On Sunday, April 6th, I left home on a bittersweet journey to return Paxton to Guiding Eyes for the Blind.   There he will continue his path to become a Guide Dog.  It's still a long road ahead before he may be matched with a blind or visually impaired partner.  Back at Guiding Eyes for the Blind's training school, he will have:

• An In-For-Training (IFT) test that will determine his entrance to "doggie college" (a.k.a. Guide Dog School) happens on Tuesday morning (April 8th).  I'll post a comment on this blog as soon as I know how he did!
• If he passes this exam, he will be given a complete physical.
• Barring any health problems that might sideline him, he will be assigned a trainer and begin his guide dog training.
• That training will continue for at least 5 months, and although continuous, can be logically thought of as comprised of 4 phases.
• Once that training is complete, he is matched with a partner and they will complete training together, generally a 26-day resident program at the GEB training school.

Each of these stages requires successful completion of the previous one and only about 60% of the dogs make it all the way through.  I will keep you posted via later entries in this blog (*tease* the ones about Paxton's successor) as to his progress.

To celebrate this transition, I've put together a retrospective of his time with me us.  Enjoy!  And thank you all for your help and support!!

The song "My Buddy" is used with permission from Murray Weinstock's Dog Music
© 2000 Murray Weinstock, Furry Murray Music (ASCAP)

The title *"Sweet Sorrow" was taken from the title of an "Almost Daily eMo" that speaks so well to the cost of love.

Each year, Guiding Eyes for the Blind holds a walk-a-thon fundraiser on the first Sunday in October at FDR State Park in Yorktown Heights, New York.  Since Guiding Eyes is supported solely by donations, this major fundraiser helps to continue their mission of enriching the lives of blind and visually impaired men and women by providing them with the freedom to travel safely.  It is also a homecoming of sorts as many of the participants are Guiding Eyes graduates.

I was looking forward to attending, both to see guide dogs at work and to meet the graduates and other puppy raisers and GEB staff who would be participating.  I drove down to Yorktown Heights with friends Linda and Katherine.  Paxton was the only dog that went with us, though by no means was he the only dog there.

We arrived at the hotel on Friday evening to see dogs everywhere.  I'm sure Paxton thought I'd brought him to Doggy Disney!!  I spent the evening getting acclimated to the hotel because in the morning we'd volunteered to check folks in and escort them to their rooms.

At each table there were at least two working dogs, some had 5 or 6.
The waiters walked VERY careful as they served meals!!

Check-in continued until late in the afternoon on Saturday and we finished up just in time to make the Awards Banquet where participants are honored for fundraising and other accomplishments.

"Winnie," a comely female who was lying under the chair behind us, entranced Paxton (if you look closely, you can see that she even had a pedicure, er, pawdicure? for the event)

Although he behaved well, Paxton was obviously entranced by Winnie.
"Ma, she's makin' eyes at me!"

The day of the walk dawned slightly overcast, great for walking! Linda, Katherine and I did shifts - walking (or in Katherine's case, running) and helping to impede traffic in and out of the parking lots.  An orange flag and vest - oh, the power!  Linda took Paxton for the first lap of the walk and burned off a lot of his energy.  I took him for two more laps.  On my last lap, I left him with Linda at her parking lot and got to spend some time chatting with people and seeing the guides work. It will make my transition easier to know what Paxton will be doing, when his turn to leave for training comes on April 5th.

Katherine ran the 5K, one long lap around the park. The walkers did 3 smaller loops to make a 10K walk.  Linda took Paxton on her first lap.  Since I had the camera, I have no pics of me walking, but I did, honest!!

After the run/walk, there was lunch and lots of puppies and demonstration dogs.  This one, due to go home with his new raiser after the weekend, was arguably the cutest.

On the way home we stopped at the Training Kennel for a short tour and got to visit with some of the Monroe Region dogs that were in training.  "Juliet" and "Yoga" were the most excited to see us as they'd spent some of their overnights at Katherine's and my houses.

Juliet was happy to see Katherine. Juliet is now matched with her partner and they are in training together.

Yoga was equally happy to see me.  She was bouncing so much it was difficult to get a picture!

On February 23rd, Juliet and two other dogs raise in the Monroe region will graduate with their new partners.  I hope to attend the graduation (and perhaps peek in on the new little one that might be Paxton's successor).

