Finding My Better Half...

My new furry friend Norwood is doing a "Finding Your Better Half" contest... and even with my "odd" coloring, my raiser decided to let me enter!
Though I couldn't find a perfect match... a cute Lab named Twyla caught my eye;
"Hello! I am Twyla and I am a country gal looking to come to the big city in February! I am a black lab mix about one year old and weighing in at about 50 pounds. I am the complete package! Besides being BEAUTIFUL I am also reported to be a total sweetheart who is good with kids, other doggies and cats too."

I love how she just tells it all - and she is fur sure a BEAUTIFUL doggy!

I thinks we would be a perfect match :) *See pictures below*

What do you think?

BTW - my raiser is leaving for a couple days (something about a shopping trip...) and THANK GOODNESS she decided to leave me home with some of the family (I don't care for days worth of shopping) but I don't know if I'll have any posting/blogging time until she gets back... I know all my furry friends will miss me though.
Furry Monday Kisses, enjoy the pictures below... of my better half TWYLA!

Rudy

The dog with a blog


Twyla's Sit...

Rudy's sit...

Twyla's Down...

Rudy's Down...

Twyla's Stand...

Rudy's stand...

Fun While Working

I had a furry fun shopping trip yesterday... filled with lots of "Rudy... sit/stay" (snap of picture)... "Rudy... Forward", go another 2 feet... "Rudy... sit/stay" (snap of picture) - and on and on... My raiser thinks taking pictures with me in a "sit-stay" is a lot of furry fun for HER. If she could just realize WALING FORWARD is a LOT easier for both of us and will get places quicker.

Other than the picture taking part of the shopping trip... I did have lots of fun! I really enjoy working with the guide dog harness, and I love getting to go into shops. (please note: My raiser IS NOT allowed to/and doesn't use the handle of the harness).

My raiser said I'm doing much better with my pulling, and she was very impressed with her our worked during our shopping trip.

Have a furry good weekend... and enjoy the pictures below!

Rudy - the dog with a blog

Um.... Mom... could we GO anytime soon??



YUMMY - it's the candy section!



Mommy.... PLEASE, can I have just one???




Finally, not a "sit-stay" photo... See, we are MOVING in the picture...

Bed Training... with videos!!

I betcha you never knew that there was a command for "BED"!
You may think that every dog knows that command by heart... but maybe not the exact way I do :)
What is the command 'bed"?
When my raiser gives the command "bed" I'm to find the closet dog bed and lay/sit/stand on it... until I'm given the command "okay/take a break/come". This ISN'T a "stay" command - as I'm allowed to play on the dog bed... and get up and move around (as long as some part of my body is touching the bed... I'm good!).
This command is quite helpful for my raiser when we have company over - eating dinner - playing games - watching TV - cooking - etc :) I can stay on the bed for a short time of 1 second... or a time of 2+ hours... all depends on what my raiser tells me!
I've known this command for quite awhile (back before November 2010), and my raiser thinks it is one of the best commands I know!
I can do this command on different beds... in different rooms... and with different people.
(Please not that this command is not a "have to" in the guide dog book - it's something the raisers CAN teach the dogs if wanted).
Enjoy the 2 movies below of me doing the "bed" command - both are in 2 different rooms, with 2 different beds.

Furry Thursday kisses,

Rudy
The dog with a blog

(Movie of Rudy doing the "Bed" command in the dinning room - when I say "bed" he finds his bed and stays on it 'til I say "okay or come")

(Movie of Rudy doing the "bed" command in the living room; with a different bed)

Wordless Wednesday

Rudy
The dog with a blog

Tuesday with Trixie

I've finally got to meet my playdate pal's new "sister"! (our neighbors' new 12 week old pup).

My furry cool raiser took me over for a short playdate, and I got to sniff Trixie (the new puppy) through the fence!
She's a world of cutest and oh so small; she's also a rescue puppy which is why she is a little bit skinny, but her new owners are working on fattening her up!

Since she is still quite small and "fragile" I wasn't allowed to play with her... but someday soon I shall be able too!

I was quite happy to be able to sniff her through the chain link fence that Tracker & I were playing in, but poor little Trixie was dying to come play with us!

Enjoy the furry cute pictures below,

Furry Tuesday Kisses,

Rudy

The dog with a blog

You smell funny... almost like a puppy??

I thinks I can FLY!

CPR for DOGS?

