Guess what?! My brother, Caelan, is a star! His photo was in the North County Times (a San Diego newspaper)! You can check it out here: North County Times.
My pal (formerly known as my puppy raiser) keeps in touch with Caelan's puppy raiser (as well as the puppy raisers of my other brother and sisters). All of our puppy raisers compared notes while they were raising us. Supposedly Caelan is a lot like me in terms of our personalities!
Caelan is currently in doggie college (aka Advanced Training) in Oceanside. And, he may graduate this month! My sister, Cammie, may graduate this month too! She's in doggie college in Santa Rosa (that's where I went to school... until I decided to I wanted to come home :-). AND, my brother Corda graduated from the North Central region back in May. AND, my sister, China, was selected a breeder for CCI! My family rocks!
Thursday, July 31, 2008
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Dawg Days of Summer (by: Gerrit)
We were all hanging out this evening, sunbathing in the late afternoon sun. My puppy raiser said, "You know, it's been a really long time since we've written in the blog... we've gotta post a blog!". Lucky grunted and said, "Carlo should do it". Carlo looked pitifully at my puppy raiser, blinked his eyes, and said, "Do I have to?" So... needless to say... I was nominated for the job! How cool is that?! I quickly put on my journalist cap, grabbed a notepad, and started interviewing everyone as to what their excuses were for not blogging lately!
I asked Lucky first. She sighed and said, "Can't you see I'm busy, kid?" Then she rolled over and started snoring. Hmmmm... now that I think of it... that is why she hasn't been blogging lately! She's been super busy this summer napping and snoring! That's a pretty good excuse for not blogging, if you ask me!
Next, I asked Carlo! Carlo told me he's been busy enjoying the good life of being back at home. He's been busy teasing me with games like "keep away" and "catch me if you can". He's also been busy with his new career as assistance puppy raiser. He's been attending my training classes (although, usually he just hangs out and watches class... and then plays with all of us little pups after class ends). He and my puppy raiser have also been busy studying a book on how to become certified for therapy work through the Delta Society. My puppy raiser has to take a class and then they both have to go through some kind of evaluation, which I think is going to be sometime in October!
Next, I asked my puppy raiser what her excuse was. But, first I crawled in her lap (my favorite place) and got super comfy. My puppy raiser said she's been busy keeping up after all of us. She said she needs to start teaching us some useful stuff like how to put all of our toys away when we are done playing. Errrr.... why would we wanna do that?! She's also been busy with photography stuff. She's always taking photos. Lucky said that at least she's been taking photos of things other than us lately. I actually don't mind it when she takes my photo. My favorite thing to do is to help her clean her lens by walking up and giving the lens a BIG wet kiss.
As for me... well, I've been busy learning how to be a good boy! I still go to work every day with my puppy raiser. Work has been really fun lately. We had something called a bbq a few weeks ago. There were so many good smells in the air! And, just last week a group of us pups and our puppy raisers did a demonstration and visit at a nearby assisted living home. The people there gave us so much lovin'. I loved it! I've also been busy losing my baby teeth and growing! I'm 5 months old and growin' and growin' (although, I can still walk under Carlo... he's super big!). All that growin' is a lot of work!
As you can see, we've got a bunch of good excuses for not blogging. But, I guess the main reason we haven't been blogging is we've been too busy enjoying the dawg days of summer. Why be on a computer, when we can sleep and play outside?! Speaking of which, Carlo's got a cool looking toy he's running around with outside... I've gotta gooooo!
Saturday, July 19, 2008
Breeder Caretakers and Puppy Photos (by: Gerrit)
Yesterday my puppy raiser went over to a breeder caretaker's house and took photos of a bunch of other puppies. What the heck is up with that? Are we not cute enough?!
For those of you who don't know... a breeder caretaker is another type of CCI volunteer. They take care of the dogs that are selected to be breeders for the CCI program. And, if they are the ones taking care of the mama dogs... they also have to assist with whelping, and taking care of the puppies from when they are born until they are about 8 weeks old.
The puppies my puppy raiser visited yesterday are going to be brought to CCI headquarters in Santa Rosa tomorrow and from there they will go to their soon to be puppy raisers! Some of them will even get to ride on an airplane cause their puppy raisers live in other states!
