I promised...didn't I?

Okay, so the promised update...again! haha, i've been doing that a lot lately!

Alright, back to last saturday. There was a Graduate/PR workshop for all the chicago-land raisers/grads. It was SO much fun, and SO informative!!! I met TONS of people, and lots of other teen raisers...none of which blog, though. Sadly, there were no pictures taken by me, as i was trying to save my batter for the Fall Out Boy concert that night. There were A LOT of dogs there, and they all behaved beautifully! Ty got so many compliments from the trainers...I'm so proud!!!

Okay, so Saturday night was the FOB concert, so Ty stayed home with my parents while I was freaking out and yelling out for PATRICK!! Ah, we got spots at the barrier, which was pretty much amazing. It was probs the best day of my life. aldkjfdkfj i miss it so much! FOB is from my town, and this of course means we know all about them, have met them, they are in our yearbooks, etc, etc, so its so much fun to see them back home.

On Sunday, Pete Wentz did a signing. I brought Ty along, and she did GREAT while we waited in line for 2 hours. This was my second time meeting him, but I really wanted Ty to meet him so I could have something to pass along just incase she gets matched with a FOB lover!! There were no pictures allowed, but Pete signed her collar, and was totally interested in her, and was asking all sort of question...even took a CCI brochure!!

Her autographed collar:


While in line, completely ignoring all the trash and food on the ground:


Today we went to PetsMart to get a new collar because I don't want her wearing the autographed collar, understandably :). Instead of our traditional blue, we picked out a pretty purple. I know, I know, purple is not the best with blue and yellow, but I am so sick of everyone calling her a boy!!! Everybody I have encountered with her automatically thinks she's a boy because of her blue collar. Hopefully that problem is solved!!

Yesterday she went with me to Borders to pick up Cobra Starship's new album, Viva La Cobra! She was great, and we ran into a CCI graduate dog who happens to live around the corner from me (we have never met). Everyone in the store was so confused about what was going on because we were so excited to meet eachother and was making the line very interested....

Hope all the puppies are doing well out there!!

Happy Training!

Just so you know what I'm talking about:

Fall Out Boy:

Pete (resting bass on shoulder) and Patrick (holding up the guitar) are in the middle.

Quick Pupdate

I can only do a quick update right now, because I have to get homework done. If I can't do a longer one tonight, expect one soon.

The convention yesterday was AMAZING, and I learned so much!!! My mom watched Tyanna while I was at the Fall Out Boy Concert, then today I took Ty with me to meet Pete Wentz himself....more to come!

As promised....

Okay, here it goes...the big update!! Senior year has been crazy so far, so I apologize for my lack of updates. Things are starting to settle down now, though, so hopefully I will be able to start posting again on a regular basis!

Overall, Tyanna has been doing wonderfully! She was weighed on 10/2, and was 38.2lbs! Yes, small for a 5.5 month LGX! By now I'm guessing that she weighs about 43lbs. She is now eating 3 cups a day!

On 10/3, my friend's mom brought her new cockerpoo puppy over, named Tinkah. After practicing some sit stays and self control around the crazy puppy, I released Tyanna to play with very close supervision, as the puppy only weighed 7 lbs! Most of the play time consisted of me holding Tyanna, and Tinkah swatting at her nose.

Ty went with me to dinner again on 10/5, and did very very well! She has really good manners when she is out in public, so far at least! The next day she went with a friend and I to the Verizon store. She was SO good! She stayed in a perfect down-stay when asked, even when a man came up to her patting his legs and calling her over to him. I was so proud!!



On Columbus day I went to visit a college, so Ty stayed with another CCI volunteer. The volunteer said she did excellent, and played very well with her other dog, which was very good news!

On 10/12 she went with me to the bank. Again, she did fantabulous! They didn't even realize there was a dog in the building! That is always music to a puppy raiser's ears!!

