Stationary Training

Chumley accompanied us to an outdoor concert.  With the exception of Cooper, all the other dogs have gone to a live music concert.  Our trainee was well behaved walking to and from our seats.  The loud music from the Elvis tribute band nor the applause was a problem.  However, we did identify an opportunity for improvement - stationary training.

Up to this point our focus has been on getting him comfortable in various situations, basic obedience, and being friendly to others - always moving about.  He has not been out to eat or at a location where we were sitting for any length of time and he was required to stay DOWN.

He appeared restless and would not or could not get comfortable.  Although there were many distractions (dogs, kids, bugs), that didn't seem to be the cause.  I think we just need to get him in more "stationary" activities.  That means more dinners out.

Play and Train

I think the heat is harder on the animals than on us humans. Our canine activities have been very limited.

Saturday morning was play time at the Dog Den and all three wading pools were constantly in use.  Chumley would jump from one to the other trying to get other puppies to play. We had planned to go shopping after playing, but he was drenched - not proper for a service dog. 




The heat wave broke in the evening, so we took Chunley out to train at the Stoughton Fair.  He did wonderful as we walked through the carnival with the whistles, buzzers, and screams.  I was most impressed that he seemed oblivious to food on the pavement.

The barns were a somewhat different story.  He was interested in the varied sights and scents.  A high degree of caution was displayed as he approached the larger animals; he would quickly retreat when they moved toward him. 

Not bad for our first time.

Double Trouble

Due to the extremely hot weather, we haven't been out much, but did get Chumley to the CSA farm this week.  Our outdoor events have included searching for sprinklers, which Monte loves,  and an evening swim to cool off after chasing around the yard.

Some people believe that having two dogs is easier than one - they have someone to play with.  This may be true in some instances, but I find that two dogs will get in twice as much trouble

It is helpful to have an older dog around when training a younger one.  Monte swerves as a role model to reinforce commands and provide an example for new ones.  There are a few disadvantages too.  Twice the food. Twice the medical bills.  Twice the time to train and exercise - sometimes more.

This week Chumley was the beneficiary of our miscommunication. Wednesday I woke up early, took Chumly out for a potty break, and fed him.  He gets crated after meals and I took Monte for a walk.  In the meantime Lisa got up and fed Chumley an additional two cups of food.  This unscheduled surplus didn't cause any issues.

The next day, I got up at sunrise and walked Chumley to the park before serving him breakfast.  He got crated while I walked Monte to the park.  In the meantime Lisa got up and took Chumley for a walk around the neighborhood.  A double walk, but I was able to stop her before she fed him.  The extra exercise didn't seem to be an issue with his Panosteitis.

Making Friends

Chumley has one bad habit.  Well, at least one that we are trying to correct.  At his prior home, he was allowed to drink out of the toilet bowl, so we are trying to discourage this behavior.  Step one was leaving the lid down.  Step two was dropping the lid on his head.  This happened by accident as he had to work to reach the water level in the low flow toilet and he made quite the scene.  Not surprisingly, he has not attempted to use his "secondary" water bowl since.

Tonight after it cooled off some, we walked around the neighborhood "making friends" with bushes, garbage cans, and neighbors.  He has a habit of barking at people. We also practiced SIT and DOWN in this heavy distraction environment.  He improved as the walk progressed.

Our Chumley was not a big fan of having his nails trimmed, but weekly sessions should ease the pain.

Week One - Chummy

We have made it through seven days with Chumley.  While initially a little worried that taking an eight month old puppy was not a good idea, he seems to be a step or two behind, but a quick learner.  He has been responding to verbal DOWN commands and usually listens when we tell him to get OUT of the kitchen.  We should have him ready in three or four months.

Yesterday he enjoyed an hour of playtime at the Dog Den.  He has a wonderful play style: interested in small dogs but not overbearing and a good balance of submissive and dominant play.

As we develop our routine and trust, we are more comfortable taking him on more outings.  So far he has gone to the pet store, hardware store, blind society, drug store, and tonight we were so confident that we took him to the grocery.  We have noticed a preoccupation with Monte, so we will be making a conscious effort to segregate their activities.

Not a fan of the name "Chumley"; it is growing on us.  Although a different name might be more appropriate, Shadow, as he follows Lisa wherever she goes and frantically searches for her when she is out of sight.  He probably gets called Cooper 25% of the time.

Initial Assessment

 After three days with Chumley we are seeing some patterns in his behavior and we are formulating a curriculum for our four-legged trainee.  On the positive side he appears to know SIT, he responds to his name with a good recall, and he understands WAIT with prompting/blocking.  He prefers Lisa to me;  I scare him sometimes.  He is soft and only requires a mild verbal correction.

