6 Months!

Yes, I am 6 months old today! I would like to wish my brothers and sisters a happy 6 month birthday!! I don't get to see them that much but I still love and miss them all!!!!

I think I am the 2nd one from the left with the blue bell. Only reason why I know that is because my Mom still has my collar ;) But I must be one of them!

On another note, My Mom was so mean to me yesterday!!!!!!!!!!! I could have bit her!!! You will never guess what she made me do.....go ahead and try!!
I will fill you in....she was so mean and put me in the car with dad and Thomas and took me to 4 different places!!!!! I had to wear my stupid gentle leader and that silly red vest which bothers me!!! First we went to a place that had flowers and all sorts of plants....THE SMELLS! Doesn't she realize that I smell a hell of a lot better then her! Thank goodness we weren't there too long but then we got in the car and went to a place called West Marine. Not sure I understand what the store is all about but it has something to do with what Mom does at work. We went looking for items that she makes at work as she said "to see what my stuff looks like on the shelves." Ok that was in and out so it wasn't too bad but the best part was after we got back to the car I got to take my vest and gentle leader off.....now that felt WONDERFUL! So off we went again. This time we ended up at a place I knew...Bacis and Dziadziu (grandmother and grandfather in Polish). I LOVE going there!! I get loved and pet and spoiled and have a HUGE yard to run around in....yeah!!!!! We didn't stay too long and then it was back in the car. So I figured since we were at Baci's and Dziadziu's it was homeward bound! Wrong :( We pulled into a parking lot.....vest and gentle leader back on...BOOOOOO!! We had to go grocery shopping!!!! What was she doing to me?! Haven't I done enough today!? Good Lord, I was done! I got whiny and according to Mom I wasn't "being a good boy" Why? Just because I wanted to get home and take a nap! It WAS way past my nap time. We spent a bit in the grocery store and Mom and I got lunch meat while Thomas and Dad went to get other things. I was not happy about that! We should all be together, no separating! So I whined and cried and as Mom called it "Chirped". Isn't that what I'm supposed to do when my pack is separated? I thought so but Mom did not find it cute and kept telling me "This is not how a guide dog acts!" WHAT! Guide dog....I'm just a baby! So once I found Dad and Thomas I felt much better and I felt even better when Thomas was walking me. He let's me get away with more but then Mom always steps in and takes over again :( Man! I really didn't know what her problem was yesterday but it was a rough day and I really didn't appreciate being dragged around and having to be a "good boy" all that time!
When we got home....I napped...for about 2.5 hrs!! Now that felt good!!
Mom later told me I was a good boy but I needed to spend some more longer time in stores....OH NO! Not that!! I guess if I am going to make it as a guide dog this is something I have to do. I will figure it out soon. I am just happy Mom has a lot of patience and helps me, even though I really don't want to listen.
After my rough day and my wonderful nap, I went out and played ball and played in my pool! Now that is the way to end a hard, stressful day....ball and pool!!!!

My time at the open house

So sorry about not posting this past week. Mom has been so busy!! She has gotten more hours at work and this weekend she wasn't even home! Well it seemed like it was that way.
Last weekend we had the open house at Fidelco and it was such an exciting and VERY overwhelming time for me! We started with our regular puppy play time which is so much fun for me since I get to play with my brothers and sister :) The we had to put on our red vests (never had to do that before for class) and we marched together outside...hmmm...we usually go inside for class. As we were walking toward this place that had all this stuff in it...maybe Mom can explain better for me. What Ajax is trying to tell you is they had rings set up, one for the guide dog demonstration that had obstacles in the way, cones, ramps and all sorts of stuff and the other ring was for the police demo. So, we went into this ring thing and I was like 'OMG! Look at all the people standing around" Most of us were like this is so exciting and we were more curious about the people all around the edge. I have to admit I was very curious about them too and Mom was getting very frustrated with me, since I wasn't paying much attention to her. But I noticed most of my siblings were doing the same thing!! So if they were why couldn't I?! Mom was not happy but once she started showing me more and more food I was like "bring it on!! What do you want me to do?" It just so happens Dad got a photo at one of those times! So basically we really didn't behave too well but what do you expect, we are just babies and all those people!!!!
After we were done with our class, We got to walk around and look at things. We went into where we usually have training and HOLY COW!! I thought there was a lot of people outside, you should have seen inside!! There were tables with shirts, bumper stickers, cups, wine, sign up sheets for different things, then we got to the good tables....TREATS and BONES!! I got some dried turkey hearts and a wonderful bone called a bully stick! The bully stick is just pure heaven!!!!! While we were walking around there were a lot of people who would stop to talk to us, well not me, they  just gave me lots of loven ;) I have to say that must have been the best part! One of my most favorite parts was meeting Renee from 105.9!! I listen to her everyday while Mom is at work! She makes me feel so much less lonely when Mom is working out in the warehouse instead of the office. I just love listening to her and to the music! I even got my photo taken with her! You can see the photo here. After all of that, Mom said I was getting tired and not listening well so we had to go. I was having so much fun!! and she thought I was tired! We all got in the car and before we got out of the driveway of Fidelco, I was out!!! Guess I was tired!
If you look back a post or two you will see more photos from the open house. Mom got some good pictures and with Dads help, he got some of our class and of Mom and I. You can also see more at my Moms Facebook page :)
Enjoy your week everyone!!!!