There were only 5 puppies in the litter of pups my puppy raiser visited. There were 10 puppies in MY litter! My puppy raiser said she has a tough enough time keeping up with her crew of 3 dogs... she could never imagine taking care of 5... or 10... especially 10 energetic puppies like me. Hey!
As I wrote above, I was a little offended that MY puppy raiser would want to take photos of other puppies. But, Carlo told me to enjoy the rest while I can... cause she always has a camera pointed right at us! Lucky was worried she was going to bring yet another puppy home. Boy was she relieved when she just came home with a bunch of photos!
Monday, July 7, 2008
Snakes, Smoke, and Foxtails... oh my! (by: Lucky)
Summer was made for dogs. Warm days. Swimming. Camping trips. Hiking. Basking in the sun. What could be better?! It's no wonder that the phrase "dog days of summer" came to be! But, when you throw things like rattle snakes, smoke, and foxtails in the summer mix... summer ends up being... not so fun!
It was bad enough when reports of it being rattle snake season started hitting the papers. My pal takes us on hikes and walks all the time... and while Carlo and Gerrit always have to stay in a "let's go" position (walking either on her right or left side), I'm special and I get to go off-trailing (ahhh, the benefits of ruling the roost!). However, when those rattle snake reports started coming out, my off-trailing ventures were seriously impacted. Now, my pal doesn't let me go far out on the flexi leash... and she's constantly scoping for anything that resembles a snake... meaning, I've gotten yanked away from many brown sticks. And, there are certain areas (good smelling areas!) that she won't let me go at all!
Then, there's the smoke. With all the fires and heat waves, my pal has been limiting our excursions to early mornings or evenings. The early mornings only happen if she doesn't have to work. And, in the evenings, if the sun is too far down (or if it's too hot and smokey, like it has been lately), we just go for a short walk in the neighborhood (borrrrrrrrring!).
And, then today... a report on foxtails came out. My pal had to explain what these were to us... cause we were awfully confused as to why a fox's tail would get stuck on us. And, why a fox would come up to us in the first place. Supposedly these foxtails aren't really tails at all... but, prickly plant thingys that people think look like fox tails. My pal showed us some pictures of foxtails, but Carlo, Gerrit, and I just could not see why anyone would think they actually looked like the tail of a real fox. The English language is so weird and confusing! Dog speak is MUCH simpler. But, that's a subject for another blog. Back to the plant thingys that look nothing like the tail of a fox... these thingys can get stuck in our fur, up our noses, and in our ears. They are supposed to be really nasty. Sooooooo... now my pal won't even let me pee in bushes cause she's worried about these things. Ugh!
Snakes, Smoke and Foxtails... oh my! What's become of our dog days of summer? Is it fall yet???
It was bad enough when reports of it being rattle snake season started hitting the papers. My pal takes us on hikes and walks all the time... and while Carlo and Gerrit always have to stay in a "let's go" position (walking either on her right or left side), I'm special and I get to go off-trailing (ahhh, the benefits of ruling the roost!). However, when those rattle snake reports started coming out, my off-trailing ventures were seriously impacted. Now, my pal doesn't let me go far out on the flexi leash... and she's constantly scoping for anything that resembles a snake... meaning, I've gotten yanked away from many brown sticks. And, there are certain areas (good smelling areas!) that she won't let me go at all!
Then, there's the smoke. With all the fires and heat waves, my pal has been limiting our excursions to early mornings or evenings. The early mornings only happen if she doesn't have to work. And, in the evenings, if the sun is too far down (or if it's too hot and smokey, like it has been lately), we just go for a short walk in the neighborhood (borrrrrrrrring!).
And, then today... a report on foxtails came out. My pal had to explain what these were to us... cause we were awfully confused as to why a fox's tail would get stuck on us. And, why a fox would come up to us in the first place. Supposedly these foxtails aren't really tails at all... but, prickly plant thingys that people think look like fox tails. My pal showed us some pictures of foxtails, but Carlo, Gerrit, and I just could not see why anyone would think they actually looked like the tail of a real fox. The English language is so weird and confusing! Dog speak is MUCH simpler. But, that's a subject for another blog. Back to the plant thingys that look nothing like the tail of a fox... these thingys can get stuck in our fur, up our noses, and in our ears. They are supposed to be really nasty. Sooooooo... now my pal won't even let me pee in bushes cause she's worried about these things. Ugh!
