A Picture Drawn

So, you all know that I go to University in Scotland. All my friends know that I raise Guide Dog Puppies (I do tend to talk about it a lot). Well one of my friends drew this recently and sent it to me. :-) I quite like it.

Mostly Wordless Wednesday

Pictures of Recall Day...

Rocky, Regis, and Rocco
They stopped Fresno on their way up so Rocco could say "Hey" to his Fresno brothers.
Lance, Colorado, Lunar, and Rocco

Can't tomorrow get here already? :D

16 Things at 16 Months

*written by Rocco*

Hey Guys! Did you miss me? Well, I sure missed the blog, but I've been having so much fun and I've been learning a lot. I know Momma has told you, but I'm going to announce it anyway. I'm going to Dog College! Yippie! I'm excited about going, but all my Moms seem sad. They're getting all emotional and sappy about it. I keep telling them that I'll see them again and that they shouldn't' cry, but you know what Moms are like.

Anyway, today I am 16 months old! And for this months post I am going to tell you 16 things that excite me the most about going off to College.

1. All the Other Dogs. My moms are telling me that up at school there are a lot of other dogs and you know how much I like to play. This is going to be so much fun!

2. My brother Rocky. Rocky and I are heading up to college at the same time! (Erin: Something we all joked would never happen because Rocco was less mature that Rocky. He matured up within the past month apparently). I'm hoping that he and I get to be roommates.

3. A Roommate. If it's not Rocky, I hope that I have a fun roommate.

4. New Stuff to Learn. My moms are also telling me that I'm going to have so much stuff to learn. They keep saying that it's gonna be a lot of hard work, but it sounds like so much fun. Momma says that I get to be clicker trained and that I'll get to work in a Harness just like my Big Sister Freya.

5. Graduation. I'm really excited about graduating. I know I can do it and I can't wait! I had so much fun at Freya's graduation and I really want to do it too. It'll be so much fun to have all 3 Moms there telling me what a good boy I am (which I am).

6. Kendrick, Pauli, and Amici! Amici is one of my best friends. I know he went back a little sooner than I did, but I'm sure we'll still get to see each other. I hope I get to see Kendrick too, but I hear he's almost finished with college so I don't know if I'll get to see him. I just hope the four of us get a chance to play together at least once.

7. The TOYS! I love toys and I've hear that they use toys in the play yard that we aren't aloud to have at home.

8. The Play yard. Can you imagine it? It's going to be like a dog park. I've never been to a dog park and I so excited to see what it's like to get to choose who to play with from that many dogs at once.

9. The Harness training. I'm so ready to stop with the whole "jacket" thing. I mean, I love my jacket don't get me wrong, but I get to work in a harness.

10. The food. I hear the GDB has excellent food service and serves food that received "5 paws".

11. My blind person. I'm really excited to find out who I will eventually get paired with. I'm hoping my person does something cool like...like...flies airplane! Ok, maybe not fly airplanes, but I'm sure I'll have the coolest person ever.

12. The blindfolded tests. Momma told me that when I got good enough I would have to pass a test where my trainer would be wearing a blindfold. I'm really nervous about that, but it sounds exciting too.

13. The trainers. Everyone tells me that the trainers are really, really nice.

14. Fun Day. I was there last Fun Day and I got to go into the kennels and see all the older dogs who were at college there. I knew then that I wanted to make it to that point. :D I hope some little pup walks through and sees me and says that's what I wanna do. I'm also hoping to show off a little so I can be a dog at "Follow a Trainer". That would be so much fun.

15. The Drive up to Campus. Mommy Lynn is driving me and Rocky and his mom up to campus to see us settled into our new dorm. I love long car rides. Momma always said that I was one of the best car companions ever.

And finally...

16. Going Home. I can't wait to go home with all the new stuff I learned up at school. No matter where that home might be.

Now, Momma made me put in some pictures. I chose a whole bunch of me playing because all the others that she wanted to put up where a little embarrassing.

I got to go to card game days with Momma all the time.
Since I don't have opposable thumbs though, I couldn't play cards.

That backyard was a lot of fun.

I love the Jolly Ball.
See? Apparently even when I'm just chewing a bone it's a photo opportunity.

Momma and I were playing "Tug" and she decided to break for a photo.
This is when I got back to Momma's for Christmas. I ran round and round the couch with Rosie following me until she gave up.

Auntie Arwen. She really was a great mentor for me.
This was at a puppy meeting in January when I got to see Rockford again.

Finally, there's this picture. You guys want to know what I'm staring at? See that spot on my paw? It's actually a fly. Momma said I must have been the only dog in the world who was fly distracted. Well, I'm not sly distracted anymore.