2006 album - http://www.guidingeyes.org/site/PhotoAlbumUser?view=UserAlbum&AlbumID=5671

I know I told you that my next blog entry would be about our adventures at the Guiding Eyes Walkathon, but I didn't know then that my next entry would be on Thanksgiving Day.  I'd like to, instead, (and in keeping with my Paxton themed blog) share some of the things I'm thankful for over the last year with Paxton.

After six months of doglessness, I am thankful for the bundle of puppy breath and puppy kisses and soft puppy fur that arrived in my life on November 5, 2006.

I'm thankful for the friends who puppy-sat every day until Paxton was able to come to the office with me.

I'm thankful for all the people at Kodak who helped me with everything needed to allow Paxton to come to work.

I'm thankful for a goofy puppy that makes me laugh every day.

I'm thankful for my co-workers at Kodak for helping to train and socialize Paxton.

I'm thankful for the new friends that have come into my life through Guiding Eyes.

I'm thankful (every year) for all my friends and family, and I'm thankful this year for the joy that Paxton has brought into their lives as they support us in this new adventure.

I'm thankful for the teaching skills that I've remembered (it's been 16 years since my last new puppy!) and the new ones that I've learned while working with Paxton.

I'm thankful for Paxton's curiosity and joie de vivre.

I'm thankful for getting to take him with me everywhere I go (most thankful for getting to take him to work!)

I'm thankful for all of you who continue to enjoy Paxton pictures and stories as much as I enjoy taking and telling them.

And last, but not least, I'm thankful for Paxton's future partner who, on this Thanksgiving Day, is surely walking his or her own path towards Paxton.  I look forward to meeting them, maybe even about this time next year!

Paxton is thankful for his many puppy friends, toys, food, cats who like to play with him, food, toys, people who pet him and play with him, getting to go lots of places, and mostly for food (he is a Lab after all!).

Thanksgivings' blessings to you all.

It's hard to believe that it's been almost a year since I filled out the forms, had a home visit, took my pre-placement class, puppy-sat and then got online to see the upcoming puppies and waited....

Of the litters' pictures that I had on my wall, "O", "P", "R", "S" and "T", of course Paxton came from the P-litter, the third time through the alphabet for litters from 2006.  Although he was born on September 3, it is 7-8 weeks before they are puppy tested.  Then the regional evaluators choose puppies to match waiting raisers, so it was actually November 3rd when I received the call telling me that Robin had chosen "Paxton" for me and he would be arriving that Sunday.



The first week was a bit hectic, but we quickly got into a routine and by December, he was settling into his new job, coming to work with me.



Since then, Paxton has slept or played in my cube while I typed and talked on the phone, soothed co-workers spending long hours at the office (coming into my office to say, "I need a Paxton break!"), joined the group for lunches out and team building events, and slept under my chair through countless meetings.  He has walked on metal stairs, concrete stairs, painted stairs, open back stairs, plastic and wooden pallets, grates of all sorts, linoleum, tile and carpeted floors.   He has heard and seen forklifts, big trucks with air brakes, metal stamping machines, copier machines, picture kiosks, fire engines, and even a crane.  Oh, and he's figured out that the set of keystrokes' sound when I hit the Ctrl-Alt-Delete and Enter buttons means that I'm going to be leaving the office and he gets up and stretches by the door, ready to go!

I can see how much he's grown and matured over his last 10 months with me.  He receives many compliments on how well behaved his is, but he's still just a "teenager" and I can also see that he has much yet to learn.



Due to the multitude of factors that determine when each dog is ready for school, we raisers don't know exactly when our charges will be heading off to Guiding Eyes for the Blind until shortly before they go in.  Until that time, Paxton and I will keep enjoying our adventures and learning together!

Since our last blog entry, Paxton and I have been quite busy - 3 weeks of vacation in July!  It began June 30th when we packed the car and headed for Illinois where I grew up, and my family still lives.

Paxton's "nest" on the floor of the passenger seat.

My youngest sister, Tracie, had her second child, Brandon Louis, on June 11th and I was off to see my newest nephew, and the rest of my family, of course (but guess who starred in all the pictures taken?!).

