I Hope For a New Dog

My hopes for the New Year are many. I hope to get back to work after my recent stroke, I hope that the Chicago Bears might win the Superbowl again soon, and I hope for a new dog.

The dog I am hoping for is not to replace Polly, non of our dogs is ever replaceable in anyway. They are individual and special.

No this new dog is going to be a working dog. He or she will be my guide dog.

I have been blind now for almost 3 years. I get about on my own with a white cane, but I would love a dog again. At the moment there is something missing in this house and it is a dog.

Sadly however the Guide Dog for the Blind charity here in the United States no longer use the German Shepherd as a guide dog. They use only Golden Retrievers and Labrador Retrievers or a mix breed of those two.

My one regret in order to have a dog is to give up my German Shepherds.  Oh Well we can't always have exactly what we want.

At present I am waiting on my doctors and Guide Dogs for the Blind to contact each other. The long Christmas break is a bad time to start something, Isn't it?

Then a home check can be arranged and if that is successful I will be placed on a waiting list for training sometime in the summer or maybe Fall of 2013.

But that will fly

This one Will Bring Tears to Your Eyes

Have you ever left your shepherd for any length of time?

I did several times. But this video will bring all those feelings back.

A Shepherd goes after his ball in a game, comes back and his master is home from deployment.

Wonderful sloppy Shepherd growls ensue, but he won't give up the ball.

To any military reading this, thank you.

First Christmas Alone

This Christmas is a strange one for me.

It is my first Christmas without a dog for 24 years.

For 24 years I have scoured the aisles of stores looking for a gift for that special German Shepherd in my life. Seven Christmas' with Suki, 16 Christmas with Brett and 18 Christmas' with Polly.

Yes I had two very long lived German Shepherds. I was lucky. The heartache of a loss comes too often to a dog lover and I count myself lucky to have had so few real heartaches.

Polly was the one for toys, she particularly loved a large Kong, with its hollow centre I could put trats and peanut butter inside and leave her for hours just licking and chewing.

Brett loved the luxury of sharing Christmas dinner with me. He always sat at my side, waiting for a piece of turkey or potato to escape. I never worried about my dogs eating human food in moderation, always saving one of my bites of everything for them. A sort of tithing really.

Last but most special, my first. Suki, She loved a huge thick dog bed. It was my first doggy Christmas present and lasted her for all her life, though she did get a little annoyed one afternoon when I fell asleep oresting my head on her bed, It was HERS afterall.

So now I face Christmas alone without a German Shepherd to buy for.I knew this time would come. It has and suddenly Christmas is a lonely time again.

Hug those Furkids for me.

German Shepherd Dog Facts

While browsing the Youtube site the other day, getting a GSD fix I came across this little informative video. I hope you like it.

German Shepherd puppy crate training

This is a great video showing how to train a puppy to go into his crate.

Crate training should be fun and happy for your puppy.

Lots of great tips.

Plus Manfred is a really cute GSD.

A Trip to PetSmart

Last week I took a trip to my local PetSmart.

Walking around the store with his owner was a handsome young German Shepherd Dog. He was about fourteen months old, the owner told me. She was taking him to PetSmart regularly to socialize him.

I scratched him between the ears and he almost immediately began to lean with his head against my leg and hand.

How I miss the German Shepherd lean. They just use you as a leaning post and love it when you just let them stand there.

It is ok to let just one do that. My wife's aunt has two adult German Shepherds, now the lean gets to be a problem. Over 160 pounds of dogs pushing on your lower legs is a bit of a handful.  Often I encourage either Louis or Lady to stand in front while the other stands behind me, if they both lean equally then they merely push against each other!