Thoughts Before the Big Day

I've been thinking a lot about Rocco's recall day today. I mean, I think about it a lot anyway but today it seems to be something where my mind keeps turning to. Which is inconvenient when you are trying to revise for exams, but I digress. I'm not sure why I'm thinking about it so much today. I would have thought that tomorrow makes a much better day to think non stop about the Boy. Perhaps it's the anticipation of tomorrow that's making me think so much today. Here's what I've been thinking about.

First off, why am I so sad that he's being recalled. Surely some of you (those of you who aren't puppy raisers I bet) are thinking, "Erin, you've been away from Rocco since January. He was transferred in September. You've already had to leave him 3 times! Why are you so sad?" Well, I haven't come up with an answer for that one yet. I have no idea why I'm taking Rocco's Recall hard. He made an impression on me to say the least I guess. However, if I had to guess (you know, if there was someone pointing a gun to my head telling me to tell them why I was sad) I would have to say it's because I don't think I gave him a proper good-bye in April. At least, not one that could be considered a good-bye for a recall. It's hard for me because I've realised that if he doesn't graduate in August...April will be the last time I saw or see Rocco...and I gave him a terrible good-bye. (You listening Rocco? Graduate in August pretty please.)

I'm also thinking about what Rocco meant to me. For me, Rocco was a break. Oh, he was hyper and bouncy and playful and silly. But for those of you who knew Freya as a PIT know that Rocco can only be considered as a break compared to Freya. He had his issues (I still remember getting no sleep the first few months) but they were easily solved and he was so eager to please and happy-go-lucky. So, I guess, for me Rocco was a dog that I could see both as a pet because he dearly loved to snuggle and some the happiest faces he's pulled was when we decided to stay in for the day OR as a Guide Dog because he loved working. Freya could only be a working dog. She wouldn't have been happy as a plain, old pet. Rocco, I was never sure which he would prefer. Perhaps that made me want to keep him more (I know, I know...he's a male yellow lab. I'm not to have fallen in love with him.)

Contemplation...Processing...Saddness. People who don't puppy raise don't understand why recall day hurts the way it does. They assume it's hard to leave your puppy, but they don't really understand. Even my dad, who is not emotional or sensitive, was sad when Freya left. He didn't have to say anything, but I knew (18 years living with a person and you start to be able to read them). I tell people all the time "It breaks my heart, but how could I not give them up?"

My heart is breaking...

Pictures taken at Christmas this year.

Play Pictures

Rocco was a really good boy the last 3 weeks of school as he came with me as assistant to the Student Director for our school play, Seussical the Musical. He kept me company when I didn't have anything to do. He was the best buddy to have there.

He was still pretty young and yet he sat through the rehearsals like a champ! 9 Days...

Week Stretch

We're a little past the "it's a week exactly" mark, but we're still in the week long stretch. I can't believe his recall is this weekend. It seems like such a short time ago that he was a chubby puppy being placed in my arms in the GDB kennel kitchen.

Rocco really enjoyed baseball when he was with me. He loved the attention he got from the fans and I think he really enjoyed getting to sleep outside instead of inside while people around him cheered on our team. I hope when he graduates he goes to someone who also love baseball.

Play Pictures

Rocco was a really good boy the last 3 weeks of school as he came with me as assistant to the Student Director for our school play, Seussical the Musical. He kept me company when I didn't have anything to do. He was the best buddy to have there.

He was still pretty young and yet he sat through the rehearsals like a champ! 9 Days...

November 8: More Pictures

I unfortunately have no updates from Freya or from Rocco at the moment. I know they're both doing well and that Freya sent me a Christmas gift that I'm eager to go home and open. Though, I'll be a good girl and wait until Christmas to open it. I hear Rocco is being an absolute doll which I love haring. I honestly can't wait until I get to go to his graduation...but if there never is one there is, at least, a plan. But there's going to be one. :)

What I do have for you guys are some more pictures I drew of Rocco. I started the first one yesterday while waiting for a committee meeting to start and finished it at lunch today while I was waiting for a friend to meet me at the Hub so that we could discuss the poem we were suppose to talk about today in our tutorial (which I have to say we nailed seeing as we started it two hours before we had to talk about it).

And this second one I started today. It's not the best, but it was relaxing. I absolutely love this picture of Rocco and the face he's giving me. He's just one big ol' ham.

There have been more pictures besides these two but I figure that since I had nothing to post today I would post the pictures that make me very happy that I'm seeing my boy in a little over a month. Can you believe it!? I really can't wait and I think that's why I draw him. In some way I can have him here with me. :) All of the pictures I've drawn, the good and the bad, are now posted to my wall with blue tack so that it feels less drab in here and more like home. :)