Posts Tagged "Guide dogs"

Mirror, Mirror, and 6 Fun Animal Facts You Don’t Know

Dear Kid,

Anakin in the Mirror DearKidLoveMom.comYour canine cousin, Anakin, is having a Terrible Trouble. Anakin (as you know) is a puppy Auntie M and Uncle Sean are raising for the wonderful people at Guiding Eyes for the Blind. Poor Anakin is having his Terrible Trouble with The Other Puppy In The House. You know about the other puppy–the one who approaches when Anakin approaches, and who lifts his paw when Anakin lifts his, and lies down when Anakin lies down, but never comes closer than nose to nose and Just Won’t Play.

It’s all very sad and frustrating.

I have no words of wisdom for Auntie M because Booker never had this problem (what with his microscopic legs and all the mirrors on the first floor of our house being above Booker level). I’m not entirely sure what he thinks when he sees another dog being held in someone’s (my) arms. But since he’s also being cuddled, he’s never objected.

Often, when I have nothing pertinent to say, I’ll opt for cheerful irrelevance, which is what I’m doing today.

I have collected 6 Fun Animal Facts that will hopefully cheer you up even if they don’t cheer up Anakin.

  1. A group of flamingos is called a flamboyance. So is a large shoe collection. Not naming names.
  2. Worms communicate by snuggling. This is how mud-wrestling was originally invented.
  3. Rats giggle when you tickle them. Their laugh is so high pitched you need special equipment to hear it. Like teenage girls.
  4. Male puppies, when playing with female puppies, will intentionally let the female win. Male puppies are not stupid. Of course, what’s really happening is the female puppies are letting the male puppies think they’re letting the females win.
  5. A group of porcupines is called a prickle. How perfect is that?
  6. Baby puffins are called pufflings. Too cute.

Hope your mirror, mirror on the wall predicts a wonderful day.

Love, Mom

 

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Sunday News Roundup for the College Kid and Adorable Puppies

Puppy wants to go to collegeDear Kid,

Friday night the Sycamore Aviators soundly defeated whoever it was they were playing. We were not there due a previous commitment, so we had to rely on the newspaper, Twitter, texts from all of Pi’s teammates, etc. to get the news. She returns to the field next week to the great joy and relief of the special teams coach.

Puppy love. Can it get any cuter?In puppy-raising news, Auntie M and Sean took Tanner to “college” at Guiding Eyes for the Blind just before you went to college. Auntie M said that at a restaurant on the trip “Tanner brilliantly executed the “be cute” and “provide obstacle for waiter” commands.” So proud. Once at school, he had to take a placement test (just like your math placement test, he wasn’t allowed to use a calculator). Their new puppy will (we think) be arriving sometime this week. Lots of idle speculation (my fave) about which puppy it will be. I’m confident in predicting he will be adorable and fluffy (in a puppy sort of way, not a Gabriel Iglesias sort of way) and that sooner or later we will get a photo. Puppies show here above are pretty much guaranteed not be be raised by Auntie M and Uncle Sean. Last minute addition to the post: Anakin must have arrived either last night or early this morning because I just received this adorable picture (thanks Grandma!). Welcome to the Family Anakin. May the Force be with you (too easy, I know) and may you grow up to be a wonderful addition to the Guiding Eyes family.Anakin Guiding Eyes for the Blind puppy

In Other News you will, I’m sure, be delighted to know that there is a new Guinness Book Record for the World’s Thinnest Sheet of Glass. It’s just 2 atoms thick which means it won’t be replacing windshields anytime soon. (Researchers think there will be uses in nanotechnology. But since they discovered it by accident, they aren’t worrying too much.)

Twitter has announced it’s going public (as in offering stock) which is probably totally uninteresting to you since it is unlikely to change anything about Twitter and you are a college kid which by definition means you have no money to invest in the stock market. Moving on.

Dad is at the Great Ohio River Paddle (GORP) today. He left at some crazy hour this morning (and by “Crazy Hour” I mean I’m not sure why he went to sleep in the first place). I suggested he take Booker (Booker thought it was a great idea) but Dad thought the notion of riding an hour and a half each way with a whining dog was not his idea of a Fun Sunday. Can’t say I completely disagree especially because he’ll be driving home in the truck which doesn’t have a Backseat for Little Dogs to Ride In. Dad will race home once the event ends and it will be all hands on deck (or all hands unloading truck) to empty out all the food and equipment, get the truck returned, and get Daddy off to the airport.