His obedience needs work, but he is no trouble around the house.  Monte may disagree as he has had to remind Chumley who the boss is on a couple occasions.

Our first area of focus has been reinforcing his SIT and eliminating the need to lure him into a DOWN.




Tonight we joined the Janesville training class.  The final task involved a visit to the food court.  The puppies were tempted by kibble that appeared like manna from heaven, but they were not allowed to touch.  Juno, on the left, attempted to use mental telepathy and move the food into her mouth.

New Addition

Today we welcomed a new four legged canine to our home.  Chumley is an eight month old yellow Labrador ...

Special Olympics.... training for everyone has been worth it!

~post from Lexy, Mac's mom~ Russ and I just returned from the Wisconsin State Summer Special Olympics. It is held every year in Stevens Point on the campus there. It is fitting as this is the place where Russ and I met. It was the 40th anniversary of Special Olympics - amazing! Amazing work by lots of people!! This is a trip that Russ and I have dreamed about making as a family.... not quite sure when or how that would happen... until we met Jeff, Lisa & Cooper. I feel like we have all been in "training" for this moment. Cooper has been training since he was 10 weeks old. We have been training with Cooper, Jeff & Lisa since January 2012. Mac has been training for the track and field events since March 1, 2012. This would be the weekend where we could all shine. This was the first State meet for ALL of us. Russ and I thought it was important to try this trip on our own. No family, no trainers, no support.... just us and the boys and Cooper! A little overwhelming - but we were up for the challenge. Our trip started on Thursday after lunch when we left for UW-Stevens Point. We got to the hotel and got settled. The boys quickly wanted to head to the swimming pool that included one large slide! We went to eat dinner - something we have not been able to do as a family - and had a nice dinner at one of our favorite places, Arbuckles! If you got to Point, this is a must and you MUST get the cheese fries.... This was followed by Opening Ceremonies. What an amazing, heart felt moment for all of us. We walked in with our team, Oregon Panthers. Mac was anchored to Cooper and was able to tolerate the large crowd, loud music, and all the clapping. He enjoyed walking in and high giving the volunteers that lined the sides. The speakers were still a little to overwhelming for him, so we moved to the back - and that was okay. It was a beautiful night! The following morning Mac competed in the softball throw. He got 2nd place and since this was his first state meet he didn't know about the medals. His face lit up when the police officer placed that around his neck!! PRICELESS!! WE visited the gym where Russ played basketball. Ran into one of his coaches and got some UW Pointer gear! :) We went to a wonderful park, then back to the hotel for more swimming!! We had dinner in and then to bed to get ready for Saturday! Got up on Saturday, to head to the final competition for Mac. He ran the 100 m dash. He got 3rd place and was awarded his medal today by Mrs. Wisconsin :) We sat in the shade while I got us a few T-shirts and then we visited the dorm that Russ lived in - haha!! Then back in the car and headed home. We were together as a family for 48 hours with no "back up" and no "support." This is the first time that the 4 of us have ever traveled as a family. We believe the majority of this is due to Cooper.... Having Mac anchored to Cooper to prevent any running has proven to be a greater gift to us than we realized. We did not know how much worry and stress we carried while out in places where Mac could run away. Now - with Cooper - there is no worry. What a gift... Mac's bond has surprised us as well. He talks a lot to Cooper. He talks a lot about Cooper. On the way home, he took of both of his medals and said "I love you Cooper." And put the medals on Cooper's neck! SO, SO, SO cute and precious! When Mac goes to bed, he says "C'mon Cooper." We get into bed, turn off the lights and he says, "I love you Cooper. Good night Cooper." And with that I say.... Jeff and Lisa, We love you. Thank you for this gift to our family. Good night.

Full House

Long ago we agreed that we would have a one dog limit.  Then Monte came back to us. It's a slippery slope.

Monte obtained a roommate on Monday.  Savi came to visit for a few days.  Monte is enjoying the multiple car rides every day which we are doing to work on Savi's motion sickness. 

Copper wasn't feeling well, so he joined our pack for some observation Wednesday morning.  I have found that our back seat is not large enough for three dogs.  The three amigos have been rotating "riding shot gun" and playing musical crate.

...

Stable

There were still a few things that we wanted Cooper to experience before he transitioned to his new family: farm animals, zoo, children's museum.  One of our puppy raisers arranged a visit to Three Gaits - Therapeutic Horsemanship Center, so we could remove one item from his "bucket" list.

Cooper's family was busy and unable to attend, so our pal visited us for the whole day.  It was hard to tell who was happier to see whom; Monte couldn't stop wiggling and Cooper wanted to play, play, play.