Snakes, Smoke and Foxtails... oh my! What's become of our dog days of summer? Is it fall yet???
Saturday, July 5, 2008
Happy 4th of July... Addendum (by: Carlo)
So, you're probably all wondering why we just posted a 4th of July photo yesterday of me and Gerrit... and none of us bothered writing anything. Well, with all the fireworks, parades, and parties going on... we were too busy... SLEEPING!
My pal (formerly known to me as my puppy raiser!) thought that since this was Gerrit's first 4th of July, it would be best to spend a mellow day at home. You never know how dogs are doing to react to loud firework noises. Her first CCI puppy, Lonnie (who was well... scared of everything) used to have a meltdown when she heard fireworks and would tremble uncontrollably. An old neighbor had a dog that got so upset by fireworks, he once scaled a 6 foot gate and ran off (it was amazing the poor guy didn't get hurt). So, based on stories like this, my pal makes it a point to make sure her pups are all ok on the 4th of July.
During the day, we went on a long "big boy" walk on the trails to celebrate Gerrit being almost completely vaccinated. Gerrit got his rabies shot a couple days ago and the vet says he is now 99.9% safe from puppy diseases [side note by puppy raiser: The vet said that they have been seeing an increase in Parvo cases in this area, so she will be giving him one more booster at 5 months old.]. Gerrit did pretty well on the "big boy" walk... but, he did get distracted by things like dogs (who did not look like him) and young children. Speaking of children... I saw one yesterday while we were walkin' that was about 2 years old and I gave him the biggest kiss on the nose (my pal keeps wondering whatever happened to that fear of kids I used to have... hee hee!). Anyways, back to Gerrit... when he gets excited he tends to start whining. My pal said that this is something we REALLY need to work on with Gerrit. So, it sounds like we'll be going on lots of training walks. Cool!
In the evening we had a BBQ out in the backyard. While we were back there, the firework shows started. We couldn't see them, but we sure could hear them. Some of the fireworks were really loud. Lucky got pissed at them and barked at a few times when she heard bang bang poppity pop. Gerrit and I played and could care less.
After the BBQ and playtime, my pal brought us all inside to watch a movie. That's when the firework noises really started! Whenever my pal heard a loud BANG! she looked over at us... and noticed Lucky was snoring, I was curled up making dreaming noises, and Gerrit was on his back completely wiped out. Talk about being unfazed by fireworks! Realizing that not even fireworks could wake us up, my pal decided to not bother waking any of us up to write a 4th of July blog.
Hope you all had a happy 4th of July... and that you got in some good naptime like us!
My pal (formerly known to me as my puppy raiser!) thought that since this was Gerrit's first 4th of July, it would be best to spend a mellow day at home. You never know how dogs are doing to react to loud firework noises. Her first CCI puppy, Lonnie (who was well... scared of everything) used to have a meltdown when she heard fireworks and would tremble uncontrollably. An old neighbor had a dog that got so upset by fireworks, he once scaled a 6 foot gate and ran off (it was amazing the poor guy didn't get hurt). So, based on stories like this, my pal makes it a point to make sure her pups are all ok on the 4th of July.
During the day, we went on a long "big boy" walk on the trails to celebrate Gerrit being almost completely vaccinated. Gerrit got his rabies shot a couple days ago and the vet says he is now 99.9% safe from puppy diseases [side note by puppy raiser: The vet said that they have been seeing an increase in Parvo cases in this area, so she will be giving him one more booster at 5 months old.]. Gerrit did pretty well on the "big boy" walk... but, he did get distracted by things like dogs (who did not look like him) and young children. Speaking of children... I saw one yesterday while we were walkin' that was about 2 years old and I gave him the biggest kiss on the nose (my pal keeps wondering whatever happened to that fear of kids I used to have... hee hee!). Anyways, back to Gerrit... when he gets excited he tends to start whining. My pal said that this is something we REALLY need to work on with Gerrit. So, it sounds like we'll be going on lots of training walks. Cool!