Meet my Mom!

Hello everyone!! I would like to start off by saying that I thank you very much for taking an interest in Ajax and his life from a little, cute, puppy into a, hopefully, working guide dog one day. Ajax and I truly appreciate your interest and for you taking the time out to follow and comment.

I thought this would be a nice to time to introduce myself. My name is Karrie and I am Ajax's foster Mom. I am almost 36, the mother of 2 boys, 7 and 17, and a wife to a very supportive man for 12 years. My husband Mark, puts up with a lot from me but no matter what, he is always behind me! We were both born and raised here in Connecticut but would love to move down south at some point. My youngest is in 1st grade and my oldest is a Junior at a local technical school.He still isn't sure what he wants to do but he is thinking of continuing on with his trade or possibly the military. My youngest is an old soul and is way beyond his years. We are just a normal family fighting to get through everything from high gas prices to higher grocery bills and just trying to survive like most of the country is right now. We are happy and try to do our part to show our children that we can do good in this world...this is one reason why I got involved with Fidelco.

I have always had a love for animals and we currently have an older dog, 3 cats and 5 chickens. I always wanted to be a Vet but I am not very book smart so I knew that would never be. Until I had my youngest and as I watched him grow, I came to see what an old soul he is and what a HUGE heart he has! I was driving one day and saw a bumper sticker that said "I love my Fidelco Guide dog puppy" I was like hmmmm...what is that all about? The sticker was really cute too! So I went home and looked into it. I read everything I could about Fidelco, then I went to another organization, Guiding Eyes. I liked them both but the one thing that really caught my eye with Fidelco was the fact that they go to the client and help the client and dog bond in the clients area, not here. Guiding Eyes, the client had to come here for the bonding and learning how to use the dog. I also liked that Fidelco checked up on their dogs all the time and that they do a physical check of the dogs once a year. After comparing the both, I talked it over with my husband and he thought I was crazy! but once again, supportive! My youngest was only 5 at the time and my husband told me I would never be able to give the dog back. He did know me well, but he didn't understand that I wanted to teach my youngest to use that big heart he had and I also wanted to do something for me! When you become a mother and a wife, you feel like you loose you....at least that is how I felt, I became Marks wife, Marks and Thomass Mom...never Karrie anymore. My husband started to understand and told me to go to the classes and the orientation and then see how I felt. I went to all of them in March of 2010 and sat on all the information I had learned until December of 2010. I had to make sure my family and myself were ready to do what we needed to do and that my youngest would understand that it wasn't our dog and what and why we were doing this. On December 18 2010, we brought home our first pup, Bindy. I'm going to be honest and tell you it is very hard and A LOT of work! But I cannot tell you how rewarding it is all at the same time!!! We all had a great time with Bindy and she pulled my 17 yr old out of his room to play with her, she would lay on the floor downstairs and as soon as she heard my little guy tromping across the floor upstairs, she would get so excited then go crazy when he came down the stairs! And she turned into my husbands girl. She brought us together, got us out walking, got us all out shopping together and so much more. So how could I not repeat that!! On March 23 2012 Bindy moved on to her guide dog training and we were home with Ajax, playing outside and my youngest turned to me and said "Mommy, isn't what we do awesome!" That is exactly what I was looking to teach my little guy and that moment made me so proud not only for what I did for him but for what I am doing for a stranger...giving them the gift of sight!
So this is a little about me and how I got involved with raising the pups. I feel like I am at home at Fidelco and I have made so many new friends from other fosters to trainers to Fidelco staff and even breeders. I have learned so much about the German Shepherd breed...I am in love!

