Well, he did it!!! Gerrit graduated!!! He graduated as a Skilled Companion, which is a dog that enhances independence for children and adults with physical, cognitive, and developmental disabilities. Skilled Companion Dogs are trained to work with an adult or child with a disability under the guidance of a facilitator. In Gerrit's case, he was placed with an 18 year old boy and the boy's parents are the facilitators.
I didn't get to go to the graduation, but my pal told me all about when she got home. She said that it was the most wonderful day ever (besides getting me back, of course ;-)!
When she first arrived at CCI, she got to meet and have lunch with Gerrit's new family. She said that as soon as she met them, she knew that they were the perfect family for Gerrit!
After lunch, she got to see Gerrit again. The little clown was so happy when he saw her, that he actually knocked her right off her feet! That must have been so funny! My pal got to spend an hour with Gerrit prior to the graduation ceremony. She said his tail never stopped wagging during that whole hour.
The most emotional part of the day for my pal was the graduation ceremony, when she presented Gerrit to his new family. She said that while she had to wipe away a few tears, she was so incredibly happy and proud of Gerrit. She could tell that Gerrit had already bonded with "his boy" and she knew that the future was going to be filled with fun and happy times for the two of them.
Gerrit - We love you little buddy! You made us all so proud!
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1 comment:
Look at you, Gerrit! Such a big, grown up boy doing your job. A tremendous round of applause to you and your raiser for making this happen!
Good luck with your job.
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