In the evening we had a BBQ out in the backyard. While we were back there, the firework shows started. We couldn't see them, but we sure could hear them. Some of the fireworks were really loud. Lucky got pissed at them and barked at a few times when she heard bang bang poppity pop. Gerrit and I played and could care less.
After the BBQ and playtime, my pal brought us all inside to watch a movie. That's when the firework noises really started! Whenever my pal heard a loud BANG! she looked over at us... and noticed Lucky was snoring, I was curled up making dreaming noises, and Gerrit was on his back completely wiped out. Talk about being unfazed by fireworks! Realizing that not even fireworks could wake us up, my pal decided to not bother waking any of us up to write a 4th of July blog.
Hope you all had a happy 4th of July... and that you got in some good naptime like us!
Friday, July 4, 2008
The G-Dawg Training Guide - Shake... the good kind! (by: Gerrit)
The other day I wrote about the bad kind of shake (shakin' my buddy Hope by the neck while we were playing). Today, I'm going to write about the good kind of shake!
So, you would think that teaching shake to a puppy would be the easiest thing in the world, right? You just hold out your hand, say shake, and puppy joyously puts paw in your hand. What can be difficult about that? Ummmmm... lots!
When my puppy raiser tried teaching it to me, I had no clue that I was supposed to shake with my paw. I thought shake meant touch nose to puppy raiser's hand... and, if her hand smelled like yummy treats... give hand a big wet lick! She tried over and over and over again to explain that I was supposed to touch her hand with my paw (and not my nose or tongue!)... but I just didn't get it.
So, what did my puppy raiser do? She asked one of Nick's puppy raisers (who is also Hope's person) to try teaching it to me while she was puppy sitting me. And, you know what? I finally learned it! But, it took some work cause I just didn't get the whole lifting the paw thing. Nick's puppy raiser had to be sorta be creative and do things like wrap my paw with a leash and slightly tug it while she said "shake".
Now that I know it, my puppy raiser practices it with me constantly. She says it's not enough just to know shake cause shake for a CCI puppy means so much more than just shaking a person's hand. For a CCI pup, shake is the foundation for eventually learning stuff like turning off light switches. So my puppy raiser has been teaching me that I should lift my paw when she says shake even if her hand is not there (so, it sorta looks like I'm waving). And, I should not lift my paw if she holds out her hand, but does not say the shake command.
Whew, the good kind of shake sure is tough! Shakin' my buddy Hope was so much more fun (errrrr... except for the getting in trouble part)!
So, you would think that teaching shake to a puppy would be the easiest thing in the world, right? You just hold out your hand, say shake, and puppy joyously puts paw in your hand. What can be difficult about that? Ummmmm... lots!
When my puppy raiser tried teaching it to me, I had no clue that I was supposed to shake with my paw. I thought shake meant touch nose to puppy raiser's hand... and, if her hand smelled like yummy treats... give hand a big wet lick! She tried over and over and over again to explain that I was supposed to touch her hand with my paw (and not my nose or tongue!)... but I just didn't get it.
So, what did my puppy raiser do? She asked one of Nick's puppy raisers (who is also Hope's person) to try teaching it to me while she was puppy sitting me. And, you know what? I finally learned it! But, it took some work cause I just didn't get the whole lifting the paw thing. Nick's puppy raiser had to be sorta be creative and do things like wrap my paw with a leash and slightly tug it while she said "shake".
Now that I know it, my puppy raiser practices it with me constantly. She says it's not enough just to know shake cause shake for a CCI puppy means so much more than just shaking a person's hand. For a CCI pup, shake is the foundation for eventually learning stuff like turning off light switches. So my puppy raiser has been teaching me that I should lift my paw when she says shake even if her hand is not there (so, it sorta looks like I'm waving). And, I should not lift my paw if she holds out her hand, but does not say the shake command.
Whew, the good kind of shake sure is tough! Shakin' my buddy Hope was so much more fun (errrrr... except for the getting in trouble part)!
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