This Saturday there is a workshop for all puppy raisers and graduates in our area...and I'm really excited to meet some new puppy raisers and graduates as well has having Tyanna evaluated by the CCI trainers!!! This should be really fun, and I'm totally excited! Later on Saturday I'm going to the Fall Out Boy concert, so she will be home with my parents. Then on Sunday, Pete Wentz from Fall Out Boy is doing a signing at a local guitar shop, and I may bring Tyanna along, depending on how I'm feeling about the whole thing. What a good picture that would be for her baby book....

O yea, and remember that bed that I got?? SHE LOVES IT! Actually, SHE ADORES IT! It was definetly a good choice, and she was definitely ready for a new, bigger bed!! In some other news, I had bought a Nylabone bone for her, which she literally destroyed over 1 weekend of chewing (now granted, I probably did not buy a strong enough one for her). Anyways, I sent the half eaten bone to the Nylabone headquarters, and they sent me THREE free products! A Dino Dental Chew, A Wolf Size Durable Bone, and a Barb-b-que Steak Shaped Chew (all non-edible). And she loves all three of them!! So I am very happy, and impressed with Nylabone customer service! If you have had a problem like this, send the product back to Nylabone (the address is on their website), tell them the age of your dog, its weight, and breed, and they will send replacements!! Yay! Gotta love free stuff!!!!

We also made a trip to Michigan this past weekend to visit family. We stayed at my Aunt/Uncle's house with Ty, and she was the perfect house guest!! She was also great in the car, and was so easy to travel with.

Anyways, I will update after the convention and tell you all how it went!!!

PS - the pictures were taken with my phone, so excuse the quality!

I know I know...

A BIG update coming soon...I promise!!

Updates Updates

Not much has happened in the past week. Today Ty went with me to my crew team's meeting, and she did EXCELLENT. She didn't fall asleep, but she stayed in a down-stay the entire time. YAY!

After the meeting, my parents and I went to dinner at JP McCarthy's restaurant, but we ate outdoors because it was Ty's first restaurant experience. She also did amazing. There were TONS of kids running around and she didn't even budge. Even when our waitress came with hot pizza she stayed in a sit.

I just got word that there will be a puppy raiser and graduate convention near me on October 20th, and I'm SO excited!! I can't wait to meet everyone and their dogs!!

BIG GIRL VEST!

Now that Tyanna is 5 months, she gets her big girl vest! It FINALLY came today in the mail! She automatically looks so grown up. It's hard to believe this day is here....it seems like yesterday I was tossing and turning the night before I was going to pick her up, thinking about all of these milestones we would reach one day. Time flies.

Last week Ty went with me to a high school volleyball game, the beach, and an 8-year-old's soccer game (where a grad CCI skilled companion was!!). She will be going to another vball game this friday (I'll try to remember to get pictures!) Here are some pictures from the last week!!

I Can't Believe Some People

I just got back from my walk with Tyanna,
and we encountered a very frustrating situation.

Around the corner from us lives a skilled companion
graduate team. It is such a joy to see the dog out,
and chat with the family about CCI.

While out on our walk, we ran into lady walking her
dog (I am familiar with her, as I see her out all the
time, and she knows Tyanna is a puppy-in-training).
Like a normal 5 month lab puppy, Tyanna acted very
enthusiastically when she saw this lady and her dog.
Anyways, we got talking, and the lady told me: "This
dog will never make it, she could never be a working
dog." That comment drilled a hole in my heart...but I
know I can't listen to her. But, it gets worse.

She continued to say that she feels sorry for the
skilled companion that lives around the corner because
he is a "robot dog". She told me how he never gets to
be a dog, and is only used as a tool. Her evidence was
that the family didn't let the CCI dog play and greet
her dog while out. I nicely explained that a working
dog's attention must be focused on his handler, and
working time is not play time. I also educated her in
the process of choosing a graduate dog: how the dogs
absolutely LOVE what they do, and when they are
working, they are the happiest. She continued to
differ with me, telling me this dog has no life.

It was so frustrating! I remained calm and cool, and
tried to politely educate her, but she would have none
of it! Has anybody encountered this situation before?
How did you handle it? I see her lots, so I think I
will have to do some more educating in the future, and
I want to make sure I do it properly.

Thank you for listening to my ranting!!