While I was there, I took a couple of days to visit the Iroquois County Museum and Genealogical Society as well as some cemeteries, libraries and county office buildings, continuing the ancestry research I've started over the last couple of years.  Paxton joined me and enjoyed a bone or a nap while I was researching.  My nephew Jordan also joined me one day, but he's not so much into napping or chewing bones.  His favorite place was the historical society where he found the gatling gun.

We returned to Rochester late Saturday night, just in time to catch a breath before performing at the Monroe County Fair as the Guiding Eyes Monroe Square Dancing Dogs. This is a GEB group that started getting together to have fun with the obedience exercises we do with the dogs as well as giving them an opportunity to work on their dog distractions.

Then it was time to unpack, do laundry, and catch up on yard work and Kodak work so that by Friday we could attend the Midnight Madness party - Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.  Paxton borrowed buddy Potter's Hogwart's scarf and made quite a splash as "Padfoot." I got the book at midnight, drove home and read for 2 ½ hours before retiring.  On Saturday, I alternated reading chapters with the packing and work that needed to be done before leaving for Reach Workcamp on Sunday immediately after church (I finally finished the book at 10:30 that night).

Since Paxton would have surely been a distraction for the kids at work camp, we decided to have him stay with another GEB raiser for the week. He "vacationed" with Michele and her husband (who will soon be raising "Doc") and more importantly to Paxton, their pet dog, Sugar.  Meanwhile I was shuffling off to Niagara Falls, New York, and learning how to roof a garage, replace a porch deck, and paint the window trim and soffits of a two-story house. I also took lots of pictures and waited (somewhat impatiently) for the half of the campers who had brought their copy of the Deathly Hallows to finish so I could talk about it!

Replacing a garage roof.

Scraping and painting - not for the faint of heart!

Decking needs to be replaced.

A leaking porch roof - source of the problem.

Upon returning to Kodak, I was reminded of my status as merely "the leash holder."  Although I had received an email during my family visit with a work-related question and a P.S. assuring me "it's not just Paxton that we miss," the common refrain back in the office was "Paxton, you're back!!"  Ah, it keeps one humble.

To round out the month, the Tall Club of Rochester was hosting a weekend gathering. Now I'm not sure how tall a dog has to be to join a Tall Club, but since I'm tall enough, he came as my guest.  We didn't dress-up for the Friday night party - I had previous plans to join friends at Geva for "Menopause, the Musical."  However, we arrived before the costume party was finished and Paxton got lots of socialization with several Bond characters:

Do you recognize any of these Bond women and villans?

The rest of the weekend included a ride on the Colonial Belle for a tour of the Erie Canal, a formal dinner on Saturday night, and breakfast buffets at the Crowne Plaza.

Watching the Erie Canal go by from the upper deck of the Colonial Belle.

Paxton was thoroughly entranced by the bagpipes!

In our formal attire - although (my) shoes and (his) "jacket" have been shed by this time of the night. But isn't he dashing in that black tie?

A night owl, he's not!

Phew!!  August and September should be enough time to rest up and catch up, then in October we're off for the GEB "New Leash on Life" walk-a-thon.  Stay tuned for our report on October 16.

At least once per quarter, our Guiding Eyes' puppies are required to have overnights without us. This can be with an applicant fulfilling their puppy sitting pre-requisite (as I did with Yoga), or with another raiser. Rather than one raiser having two dogs, what usually happens is a puppy swap. I've done this twice so far, once with Pam (raising Noel) and once with Bonnie (raising Milton), different ages and genders, but both Labs.

The obligatory pictures of Noel and Milton in front of the Kodak Picture Kiosk on their swap days at kodak.

This time was a little different. Raiser Diane was heading to Patterson, NY to attend the graduation of her previous pup, Yorktown, and his new partner. Applicant Joel needed to puppy sit for his pre-requisites. Diane's current dog is a large 14-month-old German Shepherd Dog named Kendrick. In order to meet all our needs we swapped the dogs around, Paxton to Joel's and Kendrick to me. Over the weekend, I was reminded of some similarities and differences between the breeds.

As much as I love Paxton, having grown up with them, my heart belongs to the Shepherd. Kendrick got into my car and the first thing I noticed was a familiar scent. You'd think a dog smells like a dog, and I'd never really paid attention, but Kendrick's scent brought back memories of my GSDs over the years.

1963 - Bridget, the first Shepherd in my life.

