LabradorRodeo

Empty Leash Refilled

Posted on September 23, 2010 | 1 comment

Another post in my continuing “Days of Yore” series, catching up on long-overdue photos of Truman’s final days as a puppy-in-training….

August 9, 2008 — Empty Leash Refilled

After Truman’s turn-in, I took my empty leash over to the kennel department and filled it with a German Shepherd.

(“What?!?”)

I know. But I’m serious. I had been asked to temporarily take on a Shepherd from the puppy raiser group in Washington state. The little guy was having some allergy issues, and the GDA vet department wanted to try to clear those up in order to give him all the chances they could to get him to formal training, so he came down to SoCal for a while. I figured it would be nice to have another furry friend to cuddle with since I’d miss my Roo so much, and I’d never watched a Shepherd before, so that would be fun.

The handsome devil’s name? Imriel. An all-black Shepherd (or as I like to refer to them, Pointy Labs). And he was a sweetie!

The first thing I noticed — beside how long and lanky and tall he was — was his gait. This was no Labrador tugboat! On leash, he had more in common with the Labradoodles I’d watched. Long and loping, barely there. It was fun to walk him.

I got him home to my apartment, and we settled in for the next few weeks. He was a great dog, but very different in some profound ways from what I knew best. I found myself calling the “Shepherd people” I knew, to ask questions like “Why does he not seem interested in eating?” and “How on earth do I get him to eat?” and “Seriously, what is his deal with the not eating?” My friend’s answer was pretty funny: “It’s normal. It’s a Shepherd thing. It’s just that unlike a Lab, food is NOT a Shepherd’s number one priority.”

I loved watching Imriel keep track of everything; he really seemed to know what was going on everywhere, at all times. Even while we were walking, his gaze would shift near and far, his head would turn (but calmly) at the slightest peripheral activity, and his ears would constantly be realigning to whatever they could pick up. He was on the job 24/7. And aside from having to pronounce his name repeatedly to everyone, and assure them that yes, there is such a thing as a black German Shepherd, I loved having him around.

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Posted in German Shepherds, O.P.P. (other people's pups)

T-Litter Turn-in

Posted on September 22, 2010 | Leave a comment

Another post in my continuing “Days of Yore” series, catching up on long-overdue photos of Truman’s final days as a puppy-in-training….

August 9, 2008 — T-Litter Turn-in

Two years later — and having received him back for good only three weeks into formal training — I feel like I can’t really do justice now to a post about Truman’s turn-in. What can I say? Turn-in is the day you shoot for as a puppy raiser, because it marks the end of all you can do to get your dog to the goal of becoming a guide. It’s up to the dog from there. Turn-in can also be pretty heinous, emotionally speaking.

In short: Truman’s Amy and I, and Wolf, made the long journey to GDA together. My boy wore a bow tie, as was to be expected from my ever-classy canines. The lunch was delicious, yet torturous, as always. The photo time was bittersweet, because Truman and Tai were the only representatives present from their litter. The roommate roll call was a relief, because the brothers were together. The walking away with an empty leash was…not applicable to me this time.

But I’ll tell you more about that next time.

In the meantime, enjoy these photos:

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Posted in GDA events, Littermates, TRUMAN, Turn-In Day

Last Day at Home

Posted on September 22, 2010 | Leave a comment

Another post in my continuing “Days of Yore” series, catching up on long-overdue photos of Truman’s final days as a puppy-in-training….

August 8, 2008 — Last Day at Home

The “lasts” are all pretty much a bummer. On Truman’s last full day at home, I took a photo of him in his Happy Place, on the blue rug by the sliding glass door to the balcony, because I thought it would be a nice contrast to a similar photo I took in the first few days he lived with me. It’s hard to believe he was ever so small, isn’t it?

And Wolf and I took him on one last walk along the bluff that overlooks Playa Vista on one side and Marina del Rey on the other. The Roo and I used to walk there frequently, enjoying the view, and the breeze, and the little lizards that would scurry across the sidewalk path, and the way the traffic noise didn’t matter because if you just looked in the other direction, you could pretend it was the ocean.

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Posted in TRUMAN

Last Day at the Office

Posted on September 22, 2010 | Leave a comment

Another post in my continuing “Days of Yore” series, catching up on long-overdue photos of Truman’s final days as a puppy-in-training….

August 6, 2008 — Last Day at the Office

On Truman’s last day at work with me, I gave him a few extra walks around the office to visit with his favorite co-workers, and I took his jacket off at the end of the day so he could play and wrestle and show everyone that yes, he is still a dog no matter what his official job may be. And at lunch time, I took him on one last walk around the park at La Brea Tar Pits, stopping occasionally to take photos, or watch birds, or both.

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Posted in TRUMAN

Dog Days of Summer

Posted on September 22, 2010 | 1 comment

Another post in my continuing “Days of Yore” series, catching up on long-overdue photos of Truman’s final days as a puppy-in-training….