That's furry right... at our guide dog meeting yesterday; we not only practiced our commands/obedience... we also learned about Health/First Aid, CPR & the Heimlich Maneuver for DOGS.
We started off with some obedience (normal sit/down/stand stay, forward, right/left, and such). Then we did a short puppy swap (5-10 min) and kept working with obedience. Seems as though I was a little more interested in paying attention to my raiser; then to the person that had me :) But that is the reason why we do these puppy swaps.
My raiser was very impressed when she was working me, and did notice that I did extremely well with the dog distraction issues I have. (she puts me in a sit-stay X feet away from the dog(s) and slowly moves closer - continuing the sit-stay, if I break it... then we move back. The goal is for the raiser's to be able to great each other... while the dogs ignore each other).
After they worked the wiggles out of us; we all sat down and our AC did a 45+ minute talk on Health/First Aid for dogs (which my raiser really did enjoy and learned a whole lot from!).
They learned things from caring for ear infections, taking a dog's pulse, doing CPR and much more!
My raiser did get to use the Heimlich Maneuver on ME (which I didn't care for...), but CPR & Mouth to "Snout" is something they weren't allowed to test on us (thank goodness!). But the AC did say they are getting a "CPR" dog for the next meeting.
My raiser said it was a great meeting - and to make things better... we were also given the guide dog harness to bring home! (pictures coming soon).
Enjoy the pictures below - I'm off to hope I NEVER start choking and need my raiser to give me the Heimlich Maneuver!

Rudy
The dog with a blog






Um... Mom... WHAT ARE YOU DOING??

Mes have a NEW FRIEND!

Remember my neighbor/playdate pal Tracker?

Well... Tracker's owner just brought home a new little fella named Trixie! (A female Black Mouth Cur/Boxer mix 12 week old rescue puppy). My raiser said she is soo cute, and hopefully in the next couple weeks; I'll get to meet her! (picture coming soon).

So instead of 1 playdate pal... I'll have TWO!

On a side note... I've got a furry cool puppy meeting tomorrow (my raiser will learn how to give ME CPR, mouth to mouth, & basic medical care for dogs), I knows I'll have lots of furry fun!

Enjoy my sweet photo below; as you know, I'm quite fond of my over sized stuffies :)

Furry Friday Kisses,

Rudy

The dog with a blog

(almost) Wordless Wednesday

In my mind... today could be called "Helpful" Wednesday... my raiser is calling it "UN helpful" Wednesday.
She was photographing her Goat Milk Soap (for the website) and I decided she should to the same with my furry cool toy...


But she somehow thinks that JUST soap should be on the black fabric...


Whatever, that's what I get for TRYING to help.
Don't you think she should have at least gotten a nice close up of my furry cool toy??

Rudy
The dog with a blog

Upcoming Review... Just for YOU!

As many of my furry cool readers know, we've done many reviews AND giveaways through CSN stores.

My raiser is always buying some cool doggy item for me, or ordering some cool doggy item for me to use as a giveaway on our blog.

CSN stores has offered our blog another item to review/giveaway. At this point I think my raiser will order some things for ME but may order a doggy thing to do a giveaway later with :)

She's said something about ordering me some new doggy toys, but she's also been looking at modern furniture - I've just got to convince her that I REALLY NEED MORE TOYS and she DOESN'T need anymore furniture. We'll see how well that's going to go...

I've got some furry cool items already for a upcoming giveaway (maybe Valentine's Day?), but I'll let you guys know more on that later :)

Enjoy the picture below... taking a break at a food court; after a long shopping day.

Have a Furry Terrific Tuesday!

Rudy

The dog with a blog

My Distraction Training...

My raiser said "distraction training" helps me with my path to becoming a guide dog.

But I don't see how in the furry little world "ignoring" a yellow jacket (that smells like 7 cats...) is going to help with my training.

(Movie of Rudy in a down-stay with a yellow jacket sleeve hanging 1 inch above his nose... and the owner of the jacket does own 7 cats. Rudy did ignore the jacket - and doesn't even acknowledge it's there)

I think if she let me smell it... lay on it... lick it... chew it... and play with the jacket... I'd be much better off.

Whatever, at least she said "you passed that test".

Rudy - The dog with a blog

Christmas Pictures...

Wait, Christmas pictures??
Oh yeah - my furry forgetful raiser FORGOT to take pictures of me in front of the Christmas Tree until NEW YEAR'S EVE.
I don't get why she takes pictures with a Christmas tree... a WEEK after Christmas!?
Oh well, at least I look furry cute :)
Hope all of you have a great weekend - my raiser is off to some 4-H thing this afternoon, but due to the fact that she's never been to this certain event - I have to stay home (for certain reasons), but she did mention something about leaving frozen meat/PB filled bones for me!
Furry Friday Kisses,

Rudy
The dog with a blog

(almost) Wordless Wednesday

Pictures and video below are of our first January 2011 snow - which was AMAZING!!
My furry cool raiser took me sledding with her (video below).

