Dylan spent a week up at GDA. They want us to do this for longer periods of time so the dogs get used to staying up there and aren't shocked when they are left up there for 8 months going through formal training. She also was one of many dogs in her age group, 16 to 18 months, to have their eyes dilated and checked for any issues they might have. Its kind of important that guide dogs for the blind have good eye sight. The puppy raisers were asked to put on blindfolds to simulate a blind person sitting in a waiting room with their dogs.
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| Next! |
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| Dylan... "Is this almost over? |
Luckily, it wasn't a real bright day so there wasn't much squinting by the dogs as they emerged from the kennel with their pupils dilated. Dylan passed with flying colors.
The following Saturday, our South Bay Puppy Raisers participated and walked in the Downey Christmas parade. This was our second parade and the 18th for the South Bay group. We took Dylan last year when she was only 6 months. Actually, she was a week shy of six months, but they let us walk in it anyway. They stress that the puppies need to be at least six months old to participate in any of these big events. In last years parade, we were number 25 in the parade lineup. With more than 90 different groups, bands, twirlers, dignitaries and such, going off early was a good thing...even for the dogs.
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| Morgan and Dylan at 6 months during last years Downey Christmas parade. |
This year, we had a slight snafu regarding our entry and we were placed 81st out of 100 groups.
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| Arriving at our staging area. |
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| Ready to roll. |
To make matters a bit more trying for us was Dylan had been given an anti-itch medication while she was up at GDA. One pill twice a day, morning and night. Its sort of like Benadryl, the drowsy kind. The morning of the parade I gave Dylan her pill, which I never do as Chris is the nurse. However, I failed to mention this until I saw Chris giving Dylan her pill as I was shouting, NO WAIT...too late! She got a double dosage of her meds. Calling vets all around, we finally were told she would be fine, just a bit drowsy.
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| A bit sleepy with Avery |
Needless to say, we had a sleepy puppy up in Downey. But it kind of worked out, because our neighbor's daughter, Avery, had made a Santa hat for Dylan. She could have cared less that something was sitting on top of her head. Plus, she was the hit of the parade with her cute Santa hat and garland trimmed vest.
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| A bit spaced, but looking good. |
The days are counting down for our time with Dylan. She is scheduled to go into formal training in February. I have to say that in the beginning it seemed like 18 months was an eternity. Raising and socializing her to be ready for her next move, we felt like this was never going to happen. Just two months left. We are hoping she brings love, sunshine and trust to her new owner. Also, secretly hoping that just maybe, Dylan changes her mind about this guide dog thing.
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