1973 - Me with Madee, enjoying a little sunshine and Jack London.

1977 - Mitzi - I was so excited to capture her "midair" with my Kodak 110 that I titled this picture "The Six Million Dollar Pup."

2005 - Still Life "Ero with Bowl" - Ero used to play "hockey" with his bowl. If it got under anything, he'd go through said object to get the bowl. In this case I went out to get the mail and came back in 2 minutes later to find his bed scattered all over the living room.

1996 - Kelsey - We drove up the Maine coast, stopping wherever there was a pond to swim in, good food to eat, or a beautiful picture to take.

We got to work Kendrick settled into my office. While co-workers were sometimes confused for a minute by the yellow dogs at my side for those swaps, a few were obviously more wary of the big Shepherd; one brave soul commented as he patted Kendrick's shoulder "This is the first time I've been this close to a German Shepherd Dog and not been bitten." While any dog can bite, and Shepherds have a higher reported incidence than many breeds, potential guide dogs are well bred and screened for their temperament as a working dog before and while they are in the puppy program and in training. There are many things people can do to avoid dog bites, and one of the biggest is socializing them so they grow up confident and calm. Our GEB puppies are positively exposed to as many different situations, sounds, things and people as our imaginations can muster.

When I got home that night, I quickly realized that I was not the only one who had a heart for GSDs. Washington, my cat (Kelsey "found" him at the pet store), began chattering and chirping when he saw Kendrick walk in. Kendrick quickly got his face washed (it's not how he got his name, but Washington spent many a night cleaning Kelsey's and Ero's faces and ears). He later shared a drink of water with Kendrick and sat by to watch him eat.

Kendrick is more interested in Washington than his dinner.

Washington prefers Paxton's food to Kendrick's - either that or he was content to just sit and watch the leisurely consumption of a Shepherd again!

Speaking of dinner, another difference between the Labs and GSDs I've known is their eating habits - Shepherds eat to live; Labs live to eat! Kendrick took his time and doesn't always finish a meal; sometimes I put toys in Paxton's bowl to slow his intake.

Watching Kendrick move around the yard in the distinctive GSD "flying trot" brought tears to my eyes, remembering my own dogs "patrolling" the yard. While I was weeding, Kendrick spent the time bringing a toy for me to throw. Can someone explain to me why my "Retriever" brings the toy maybe 8-10 times for throwing and then decides he'd rather chew it and the Shepherds I've known would retrieve for HOURS on end? Kelsey loved retrieving her Kool Kong so much that I literally spent her entire last night throwing it in the yard for her to retrieve. I told her as long as she wanted to, I'd throw it. The grass took weeks to return to normal.

I have more pictures of Kelsey with the Kong in her mouth! This was her shortly after we moved into a new house and were testing the backyard size for Kong throwing. For a year after one got caught in a tree at Ellison park, she would look up into that tree for her Kong (yes, I got her a new one but she was apparently sentimental).

At fellowship time after church on Sunday, Evan stood looking at Kendrick and noted, "He's looking for something to do." and then a smile, "Paxton would be looking for something to eat!"

As I watched Kendrick intently study his new experiences, I couldn't help but compare with Paxton's joie de vivre at setting off the chair control at the dentist or the doorbell at Radio Shack.

Paxton loves to see how things work. If he were a little kid instead of a dog, he'd carry a screwdriver with him to take everything apart! His favorites so far have been the air controlled dentist chair and the door beeper at Radio Shack (which he spent a full minute tripping with his nose while the whole store laughed - nose in - beeep - nose out - off - nose in - beeep - nose out - off).

When I picked Paxton up on Monday, he nearly wagged himself in half to see me. Kendrick (and my GSDs), no less loving of their people, are more restrained and dignified in their welcoming.

The "how many dogs does it take to change a lightbulb" joke says it well:

LAB: Oh, me, me!!!! Pleeeeeeze let me change the light bulb! Can I? Can I? Huh? Huh? Huh? Can I?

GERMAN SHEPHERD: I'll change it as soon as I lead these people from the dark, check to make sure I haven't missed any, and make just one more perimeter patrol to see that no one has tried to take advantage of the situation.

I'm certain there are individual variations, but these are my experiences with the breeds so far. And they are both so smart and willing to work that I understand why Shepherds were the first guide dogs and the Lab has become so popular in the job today.