Hello to all,

As I sit typing this, I’m trying to remember everything that has happened this past month. I’ve experienced and learned so much in the last few weeks, it’s amazing. I was placed with my new mommy and we instantly bonded. I was a little shy of things at first but let’s face it, who isn’t a little scared when they leave their parents and go off to college? I live in Krueger hall with my mommy and her roommate, Koby. I like to play with Koby and it’s especially fun to put my wet mouth on her after I drink a lot of water. Living in the dorms was scary at first with people all around me but now I think its super fun to romp around in the halls with everyone. The best thing is when mommy throws things down the hallway and I get to chase after them, but sometimes I think it’s even more fun to not go get it and watch mommy have to chase it down. My favorite toy is a stuffed green frog with a squeaker in it. Froggie, the green frog, used to have four legs but now it only has three because I decided it turn one toy into two, which I thought was pretty clever. I started puppy classes two days after meeting mommy and she says I’m doing very well. All I know is that I get a lot of treats while I’m at Petsmart, so I like that place! I know can sit, lie down, get up, heel, leave it, drop it, and shake all on command. Sometimes I like to test mommy to see if she really means it, and I’ve found that 100% of the time, she means it. But I still like to test her, just to see how she reacts. She takes me for lots of walks around campus so that I get to meet people but as much fun as it is to try to sniff every person that walks past me, I’m more interested in the brown things on the ground called leaves. They are so fun to chase after and bite. I have a feeling that mommy doesn’t like me doing that though, especially not when I’m on the leash and I’m supposed to be paying attention to her, but they are just so hard to resist. I’ve been to two Aggie Guide Dog and Service Dog meetings and absolutely love them. The beginning is kind of boring because I just have to lie there, but then when it’s over I get to run around with a bunch of cool dogs. I especially like racing them up the stairs because I’m super fast at them seeing as though I have to climb up and down three stories about five times a day. Over the Thanksgiving holiday, I got to go home with my mommy. We had a three hour car ride, but I didn’t mind because she listens to good music and it gave me a good opportunity to take a nice nap. When I arrived, I was amazed to see so much land without buildings blocking my view! I got to meet horses, cows, cats, and more dogs. I also met mommy’s family. I really liked them. I think I fit in well and can’t wait to see them again over Christmas! Well I need to get back to sleeping so that I will be well rested for when I get to play with mommy again.

Until next month…
Deuce

From Skeeter's mom:

I want to thank you again for the opportunity to have Skeeter.  Many service dog trainers are still talking about how amazing Skeeter is!  Before his first birthday Skeeter had successfully achieved his AKC Canine Good Citizen certificate, and graduated from Puppy Kindergarten as well as basic and advanced obedience training.  By his second birthday, this December, Skeeter had passed all five levels of testing for Service Dog Certification!  This is an absolutely remarkable task; most puppies are just entering the second phase of SD training by their second birthday. 

Hi Girls,

Paul and I wanted to share our good news about Bear. We (Dana and Bear) are an official registered pet therapy team with Therapy Dogs Inc. and Heart of Texas Therapy Dogs. We will be visiting nursing homes, schools, libraries, children's organizations, and anyone else that will have us. Here is the announcement the HOTTh Dog Group sent to its members. Feel free to incorporate the news and or photos on your website if you'd like to. We are so proud of Bear and just love him to pieces!!!

Hope you are all doing well!

Paul, Dana, Bear and Jake

P.S. Bear and Jake (Two Toes) get along famously and are best buds. We took them to the dog park last Saturday for the Jake's first time. Bear was a great big brother and kept an eye on him the whole time. It was a hoot to see Jake just running free and having a really good time while Bear tried to herd him and keep him in line! He's quite mischevious!!!