In addition to the Mad Dash to Unload the GORP truck, today will be full of excitement here. Booker may get a bath (he has very mixed feelings about that–the bath idea sounds terrible, but the Cheese After the Bath is Quite Wonderful), Pi will do homework, I will attempt to relocate our kitchen (it may have wandered away again), and other weekend-ish activities.

If you have a moment, you might send your new Cousin Anakin a welcome greeting.

Love, Mom

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8/6/13 International Assistance Dog Week | Woof, Sniff, and Empower

International Assistance Dog WeekDear Kid,

This week is International Assistance Dog Week (really and truly). As we know, there are lots of other service animals including service monkeys (I have yet to hear about service fish), but this week is for our canine friends. So pull up a doggie biscuit and read on.

Should you wish to attend an International Assistance Dog Week event, I have thoughtfully provided a listing of local events.

IADW was created to recognize the devoted, hardworking service dogs that help individuals achieve their goals in life.

Two organizations that I know and love celebrate assistance doggies every day. Meet Guiding Eyes for the Blind and Circle Tail.

Guiding Eyes for the Blind is a wonderful organization located in Yorktown Heights, NY (which is only considered “upstate” if you live in The City)  that trains dogs to assist visually impaired individuals. Auntie M and Uncle Sean have been puppy raisers for Guiding Eyes for a long time—they will welcome Puppy # 6 to their home in a few weeks—and even though they don’t bring their charges to the midwest frequently enough they are Most Excellent Puppy Raisers. The adorable Tanner (puppy #5) goes to college a few days before you. He’ll probably also graduate sooner….

In a move I have to admit I did not see coming, Guiding Eyes for the Blind has teamed up with Pour Le Monde (a company specializing in natural fragrances) to create a lovely scent that is worn by people and helps raise money to raise and train puppies. The fragrance is called Empower. In my opinion, they should have called it Sniff.

Circle Tail, Inc. is a FAB-U-LOUS organization just north of Cincinnati. Actually a little farther than “just” but still in the general vicinity. They train all kinds of assistance dogs and they have some very interesting programs including having inmates raise and train some of the dogs, and offering Healing Touch for Animals (HTA). There is a great picture on their site of a dog putting clothes into the washing machine (I know people who haven’t mastered that skill.) The dogs they train come from a variety of sources including families, humane societies, and shelters. One of the photos they have on the site is of a beagle/ dachshund mix who is about to become an assistance dog (with much longer legs than our beagle/dachshund mix….).

There is a wonderful doggy “gym” in their facility. Booker has gone a few times. (When Booker goes we have to get out a different water bowl for him because he isn’t tall enough to drink from the one they have out for the rest of the dogs.)

How Can I Participate in International Assistance Dog Week?

How you ask? So sweet of you to inquire.

If you were a working adult of the earning money variety, I would suggest you make a donation to an organization that supports working dogs. Non-profits always appreciate financial support. If you lived in an area with a local event and weren’t working the hours you’re working, I’d suggest going to an event. Here are some ideas for college students of the not-so-much-spare-cash variety.

  • Like one of the organizations on Facebook and/or follow them on Twitter
  • Tell others about the wonderful work assistance dogs do and suggest they make a donation
  • Many companies support non-profits—check their websites to find out more
  • Figure out how the average person can successfully photograph a black lab.

You can also Like DearKidLoveMom.com on the website or Facebook. It won’t necessarily help the puppies, but it can’t hurt.

Sniff.

Love, Mom

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5/29/13 Monsters University

monsters-university-pixar-disneyDear Kid,

What are you doing June 21st (or thereabouts)?

The new movie, Monsters University, is coming out and I think it will be invaluable pre-college research. [Isn’t it weird how “valuable” and “invaluable” mean pretty much the same thing?] Let me know if you’re interested in going to see it. If you are, this one’s on Mom.

The Monsters University website is hilarious (almost as funny as I am). The only (slight) problem is I can’t figure out the mascot, because I would definitely put him/her/it on the mascot page. May have to wait for the movie to figure that out. (If you have any ideas, please share.)

Guiding Eyes for the Blind puppy. Not a seeing eye snake

Not a seeing eye snake. This is the super adorable Arthur from GEB.

Just in case you were wondering, according to the website, pets are not allowed at MU, except (of course) seeing eye snakes. I think this is a very interesting opportunity for Guiding Eyes for the Blind to investigate…

In other news, Booker is shedding like it’s his job. He might make a good monster. I wonder if cartoon monsters shed fur or little data drops of ones and zeros…

Happy Today. Let me know about the movie.

Love, Mom

 

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