No babymaking

Career option number one is out for Tahoe. She came back from her initial medical exams with a slight heart murmur(we've heard that a LOT of the goldens are coming back with these lately), and some laxity in her joints. Neither of these things will hinder her ability to become an effective guide dog. So, Tahoe will be spayed, have some time to recover, and then be put into training!

We can't say that we're not disappointed. We would have loved to raise Tahoe's puppies, and she really would have been an amazing mother. However, medical problems are very important to weed out when creating a good breeding colony. So, we'll wait to see if she becomes a guide!

She truly would make someone an amazing partner. :)

~Kelsey, Emily, and Keno

Goodbye, Tahoe

As hard as it was, we somehow managed to say goodbye to our special golden girl.

And as much as we miss her, we can not wait to see what she chooses to do with her life.

There are some thanks are in order. First, thank you to all of our great blog readers for following the adventures of the 'Partners In Crime'. Still not clear if that means Kelsey and Emily or Burgess and Tahoe, so we'll let you decide! You guys are all amazing and we appreciate each and every one of you for the outside support you provide. This blog will be continued for updates on how the pups do in formal training, but the puppy in training days are over. Now we will sit anxiously waiting for news of Burgess being matched as a guide dog, and Tahoe becoming a breeder, guide, or pet! We hope you enjoyed the first part of our journey as much as we did!

A second thanks goes to our amazing puppies. Burgess and Tahoe, thank you for being two of the worlds greatest puppies in training. We are proud to say we were your puppy raisers. So thank you for everything. We will forever cherish the things you taught us and the memories we created together.

Go get 'em guys!

~Emily and Kelsey(and the now single puppy, Keno)

November

Once again, we've been slacking in the update department...

Today we received Tahoe's recall notice. Which came as a bit of a surprise, even though we probably should have seen it coming. Tahoe will be going back for her breeder evaluations on November 29th, just 17 days away. Though Tahoe is ready to go, we aren't quite ready to let her. This recall may be the toughest we've had to face.

Tahoe will be in good hands, we know that she'll thrive at Guide Dogs and spread the joy she inherently carries with her. We know that she has so many great things to do, so many people to meet, and possibly so many guide dogs to be an excellent mother to. We're not counting on Tahoe becoming a breeder, but let's just say we'll be very surprised if she gets cut for a non medical reason. She is truly the mothering type. It's hard to find a dog more nurturing than her. Tahoe is so special though, that we really don't care what she chooses to do. Anything is fine with us.

Looking back, we jumped through so many hoops to get Tahoe, and then waited for what seemed like forever while she sat in the kennels sick after her journey from New York. It wasn't always easy with Tahoe, she wasn't the "perfect" puppy. There were weeks where both of us were very happy to get good ol' Burgess back. But that just makes her even more special to us. We worked very hard at raising her, and it's so rewarding to see the amazing dog she has matured into.

So now we enjoy our last few weeks with the golden girl who will always always always hold a very special place in both of our lives. As one of our leaders told us today "there's something about those goldens that really gets into your heart."

~Emily, Kelsey, and Tahoe

October

October brings the always entertaining Halloween shenanigan that Emily and Kelsey put on. Steve and Cheryl are quickly finding out all the wonderful perks of being our co-raisers. ;)

This year it was M&Ms(when else will we have all the colors?)
Tahoe is rather used to us, you can tell by her expression. 

We wore our costumes for last night's puppy meeting due to an inconvenient meeting place next week (a library) and the fact that Steve and Cheryl are leaving for vacation on Friday. :) 

October has also brought news! Good news all around! Tahoe has not been recalled this month. Apparently they don't need her, so we're happy to keep her for however long they need us to. She's ready and waiting though. :)

Of course, Burgess is not far from our minds, especially when the phase report comes and says "Burgess  4S67  LAB  M  10"

Phase 10!? There was a time when we didn't think Burgy would make it back for training at all. Now we're waiting to hear one way or another. A lot of dogs are sitting in phase 10 for quite awhile now, so we're not expecting the GOOD call anytime very soon. We're so proud of Burgess, he really has the perfect personality for a guide, and we're so happy that it looks as if he might get to do just that! Fingers crossed. Third times a charm? Perhaps. 

~Kelsey, Emily, Tahoe, and Keno

Burgess is Cruising

A month since we've updated? Maybe we're busy people? Just a little. ;)

A month, and Burgess is now in phase 8 of his formal training. We've been gaining more and more confidence that Burgess' many health issues may not be detrimental enough to effect his guidework. It will be ironic if the least healthy of our puppies graduates, but it's definitely a good kind of irony! Go Burgess! We're so proud of you no matter what you choose to do, because you're Burgess, and that's reason enough to love you more than words can say. 

Unfortunately, Tahoe has been recalled with the October recall. :( The last weekend of this month will mark the end of our time with her. She's grown into a very special dog, who truly brings joy to everyone she meets. It will be hard to let her go, but she will do such great things. 

~Kelsey, Emily, Tahoe, and Keno! 

Fun Day and Bye Bye Burg!

Better late than never at all! Fun Day with Burgess and Tahoe was amazing. They were both so grown up and such a pleasure to have. Burgess attracted many stares and comments on his large stature, and Tahoe received many compliments on her beauty. :)

It was a typically fun Fun Day! We shopped, went to a presentation, socialized, and had fun!

At Tahoe's littermate meeting we got to meet Timothy(far left) and Trenton(far right). They're both very handsome boys, and look a lot like Tahoe. :) 

The end of the day was not as fun as the start. :( We had to say bye to the Burg. 

True to form even in our last moments with him, he was keeping us laughing. 

What can we say? Burgess was easy from the start. We loved him from the moment he came to us, and the love grew to something indescribable. Burgess will bring so much joy to whoever he ends up with. Whoever they are, however he helps them, they will be awfully lucky to have such an amazing dog. However much work we put into raising him, he came to us with a beautiful soul and that's what makes him so special. We miss him so much already! Past two weeks he's been in phase one on the report! Fingers crossed that the initial medical stuff is passed! 

~Kelsey, Emily, and Tahoe

Not so Fun a Day

The San Rafael Fun Day, August 15th, is becoming a drearier and drearier day. It marks the end of Kelsey's two week internship at Guide Dogs, and now it's also Burgess' recall date. 

This gives us a year with the big friendly giant, because last Fun Day, he flopped into our arms and our hearts. We both remember walking Burgess back to the kennel kitchen to retrieve his bag after the ceremony, and we looked at each other and said "I like this one". 

The love for Burgess was almost instantaneous. We are both very saddened by the news, but realize that Burgess is an amazing dog, who has so much ahead of him. Our time with him was well spent, and now he's on to bigger and better things. He will do so much good in this world. He is truly a special soul. 

Anyway, this wasn't meant to be a sad sad post, mostly just to let everyone know about the date. :) 

~Kelsey, Emily, Burgess, and Tahoe