Happy...

Cabana wishes everyone a happy Friday the 13th.


And a happy weekend ahead!!

Proud to Be a Raiser

This is another new pup in our group, Tulani. She is 4 months old and was transferred from another group. Our fabulous CFR, Celeste, was at our puppy group last night, and she spent some time with Cabana. I have so much to tell about that, but I will post about it tomorrow.

For today, I wanted to mention R's blog In the Center of the Roof, though I know many other puppy raisers have found her wonderfully written blog already. R became blind about a year and a half ago and is going through the steep learning curve of learning to navigate life without the sight she'd had for the previous 29 years of her life. She is currently in the application process with Guide Dogs for the Blind.

Recently, R learned about puppy raisers, and the gratitude and amazement she shares in her post is so heartwarming. Her anticipation to get a guide dog someday and have it become her eyes so touched me, and I was reminded about how important puppy raising is.

I'm keeping this post bookmarked so I can easily find it on days when I need a little attitude pick-me-up.

R's post about puppy raisers can be found here.

We Cruised with Cricket!

Yesterday, Cabana and I got the special treat of meeting up with Becky and Cricket! Becky and I knew each other through our mutual blogs, but we had never met in person before. Since Becky was in the Bay area for other reasons, I was so pleased to take the opportunity to meet face to face.


We met at the Guide Dogs campus in San Rafael and let Cabana and Cricket get to know each other in one of the free run areas. Here's Cricket telling Cabana the secrets of being a fantastic working dog.


We stopped at a cafe in San Francisco on the way to the airport since Becky was heading back home that evening. It was great to chat and get to know each other, although we both felt fairly well-acquainted already because of our blogs. What an interesting phenomenon of our era that we can make friends with people across vast distances and find commonality in our interests, families, and love of dogs!

10 Things at 10 Months!

Cabana is 10 months old! She weighs 51 pounds--she's sweet and petite! Here she is at the same spot on the pier at SB Lake, now and when she was just 4 months old. Same silly sit and expression!

If you're not a puppy raiser already and are considering it, here are 10 things that I think it takes to be a puppy raiser. Although I'm not an expert, having been raising for only 8 months--nevertheless, here's my list:

1. Time - It requires that you give the pup some time each day, to go on walks, to do puppy handling, to play games, to train, to snuggle. It doesn't have to be hours and hours, but it is a daily commitment.

2. Lifestyle - Puppy raisers can have a myriad of job or life situations, but it needs to be one that is conducive to having a puppy around. If the puppy will be going to work with you, you'll need to work in a place where that will be okay. Other household pets are allowed, but of course, they shouldn't be aggressive toward the new pup. Many students have been given permission to take their puppies to school with them. The more you can keep the puppy around you during the day, the better training and exposure you can provide.

3. Repetition - As with a toddler, you'll need to be willing to do the same things over and over and over. It can take a long time for the pup to "get it", whether it's potty training or walking nicely on leash. Cabana loves to play tug-of-war, which can get a bit old! But she loves it so much, and even though it might be boring or we may not always feel like it, between the 4 of us in our family, we try to play it with her a couple times a day.

4. Ability to multi-task - This one is important. With a puppy around, you have to be able to do and think about several things at once. For instance, on a grocery store outing, you'll need to be able to find the kind of cereal you want while keeping the puppy from licking or knocking things over on shelves, navigate around people and objects, watch for tempting items on the floor (gum, candy, sticks, trash), anticipate the behavior of your puppy, and make an appropriate correction or give praise as needed.

5. Thick skin - You and your pup will attract a lot of attention wherever you go--so get ready for lots of stares and comments. Your puppy may do embarrassing things, like pee in the middle of the shopping mall, or try to lick someone's ice cream cone, or have a conniption fit in the middle of the park. And people can say and do thoughtless things. You'll need to roll with the punches.

6. An open heart - It's a challenge to be able to open your heart 100% to a puppy while knowing you're going to have to let her go.

