As the puppies grow and gain confidence and self-control, we raisers expose them to more places and things. Recently, Paxton and I had a quarterly evaluation with Guiding Eyes for the Blind's regional Puppy Evaluator. At this evaluation, Paxton received his "coat" (aka cape, jacket), which allows him to be taken to more places, including restaurants.

Greg, a dog-loving co-worker, thought it would be the perfect opportunity for a group lunch out to celebrate. I wasn't so sure - it seemed kind of insensitive to me to celebrate Paxton's growing skills and confidence, but he will be "working" and gets no attention from others and no food!!! But I knew I was anthropomorphizing so we did it anyway. The humans enjoyed a wonderful lunch at Aladdin's, and Paxton enjoyed an excellent hour of napping and people watching!

We passed the "puppy-cam" (Kodak Z612) around the table and here are some photos and comments from those attending:

Rich C, Tom M, Doug C and Sue R

Duane W, Cheri T and Tim W.

Sue: It's hard to miss the joy that people have when seeing him at work.

Cheri: We were all excited to take Paxton out to lunch. Though he did not seem as excited as we were (he laid at Robbin's feet throughout the event), we knew that deep down inside he was jumping, barking and wagging his tail. The waitress was also happy to see him. I was sitting next to Paxton and my water got filled quite frequently.

Around the table.

Greg: Well, the lunch was a lot of fun, but Paxton was so well behaved that it was almost like he wasn't there! I suppose it would have been exciting to have a wild story about how Paxton caused a panic at the restaurant (think Marx Brothers or Three Stooges), but the fact that that didn't happen is simply a tribute to the excellent training he's getting!

While images of me chasing Paxton's leash around table legs while he tears through the restaurant with someone's lunch in his mouth does evoke laughs (or in my case, shudders!), one of the things that I always keep in mind while socializing Paxton is that we raisers are sort of the GEB image in the community as well as caretakers of these wonderful pups. I only take Paxton into situations from which I can take him out immediately if he is uncomfortable or (not that it would ever happen, of course!) if he is acting up. Before exploring a new activity with Paxton, I can contact our Area Coordinators or the Regional Puppy Evaluator to ensure that it is appropriate for a puppy of his age and experience level. And finally, to be polite, if it's a new location for us and I don't know of other GEB puppies having been to a place, I call ahead to ensure that it's ok with the proprietor.

What was going on at the table....

Not to forget the honoree, while folks were passing the camera around the table and snapping each other, Brenda said "And what does the dog see???" and put the camera under the table to snap...

...what Paxton saw.

Paxton: Mom was right - what kind of luncheon has no food for the honoree?!

I think that his calmness in restaurants (and very recently at Geva Theatre Center's NextStage) is a result of all he's learned and experienced while going to work with me, lying quietly through meetings, and even exercise class. After watching 15 people do step routines and walking lunges, a waitress with a pitcher of water is passé.