New Bed

Leif, the puppy I raised before Aiobe, came home a week ago today. When I knew he was coming back I went out and bought him a welcome home present--a new dogbed. Aiobe found it immediately. Leif prefers to sleep in the crate. The two of them get along great. They love to play together, and I frequently find them napping in a heap. Leif didn't seem a bit disturbed to come home and find a strange new puppy in his house.

Outings

One of the joys of puppy raising is making people smile. I did errands today with Aiobe. In just a couple of hours we hit three grocery stores and Target. At every one people smiled as we got out of the car in the parking lot, as we wandered the aisles, and as we stood in line at the cash register. I'm not usually comfortable talking to people I don't know, but everything's different when there's a puppy involved. People are constantly asking about Aiobe, CCI and the puppy-raising program. The most frequent comment is "wow, she's so good--my lab could never be so calm." I tell them that I have an excellent trainer, and that we go to class every week. "Oh," said a man in the hardware store last week, "I guess that would make a difference." The other comment I hear constantly is "I really admire what you're doing. Keep up the great work." Meeting--even briefly--so many encouraging people is a great privilege for me as a puppy raiser. It reminds me how warm, friendly, and curious people can be when they're given a chance ... Tickler, Cobbler, Carson, Sprint, Zenda, Leif II, and Aiobe, thank you for being such good ambassadors, and for reaching out to and opening conversations with so many people.

63 days

...That's how long it took Aiobe to eat forty pounds of kibble. Here she is outside the feed store where we bought a fresh bag.