relieved for the break over the winter, but I'm sure come spring puppy truck time, I will be itching for some puppy breath!

13 going on...

Happy birthday this past week to the cutest Black Lab on the block.

We sure love having her around and are so lucky for this girl to keep us in line.

J-K-L

From right to left the Saturday nap in alphabetical order:

...and that can't be comfortable, Lana! 

Almost Placer

I can't believe it's been a year since we've seen cute Placer-boy. I heard from them the other day and it sounds like they are doing well and working hard. I love that.
Emails and phone calls like that make my puppy raising heart happy. I don't know if the recipients of our dogs know it, but it makes my day to hear how they are doing.

While Placer is up guiding in Montana, his brother, Pryor lives here in Utah with his blind person, Patti. She is a sweetheart and invited us over to play last week.  We loaded up all 3 dogs and headed to their house- about 20 min away.

It was a fun time for all the pups... she has a retired golden guide named Sonoma that Judith enjoyed being an old lady with and King, Lana, and Pryor loved chasing each other around. It was strange seeing Pryor- who looks just like Placer- and not having him recognize me. He sure is a handsome boy. :)

Needless to say, they were all crashed out by the time we left. I think Lana put herself to bed by 8 and didn't make a peep until 8 the next morning. (She's usually an early riser.) Here's some pictures of the fun:

Spring!

King has been enjoying the warm weather when he can. (It snowed 2 days ago but was 55 yesterday.) He and Lana love to go out and run... Judith will even take a few laps with them before her sunbathing. They are starting to get that "outdoor-sy" smell... its also the time of year for shedding. That means a grooming session... for the big dogs, they get to go to a groomer friend for their "de-shedding" and Lana hasn't quite started blowing her coat so she will get a good furminator brushing. We are hoping for less hair in the house... but with 3 big dogs (I use big loosely in relation to 39 lb Lana and 50 lb Judi) hair is what happens.