At the stables, the dogs were initially cautious around the new fragrances - the bridle was very interesting.  Cooper quickly warmed up to the equines, but then took a step back when the gigantic beast moved.  Eventually all the puppies reached the point of indifference.

Free Time

We have been a single dog ho,me for the last two weeks. They have been very difficult.  Not because Cooper is gone; actually it is probably better that he was not around.  I am just getting over a cold that turned into a sinus infection.  It started thirteen days ago.  The first few days of the cold I was sleeping half the time.  Then the infection took all my energy; I was winded just walking down the block.

I recently started feeling better and it just hit me that not having a service dog in-training frees up an incredible amount of time. Including walks, training, and travel, we probably have an extra twenty-one hours a week (an extra day each week).

Monte is enjoying his special one-on-one attention.  He gets two walks to the park most days, brushed every other day, daily fetch in the yard, and spends his indoor time sleeping on the sofa/bed..  His crate time has diminished as he only gets crate-time after eating and for sleeping.

Our grocery store had chicken legs on sale for 68 cents a pound, so he has been getting a extra leg/thigh with every meal.  This should fatten him up.

GRATITUDE....

How do you begin to thank people who have given so much of themselves to help your son and your family??? We are SO, SO, SO thankful and grateful for Jeff and Lisa. They have dedicated time and love to raise Cooper to help Mac. Mac has Down syndrome and autism. Cooper came home with us last night after Mac's first Special Olympics track meet. The emotions were so overwhelming.... I am also thankful that it really is a "see you later" and not a good bye to Jeff and Lisa. I had warned them previously, they are stuck with us forever now :) Russ, Mac, Griffin and Cooper went on their first outing together by themselves. They went to see their cousin in a high school play. A situation that would have once been overwhelming to all of them. Mac is very sensitive to noise. So the beginning of the play he had some stress and had to leave. The difference was, Mac was able to come back and to sit through the rest of the play today. Today Cooper has lived fully with the boys experiencing light saber swords, darth vader masks, ninja moves, guitar playing to name a few things! Griffin wanted to show Cooper his room today (which he has seen previously) but Griffin sees this as different this time around because Cooper is here to stay. Yesterday morning, Griffin said to me, "Mom, this is the best day ever! Do you know why?" Me - why? Griff, "because Cooper gets to come home with us today forever." Jeff and Lisa truly gave the ultimate gift of love yesterday..... and we promise to love Cooper!! Thank you!! Love you both! xoxo Lexy (Mac & Griffin's mom)

New Beginning

Our day began with a short walk through the park which included some obedience work and playtime with a pair of boxers. A great way to start the day.

Next on the agenda was Special Olympics. We arrived and were greeted by Mac.  Today he surprised me by welcoming us before hugging Cooper.  With just a few minutes before Mac's race, Cooper garnered the bulk of the attention - as it should be. We all cheered Mac on to a second place finish and shared high fives after he received his ribbon.

As we made our way to a Team Austin photo a little girl with her dad stopped us and asked to pet Cooper.  Of course we made time and she gave Cooper a few cautious pats on the head.  Then her mother walked up and said that this was the closest she has ever been to a dog.  "She is usually terrified."  Not sure what it is, but Cooper is a very special dog.


After the meet we officially relinquished our role as Cooper's trainers and guardians. He will now reside full-time with his boy, Mac.  Although, we have been working tirelessly toward this day, it is always difficult to say good-bye to a well-trained, loving companion.  As is often stated about puppy raising, "If it doesn't hurt a little, then you aren't doing your job."

However, in this situation it is truly not "Good-Bye", but rather "See you later", because we are not completely finished yet.  We are on call for the next couple months to provide guidance, support, and puppy sitting, as required.  During this time we will  be fine tuning some Mac-specific skills and assisting with the legal process to gain access for Cooper into the Madison School District as Mac's service dog.







As Cooper begins his new life, we need to thank:
Custom Canines Service Dog Academy for their support and guidance, without them we never would have met Cooper or Mac. 
Austin Family for including us in their family and for their unparalleled preparation for Cooper's arrival - we have no concerns.
The Dog Den for providing training opportunities and sharing their knowledge of everything canine. 
Family and Friends for accepting our canine trainees at special training events (ex: weddings) and for your encouragement.

It takes a pack to raise a service dog

One Day Left

Cooper spent Tuesday shopping for supplies that he will need at his new home: water bowl, crate, food, nail clipper, and more toys.

Wednesday, all autism assistance dogs had a mandatory training session with our program coordinator.  Given Cooper's status, we were thinking that it would be an easy day.  And it was.  After some basic obedience, he spent the bulk of the time in a DOWN STAY while people stopped to pet him.

I believe all the dogs completed the required 30 minute DOWN STAY - with minimal correction.








Disney Photos Added