August 3, 2008 — Dog Days of Summer

Wolf and I took Truman up to Fresno to visit my parents one last time before turn-in. Fresno in August is…hot. Fortunately, my folks have a swimming pool. It takes quite a bit to wear Truman out, but this did the trick. The problem with swimming with him is that there’s no swimming WITH him. Truman always has to “save” his humans, which can be painful unless you swim faster than he does (which, sadly, I do not). So it’s best to distract him with a toy to fetch.

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Posted in TRUMAN

Yoga Dog

Posted on September 22, 2010 | 1 comment

Another post in my continuing “Days of Yore” series, catching up on long-overdue photos of Truman’s final days as a puppy-in-training….

July 31, 2008 — Yoga Dog

He’s done this since he was a puppy, this thing we call “Yoga Dog.” First he’ll come over and lean against your legs, encouraging you to pet him and scratch him. Then the head goes down. Sometimes he flips over entirely and does a somersault, hoping for a bellyrub. It’s pretty ridiculous.

Here he is, demonstrating with his Amy.

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Posted in TRUMAN

Big Dog on Campus

Posted on September 21, 2010 | 1 comment

Another post in my continuing “Days of Yore” series, catching up on long-overdue photos of Truman’s final days as a puppy-in-training….

July 25, 2008 — Big Dog on Campus

My dogs are Bruins, whether they like it or not. We always take photos on campus at UCLA, my alma mater (Wolf’s too!). Lomax did it, Truman did it, Jethro will do it as well.

A photographer friend of mine (check out her portfolio!) took some shots of Truman for me, because I needed some good hi-res ones to submit for our puppy group’s annual calendar. She took some of us as well…and since Wolf and I already knew at this point that we were going to get married (though it wasn’t yet public knowledge), and since Truman has been part of our relationship since the beginning, and since we didn’t take any “official” ones, I kinda consider these our engagement photos. Maybe later I’ll Photoshop my ring into them, heh heh.

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Posted in Traditions, TRUMAN

Happy Birthday

Posted on September 21, 2010 | 4 comments

Today, unbelievably, Guide Dog Lomax is six years old. Happy birthday, Moofdog!

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Posted in LOMAX

Road Trip! Part Four

Posted on September 16, 2010 | Leave a comment

Another post in my continuing “Days of Yore” series, catching up on long-overdue photos of Truman’s final days as a puppy-in-training….

July 18-22, 2008 — Road Trip! Part Four

So, off to Arizona we were! And the scenery was lovely as the day moved into evening….

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We arrived at a friend’s home after dark, and decided that since it was so hot — Arizona in July…duh — we’d sleep and relax most of the next day before driving the final leg back to Los Angeles at night. Haven’t been quite so appreciative of air conditioning since I lived in Fresno.

We figure we logged about 1,200 miles of driving, with a dog and a new/old car. Not too shabby for one long weekend!

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Posted in TRUMAN

Road Trip! Part Three

Posted on September 16, 2010 | 2 comments

Another post in my continuing “Days of Yore” series, catching up on long-overdue photos of Truman’s final days as a puppy-in-training….

July 18-22, 2008 — Road Trip! Part Three

Once we hit ABQ, we stayed with some wonderful friends who love both trains and dogs (which is, in part, why they are such wonderful friends). Truman made friends with the considerably older Arrow (a black Lab/Chow mix) and Cedar (a chocolate Lab), who were quite kind to him despite his meeting them on their turf and being full of I’ve-been-in-a-car-forEVER-and-need-to-play-NOW enthusiasm. Funny, all I wanted to do when I got out of the vehicle was sleep.

Saturday morning, we headed over to the property where our friends are helping to restore the historic Santa Fe 2926 steam locomotive. Wolf makes a trip out there a few times a year to lend his engineering experience with things like calculating the thickness of the metal in different spots on the boiler, so they’ll know where to reinforce, repair or replace it.

The soon-to-be-grand-again lady was stuck in a park for years and years, exposed to the elements, so the restoration is quite an effort! She may look rusty now, but she’s a tough old gal and she’ll be gorgeous when she’s done. I can’t wait to see her restored to her former glory, gleaming in the Albuquerque sunshine and barreling down the tracks to the wonder and delight of those who remember her heyday and those who’ve never experienced anything like her.

To give you some sense of scale, here’s a shot of Truman in front of the wheels, and of me and Wolf inside the fire box.

Also pictured are the historic Santa Fe railroad shops in downtown Albuquerque. And for my fellow Southern Californians, I’ve included one shot with a blue sky that you will not believe…partly because you may never have seen one.

We ended our day with a swim in our friends’ pool. Truman enjoyed it so much that he decided to take an unauthorized dip AGAIN just before we were about to leave for church the next morning. There was a little more “pew!” in the pews that Sunday. “Yes, ma’am. He’s a guide dog puppy in training. No, the wet dog smell isn’t on purpose so the blind person will know where he is.”