Wednesday, November 21, 2012

Valkyrie!

VALKYRIE IS GRADUATING! 


Actually she's going for in home training, but either way in two weeks she'll be a working guide! Usually Guide Dogs for the Blind has their students come to either their Oregon or California campus to complete 2 weeks of training with their new dog partners, but sometimes that can't work for the student generally because of a mobility problem or something similar. So the dog and a trainer from Guide Dogs goes to them. In this case Valkyrie will be traveling to Austin, TX to start her new life with her partner. I can tell you how proud I am! I also can't tell you how sad I am. The only chance I would have to see her before she leaves is over Thanksgiving break (this week), but I'm still at school in New York for the next three weeks. I'm sending Mom to see her and take pictures and things, but it's still very upsetting not to be able to say goodbye to the puppy that I was with almost constantly for a year. I'm just hoping that her partner will want to keep in touch. I'm still so torn with the conflicting emotions of immense pride and sorrow that I don't really know what to do with myself. All I know for sure is that she is going to be amazing. How do I know that? Well apart from the fact that I raised her a friend told me that a couple of weeks ago she was selected to demonstrate intelligent disobedience at the Fall Luncheon which is one of the big Oregon fundraisers that Guide Dogs puts on. Also, in the email I received telling me that Valkyrie was graduating my CFR mentioned that only dogs that are considered "bomb proof" (dogs that can handle everything and anything) go to do in home training because it would be very difficult to switch them out.

So with Valkyrie graduating and no new guide puppies in sight for the next three years the name of the blog should change a bit as not to mislead people. Let me know what you think of the change. I think it isn't drastic enough to displease anyone.

In the next edition: College life in all it's crazyness. Although the next edition might not come out until after I'm home on break.