7. Confidence - Your puppy needs you to be the pack leader. If you don't take charge, your puppy will--and that will make life difficult for everyone. I didn't have any prior experience with dogs, so the way I gained confidence in the beginning was by taking in as much information as possible. I read books about dog training, watched The Dog Whisperer and any other dog-related shows I could find. I watched other puppy raisers at group meetings and asked TONS of questions.

8. Family support - Everyone in the household needs to be on the same page. Even though only one person in the house may be the actual puppy raiser, the others should have general knowledge about what is allowed/not allowed. Being "on duty" 24/7 can be exhausting, and I don't know how I'd do it if my family members weren't here to support and help me.

9. Creative problem solving - Sometimes, it takes a bit of creativity to make things work for you. The crate, baby gate, tie-down and ex-pen are great tools, which can give variety and options, depending on the amount of freedom the puppy can handle. For example, I get a lot of work done while using the ex-pen as a barrier in my garage.

10. A dog blog - While not a true requirement, I have found dog blogs indispensable on my puppy raising journey. The past 8 months would all be a big blur if I didn't have this blog to look back through, and the support I receive here has been invaluable.

Did I forget anything crucial? If so, feel free to comment and add on.

For more information on being a puppy raiser for Guide Dogs for the Blind, click here.

Becky's Guide Dog Etiquette Contest

Many of you may already be familiar with Becky's blog, Cruisin' with Cricket. Becky's goal is to raise awareness about blindness, retinitis pigmentosa, and guide dog etiquette. I have learned so much from following her blog. And as a puppy raiser, I am motivated to do my best for Cabana's future partner by reading about Becky's experiences with Cricket.

Becky and I are supporting and promoting one another in her current Giveaway. She will be giving away a cork wristlet with matching key fob and coin pouch. These are all items that I made personally, using cork fabric, a beautiful leather-like fabric that is animal- and eco-friendly. (Cork fabric is also a great vegan alternative to leather, in addition to being stain- and water-resistant.)



Please stop by her site and leave a comment or question about your experience with guide dogs or guide dog etiquette. She's hoping to get at least 50 comments, so please add your input! A random winner will be chosen to receive my handmade items.

Fun Day Shirt Update

CURRENT ORDER INFO: If you'd like to place an order, please send me an email (see profile). We have t-shirts in adult and youth sizes, as well as adult hooded sweatshirts and full-zip hooded sweatshirts!

Guide Dogs' Fun Day in San Rafael is only 3 weeks away! Our puppy group will be selling t-shirts as pictured above (mens/unisex S-XXL and youth S-XL) AND hoody sweatshirts (mens/unisex S-XXL). The shirts are $15, hoodies are $25. All shirts/hoodies are in navy. Quantities are limited so stop by our booth early!

My family, Cabana and I will NOT be able to attend because we'll be out of town. Sorry to miss the opportunity to meet some of you!

Proceeds from our shirt sales will go toward harnesses for graduating pups. I'm HOPING that Cabana will have need for one of those harnesses someday....

Pictured in the photo above is my Daughter A who designed the shirt. Yay, A! I can tell Cabana is very sleepy in this photo--her ears hang low when she's tired!

Shirt Design for Fun Day

The information in the post below is outdated! We are not taking email orders for shirts at this time. Please click here for current information.


I asked my talented 16-year-old daughter to design a t-shirt for our puppy group to sell at Guide Dogs' Fun Day. I wanted something that could be worn by men, women, or kids of any age. And she came up with this beautiful Labrador design. It is based on the style of artwork by Shepard Fairey, who designed the famous Obama "Hope" poster. Isn't it fabulous?!

We will have these shirts available at GDB Fun Day on August 16. However, we are taking pre-orders now. For pre-orders, we are offering t-shirts in men's, women's, and youth sizes ($15), as well as unisex crewneck sweatshirts ($20) and unisex hoody sweatshirts ($25), plus $5 for shipping. All garments will be navy blue. At Fun Day, we will ONLY have t-shirts in men's/unisex sizes.

If you pre-order, you can also get the shirts without Guide Dogs for the Blind at the bottom, for those who are raising for other organizations.

All proceeds will go to our puppy group in order to buy harnesses for graduating dogs.