Hope you enjoy them, have a great (almost) Wordless Wednesday & a Happy Snow Day! (if you have snow...)

Rudy

The dog with a blog

(Movie of me sledding down the hill in the snow - with Rudy following beside me!)

New Year's Party... for our Guide Dog Group

Last Saturday was our furry awesome New Year's Party with the guide dog group.
It was AMAZING - all but 1 pup showed up, and we also had some "older" dogs come (some that graduated from the guide dog school - and are in the breeder program, or got Career changed due to allergies). So it was a very "dog" crowded place!
I also got to meet the newest pups to our group: "Hedy", "Happy", "Waffles" & "Judy", which are all so furry cute!
My last puppy sitter (who currently is raising Waffles) was there - and my raiser was so surprised that I cared more about the lady - then I did about her puppy "Waffles"!
Which isn't normal... because I'm really dog distracted! Guess I just really like my sitters!
We did obedience before sitting down to eat - and I did PERFECT with my commands, getting them all correct right on the dot. When we did the puppy swap (all raisers trade puppies) my raiser ended up with "Happy" one of the new pups. And after I calmed down, I did pretty good with the raiser who was working me.
We did the awards/gifts before we ate - and I was given this HUGE baggy with cool things in it. One of which was a awesome water bottle toy (pictured somewhere below) that I love.
My raiser handed out SEGDI puppy raiser bumper magnetics that she designed to all the current puppy raisers. (Thanks to Build a Sign - as they donated all those to me for free!). The puppy raisers LOVED them, and our AC thinks the school may be interested in them too :)
Once the people finished eating - all the dogs were given doggy cake, which was amazing - we took a group picture (and some pictures of my brother "Al" & I together), then it was time to leave.
I really hope you guys enjoy the pictures & movies below!
I'm off to go eat some snow :)

*Btw - if you didn't see the post my raiser did yesterday, it gives out ALL the info we have on her last dog Toby. And tells you what career he chose to take. So make sure to check it out - as he's got a fun filled life ahead of him!*

Rudy
The dog with a blog

(Movie of Rudy doing the command "down" during puppy class)

(Movie of Rudy doing the commands "down" & "stand" during puppy class - he was the first pup to stand and our AC told him great job - which you can "kind of" hear in the video)

Toby is a Working Dog!

(Written by Rudy's Raiser)
**This post DOES include what work Toby will doing - and NEW updates about him**
Remember the post Rudy did back in December? About Toby finding a NEW job to do? After the school found out he had severe allergies - they were left with the decision to Career Change Toby - or adopt him out as a pet. I was told the school loved how Toby worked, and they decided to evaluate him for the Gifted Canine program (He'd be a service or therapy dog - maybe for an injured veteran or a disabled child). I heard in November 2010 that it was official - Toby was to be "let go" (adopted out) as a pet. And of course - he was offered back to me. It was a hard thing to say "no" I won't take my pup back, some of you guys may have said "yes" in a heart beat - but for many reasons (that can't be listed) I had to say no. I hate doing that, Toby was one of my favorite dogs.
I waited over a month watching emails closely - as I really wanted to find out who adopted Toby. I soon gave up on receiving a email and just emailed my AC, who forward my email down to the school.
I soon got this email back:
"Hi *****,
I heard back from the school with some exciting news. Toby's been adopted by ******* County Search and Rescue in Florida, which means he'll doing very important work! His handler's name is ******.
Good job!"
I've been waiting since December to post that email - but I wanted to make sure it would work out.
I just received this email this morning:
"We have just heard from the school - that the person who adopted Toby has decided to use him as a Search and Rescue dog for ******* county. What a great career for him. I'm really proud of you - this is a big win for Toby and I know he is going to make a big difference in his new job.
Thank you again for all you do for these puppies.
With much love
*** and *****"

To make a long story short...
Toby was adopted out - but instead of being adopted out as a pet (like we all thought) he was adopted by someone who decided to use him as a Search & Rescue dog - yes Toby will be working - not as a guide dog, not as a therapy dog, but as a Search & Rescue dog.
With the last email, I also received a PICTURE of Toby with his new handler/owner (pictured below). This was one thing I was really hoping for - as I really wanted to use it on his blog, so I hope you guys like it!
Though Toby isn't a guide dog as I hoped, I know he'll do amazing work with this program - and if something does go wrong, he'll do his best at whatever path he decides to take.
Thanks to all who kept through reading all his adventures (May 2009 - April 2010), we really appreciate all the comments you left for us, when we went through hard, good, and amazing times.
Hope all of you guys are having a great day - Rudy sure is... as it's SNOWING outside! (Pictures/movies coming soon).
Thanks for taking the time to read this! Congrats to all who guessed Search & Rescue would be Toby's new job!

