Ok, the picture of Charlee's exploits with the Easy Button? Remind me to not drink coffee while blog stalking, cause it burns when you laugh, and it comes out your nose...

I've got a post going up in a bit on Merrill's blog about Monday night, but just wanted to let you know, I got half way home and had to pull over to cry - I never thought we would come so far, so fast!

Then we walked in the house, and Hunter jumped on the couch and barked, and wouldn't stop acting like a goof ball until I told him that I could put him right back into puppy class :)

Darn you Dagny-You know I am a big mush..now you have my eyes leaking again! Like I said before that dog is divine intervention, if I have ever seen it....truly-the odds were not in your favor....
I plan a follow up blog to things on charlee's belly, just as soon as I think of something funnier to put on her belly than the dog's own joke. I can have her in a play dead stay for a little bit...ideas anyone?

Dagny is making ALL owner trainers look bad with her inflated ideas of what makes a service dog. Let me clue you in- a CGC is NOT it. A CGC is a certificate awarded to PET DOG OWNERS who complete a list of 10 very minimal things that AKC has determined are necessary for a dog to be a well-behaved pet. It has NOTHING to do with service dog behavior, and while a service dog should OBVIOUSLY be able to pass a CGC, to pretend that this is any great step in SD training is ludicrous.

Hunter, congratulations on your CGC! I think it's very important for SERVICE DOGS IN TRAINING to be able to easily accomplish these tasks, especially the walking through a crowd, reaction to other dogs and reaction to distractions. Granted, you have more things to learn on your service dog journey but this is a great start!
Wags,
Logan, Service Dog Extraordinaire

This is in response to Cait's comments... You've got to wonder what motivates people to do what they do? Is she perhaps an unfulfilled dog trainer herself? Does she train service dogs and think the attention that's been devoted to Hunter's progress is much ado about nothing? On numerous occasions, Nancy has pointed out (in previous blogs) that young Hunter IS IN TRAINING and has a long way to go. She's profiled Dagny (Hunter's owner) as a concerned mother of an autistic child who is also a student (of basic dog obedience training) and makes no pretense of "knowing it all". How sad that someone can't take pleasure in following the evolution of a fledgling service dog without feeling compelled to denigrate all the players involved. For more than 25 years, I have trained service/assistance dog for the physically challenged, hearing-impaired and to assist developmentally disabled individuals, in addition to pet obedience, CGC-certification and competive obedience. I'm delighted to read and learn about Hunter's successes and feel that every positive step Hunter takes will ultimately benefit him in his journey towards assisting his young partner. How sad that Cait can't appreciate the strides Hunter has already made towards that goal and feels compelled to critique and marginalize the collective efforts of everyone involved in his ongoing education.

Cait, thank you for raising a very valid concern. Yes, the CGC test is but one step in Hunter's training. As you are well aware, there is no currently training requirements for Service Dogs in the United States. Simply identifying your dog as a SD is all that is needed, according to the ADA. However, by putting on that vest and taking Hunter into public, I do know that I uphold not only my son's SD's image, but also every other SD team. And Merrill deserves the very best, so we will never stop training - no one ever stops learning, right? Yet, I find it sad that you seem unwilling to allow us to celebrate the steps on this journey, and instead on flouting your ignorance of myself, my son, Nancy, and Hunter by calling our training program into question when you, an unknown outsider who has never even met myself or my son, really do not have any factual basis to make such misguided assumptions. No one ever said that the CGC test was the end-all... in fact both Nancy and I know full well how this is but a springboard for further training, because we are the only two who have actually been party to the training plan. I'm not sure what you mean by my "ideas" of what makes a SD, but I assume only that whatever personal grudge you hold against me is based on mistaken guesswork. Hunter is indeed a real SD - he is task trained to perform functions that Merrill is unable to do, such as retrieval, mobility support, and guidance when Merrill's sight or hearing fails. Again, this is nothing that you would have any business knowing, unless you are one of Merrill's caregivers, doctors, or therapists, in which case, I would have to fire you for your breach of confidentiality. But again, thank you for pointing out that no, the CGC test is NOT the end all... after all, I plan on pestering Nancy for many years to come with training :) No one should ever be chastised for the quest to continue on the path to higher knowledge, and celebrating the (to you alone) seemingly small steps along the way, especially a young child who only knows that when he is unable to walk, his Eesha-Hunter will be there to hold him up.