**Please respect my daughter's hard work. Please do not copy, reproduce, display or use her design without permission. Thank you very much!!

On My Own

For the first time in 18.5 years, I am home alone for an entire week. My older daughter is in Europe, and my husband and younger daughter are in Tennessee. After all these years of taking care of others, which I certainly enjoy and am happy to do, I'll have a week of taking care of only just me. Eat what I want to eat, watch what I want to watch, take as long as I want when I'm shopping, and go for runs instead of walking, since Cabana's not supposed to run.

So, in order to enjoy this once-in-two-decades novelty to the fullest, I took Cabana to Guide Dogs' kennels. People in my puppy group encouraged me to, saying that the puppies love being at the kennels because it's like a perpetual play date. Cabana loves playing with other dogs so much, so that seemed appealing. Also, they said that Guide Dogs will give Cabana a bath and trim her nails to the perfect length--so it's like a spa getaway. At least one of us will get pampered this week! (Actually, I'm not into getting pampered myself. I'd ruin a manicure in about 2 minutes.)



Here are the first dogs we saw when Cabana and I walked into the kennels. One of the dogs behind the fence looks SO much like Cabana. I wonder if they are related. They had told me on the phone when I called GDB not to bring anything, so I didn't even bring Cabana's head collar. Which meant that Cabana was pulling me along like CRAZY! In the reception office, there were a few dogs sitting by the workers. Cabana just wanted to go check them out so badly, and I could barely keep her controlled. Finally, the woman that was checking us in got a head collar out of her desk drawer and put it on Cabana. Yikes, are any other dogs as rambunctious as Cabana?! Lordy lordy.



Here's my last peek at Cabana, as the GDB employee was taking Cabana in to her "room." She said she would pair Cabana up with a roommate of similar temperament (i.e. extremely high energy), so they could rock and roll all night, and party every day.

So my first goal for my week alone is to reupholster this old chair. I got this chair for $10 (was it even worth that?) a couple years ago, and it has been sitting in the garage, awaiting a makeover. I'm so happy to finally get to work on it! Boy, I really know how to cut loose, don't I!

Books I Recommend

A couple months before the idea of getting a Guide Dog puppy ever even crossed my mind, I happened to read two books that later influenced me greatly in that decision. Both books were just random selections that happened to be available by downloadable audio on our public library's website. (I rarely "read" a book because I like to multi-task. I prefer to listen to books on MP3 while I'm driving, running, or working, thus accomplishing two things at once.)

The first is called Crashing Through, by Robert Kurson. It's the true life story of a man named Mike May, who was blinded at age 3. Although completely blind, there was almost nothing this man couldn't do. He rode bicycles, went downhill skiing, even tried driving a car, and worked for the CIA. Then, 43 years later, surgery was able to restore his sight. It was remarkable to read about how being given sight was not the same as knowing how to see. His eyes worked, but his brain wasn't always able to interpret what he was seeing into things he could comprehend. This book gave me a keen interest and insight into those dealing with issues of blindness.


The second book is called Merle's Door, by Ted Kerasote, about the author's experiences with a dog he finds while on a camping trip in Wyoming. Merle, the dog, is a Labrador mix, and they form an instantaneous bond with each other. The author does tend to humanize Merle quite a bit, giving great meaning to the dog's every gesture. The author is also a big fan of letting his dog live off-leash and wander around their neighborhood at will (although they do live in a rural area), despite leash laws. But the book showed how strong and meaningful a relationship between dog and owner can be. Let me warn you, though--it's a tear jerker.

Having never had a dog as an adult and unsure whether we wanted to make a 10+ year commitment to a dog, getting a Guide Dog puppy for a year or so seemed like a great way to get our feet wet. It was a very good decision. Guide Dogs for the Blind gives us such tremendous information and instruction, and without that, I don't think we would have been successful pet owners. Of course, my goal now is to have Cabana become a working Guide Dog--but whatever happens, whether Cabana makes it as a Guide Dog or becomes a wonderful pet, I know I have been changed, for good.