Rudy's Raiser

Pictured below is of Toby & his new handler/owner

Mango Minster - 2011!

I just heard that Mango will be doing the 2011 Mango Minster - and now that the rules are out.. I've got to enter!
The categories are quite different this year - no "working dog" category to enter myself into - so my raiser has been having a hard time deciding which category to go with; as I really don't fit in any.
The categories are:
Shameless Dogs and Doggie Divas
Good Old Boys and Gals
Bad Sports
Kittehs
Cracker Dogs
Since I really don't fit into any now (my raiser was going to enter my in the Cracker Dogs category - but all the things it listed for qualifications - I'm not allowed to do; as I'm training to be a guide dog - so she decided otherwise).

We decided to look at the categories another way - what category she HOPES for me to fit into and the "Good Old Boys and Gals" is the best fit for me - (if) I become a guide dog I've got to be really well behaved, calm, and - well - a GOOD "old" Boy!
Since I'm in training to be a well behaved dog - so I can one day be a guide dog; my raiser thinks that is what I qualify for the be
st.
Though I really don't fit best in any category - my raiser really wanted to enter me, so though you may think I'm not the perfect match for the category - it is the best fit for me... if you look at it the right way :)
So when it does come down to voting, furry please pick me!
Thanks to Mango for doing the 2011 Mango Minster; we know it will be the best one yet!
*Most likely you STILL don't believe I fit in a "Good Old Boys & Gals" category - so I'm including some good reasons below of why I'm the BEST fit for this category!*


Rudy
The dog with a blog




Only Good Old Boys & Gals...


-can do a calm sit-stay for a photo...



-can sleep while your raiser and family are busily preparing the Thanksgiving Dinner



-can behave calmly in a down-stay while your raiser & her friends are eating pizza at a very busy restaurant


-can read ALL the safety information for flying on a airplane



-can behave calmly AND do commands at the same time while outside in the itchy grass...

-can not be distracted while attending exercise class AND do a calm down-stay...

-can obey calmly during guide dog puppy class AND do wonderful at commands (down & stand)...

-can play with a squeaker toy WITHOUT tearing it up :)

Now if you still don't believe a qualify for the "Good old Boys & Gals" category - continue reading my (almost) daily posts - and see what a good boy I am :)

Or just think of all the training that goes into a working service/guide dog - because that's what I'm going through right now. Daily obedience, Monthly Guide Dog Meetings, Weekly New Exposures, Daily Outings - and I go EVERYWHERE with my raiser (including when she shops for clothes...)

I do hope I've finally proved myself!

PLAYDATE!

My furry cool raiser set up a play date for today with my cool buddy Tracker (who I've not played with in months!).
Tracker is our neighbor's Black Mouth Cur. dog - he's a little older than me, but we are about the same size.
We had a playdate back in July 2010, but then my raiser got furry busy - and never had time to take me over again. She decided (starting in 2011) that she would try to set up some playdates with Tracker.
My first 2011 playdate was today - and we had loads of fun! I was there for (about) 1 hour - my raiser read science while us 2 pups played (having to look up from her book every 2 seconds - to make sure we were playing nicely!). It would be even better with more dogs - but I'm still happy to be able to play with Tracker!
All in all we both had loads of fun today, of course I slept right when we got back home :)
Enjoy the pictures (and movie) my raiser took of us today,
Furry cool Thursday kisses,

Rudy
The dog with a blog


Hey Tracker... Lets share secrets!


I think we'd both rather go play though...


and play...

and run...

(Movie of Rudy & Tracker playing with each other in the fenced in yard)

But all too soon we will get tired...

Wordless Wednesday

Rudy
The dog with a blog

Ms. Molly Who?

Remember the Wordless Wednesday post I did last week?
Molly (the long haired "tuxedo" cat) is a permanent resident at our home! (She's a rescue kitty!)
She won't be a "inside" cat for long though; but with the really cold weather outside- our family decided to house train her so she could stay inside with us in the winter. (When we got her, she was a outside cat). Which worked out really well; and she makes a great house cat!
There is only 1 small issue with her though... she HATES dogs!
She has come a long way - but she still won't cuddle up with me :(
Molly is a furry fun cat though - even if she won't "play" with me - I still can watch her... and stare at her... and "try" to play with her!
We hope that one day soon - she'll get used to me! (she is sleeping in MY room after all).
Just thought you'd guys would like to know that I have a new "friend"!

P.S. My raiser has still not heard from Toby's new "owner" - but she may end up updating you guys after all about his new home.

Hope you all have a furry fun Monday!

Rudy
The dog with a blog

Ms. Molly & I...