Barred from entry to Heaven!

Good effort, Butley, but there's a backlog right now. We aren't taking pit bulls in heaven, you'll just have to wait.

I was gonna write this whole long letter to say hello...

...to everyone back in the heartland, but... it's hot. Here in DC. I mean ... HOT.... So, I'll just say "Hi" now & write more later....

Pssst. Hey Moose. Get 'em to give you the Burger King. You know they want to....

Help the man get his checkbook.

DaYcarEs FUn at CaniNE craZe

Here's me with Fletcher and Sophie...Fletcher's the bulldog.

I really like chewing on Fletcher's face.

Me and my brother, Keeper.

We're tuckered out. You'll just have to squint to see me. We like napping together.

I'm growing up! I think I look a bit different than when you saw me last.

Walk. Don't Run

It always amazed me since Tag was a pup on how he would run full blast towards his food to eat. This past week, I've been working with Tag to walk slowly to his food. By placing my hands in front of his face, releasing him, then guiding him slowly toward the food while my hands are still in front of him. Sure, he still eats in 2 seconds flat. But he doing great on the approach.

Moose (and a guest appearance by Gabor!)

It wouldn't be any fun unless you could have every single service dog Paws & Effect owns in one place at one time (except for Tag.) No fun at all! The weekend will start with five dogs and end with six (an UnHeard of circumstance...thank you Ryan and Katie.) Here's a quick peak at Moose and Gabor showing off their sit stay. By the end of the weekend, Gabor will have had his first forays into public, Moose will have his crate games improved and Seneca will be looking more and more like a guide dog.

Another trip to the vet for Tag.

Really. I wouldn't make it up. Tag has a vet fetish. It even sounds good. He sees the vet monthly. In every city (Toronto, Boston, Louisville and more.) Ask Todd. He'll confirm this. You should see the bills. He is lucky, lucky, lucky that he's a great dog.

Long Lost Ball

After playing fetch at the local park for about 45 minutes, we went home to rest. Somehow, someway, Tag picked up on something in the evergreen. He poked his nose in, and I'm thinking... Oh no, he found the fox that hangs out in the yard. I called for him and he went into the evergreen. I called to him again and further in the evergreen he went. (called him only twice). As I approach, he comes out of the evergreen with a big tennis ball he had found that used to be Sinatra's years ago. It is now his favorite ball!

Tag has his puppy raisers wrapped around his paw :)

Seems I recall a bunch of photos from Todd that look just like this.

Tag's first day in Colorado

For those of you who miss Butley....

he's been enjoying a short stay in New York! He's doing great and looking fabulous.

Thanks Integer Denver!

Paws & Effect

By Nancy Svoboda on Monday, 06 July 2009

As an agency, we have agreed to support a non -profit organization called Paws & Effect™. One of the most important segments of this business is the raising, training, and placement of service dogs locally. Service dogs need real-world experience to learn to help those with special needs. This is where we have agreed to help out. Beginning the week of July 6, Steve Hirsch will be bringing a service dog to the agency for training 2 or 3 times per week. The yellow lab will be wearing a vest indicating not to pet him because he is working. He will be at Steve’s side wherever he goes. Obviously, this is a new experience for the agency, and we hope it will be successful. However, we recognize that some employees may be allergic to dogs. If you have any questions, concerns, etc., please contact Nancy Svoboda so we can work together to make this a great experience for everyone. From Paws and Effect: We're excited to introduce you to "Tag," whose full name, Partager, means "to share" in French. Tag, a yellow lab, will be a year old on July 1. In the true spirit of the word, we appreciate your willingness to share in the experience of training a service dog. Tag has learned to open handicapped accessible doors by touching the associated pressure plate; open and close interior doors by tugging on the handle (when a tugging object is available) or by pushing it shut with his nose; retrieve large and small items and placing them back in a person's hand. Consistent with the minimum standards of Assistance Dogs International, Tag has learned at least three tasks to offset the limitations a person may experience if they were mobility impaired. You'll find that Tag is very quiet and gentle as well as hardworking and diligent. For now, he has demonstrated some fabulous work in public, although he still has some resistance to going up and down stairs. With that, there may be times when you see Steve actually training Tag and we hope that you'll acknowledge them with a quick greeting and continue on. Of course, every once in a while, Tag's age will shine through and he'll demonstrate that he can be a silly, adolescent dog. We are seeing that less and less, but know that there will be times that it is just too plain hard to work, and an effort to engage others to play will be offered. Again, ignoring the behavior when it happens will provide Steve the opportunity to redirect Tag into more appropriate public behavior. We know it is challenging to resist petting a dog while it is working, but refraining from doing so allows the dog to keep his focus on the person for whom it is working. This dog has been trained to avert eye contact with other humans as well as making the effort to keep the tail wagging to a minimum. In doing so, the dog discourages further interactions because he appears aloof. Mistakes happen, sometimes it is just too much to ask and we end up speaking with the dog or reaching for them. Recognize this is a good training opportunity for the dog, no apologies are required. However, we hope to see spontaneous interactions decrease as people get used to seeing Steve with Tag. Once things settle in, we'll try to set up an opportunity where people can play with Tag when his vest is off. Tag enjoys water, retrieving, tugging, general fun and games and, of course, being a lab, food. Know how much your efforts are appreciated and how valuable this experience is for Tag. He will be placed shortly after his stay with Steve and we'll be happy to share all the details of his placement as they become available

Tag: Gettin' ready for the Rocky Mountains!

Tag and Steve enjoyed their first meal together at Jethro's in Des Moines. His defiant puppy streak is showing....regardless, he did settle down and demonstrate that there is hope, somewhere, for him as a service dog :)

Smellin' Like A Rose

Steve is coming to Des Moines to take Tag to Denver...and meet Moose. Moose even received his first bath in anticipation of the occasion. Which is more than we can say for Tag at this point. Maybe he'll get a bath by hose later in the weekend.