At anytime, please feel free to ask any questions about anything! I am more then happy to answer anything you may come up with or just wonder about. I want people to learn more about what us fosters do and why we do it so if you don't ask I cannot help you understand and learn....ask away!!

I would also like to apologize ahead of time...I am not a writer and I do make mistakes. I try to write the best I can so please be gentle when it comes to grammar and punctuation ;)

Thank you again for joining me, my family and Ajax on his journey into becoming a guide dog! We truly appreciate you joining us and feel free to share this blog with others. I believe the more people that learn about what we do will encourage others to do the same or at least keep an open mind when you see that small pup in a store with a red vest on. Yes, you would be surprised at all the dirty looks I get!!
Have a wonderful night and if I can answer anything please don't hesitate to ask :)

Fidelco Open House!

I had an awesome day today at the Fidelco open house!! So much fun, so many people to see and I am one tired little boy! I came home and crashed afterwards and still don't feel like doing much. I thought I would share a few photos from today and call it a night. I will tell you all about it tomorrow :)

My Mom and I at our class

Me very proud after our class

One of my sisters very tired too

Some of the great items for sale today

Little boy doing the blindfold walk with a real guide dog!!

My boy Thomas doing the blindfold walk also with a real guide dog...I will be there one day!!

K-9 demos...Would love to do this too!!

Enjoy your night and I will fill you in tomorrow on my busy day

Busy Times

Jeez! My Mom is very hard to tie down right now! We are working hard with training and since the weather has been pretty nice we have been spending a lot of time outside playing! I love playing!!

My Mom has been taking me into stores which is pretty cool. I have to wear this red vest thing that goes over me and all the people that we pass have to stop and look at me. I am not thrilled with the red vest, I am always getting yelled at since I try to bite the straps that go under my belly...they are really annoying though!!!!! I like it when people take the time out to pet me but sometimes my Mom will not allow them too. Mom also doesn't like it when people get in my face. Seems like everyone just wants to kiss and hug me but I admit it, I get a little bit excited...ok a little more then a little. It is pretty exciting to get out and go into the stores with Mom. I get to see so many different people and so many new smells! Sometimes I forget that I am supposed to be on my best behavior but don't you worry, Mom makes sure I remember real quick!

Here is a picture of me with my vest on. Mom says to say sorry the quality isn't as great as she would like it but it is hard to carry around that big camera so these are taken with the cell phone.

Here is me with Thomas. Thomas tries really hard to help Mom out and help "train" me...he just doesn't know I am "training" him ;)

Everyone is telling me how fast I am growing but I just don't see it. I feel so young and I am full of energy! Mom told me the other day that I am loosing that "puppy look" Ok whatever, I am a pup! Maybe if I post a photo you can tell me what you are seeing? I am 5 months old tomorrow and feel just as young as I did a few weeks ago.

I am just loving life and always learning new things.

Here is a photo that was taken the other day:

Now what do you think? Am I loosing my puppy look? I have to admit I am a handsome man just like my Daddy, BlackJack!

Tomorrow is a big day at Fidelco. It is their open house and Mom is bringing her camera and hopes to get some pictures of my litter mates so everyone especially Mom Karen can see how everyone is growing up! This is as long as the rain holds off!

We are a doing a puppy demonstration...another thing I don't understand, but I am sure it will be fun. Dad and Thomas are going too! Maybe Dad can figure out the camera and take some photos of me and Mom, now that would be cool!

I will have to let you know what the open house is after I do it tomorrow. I have been told I have to be on very good behavior and that we have to be up and at'em early! Sounds pretty exciting to me!  I even get to see some real guide dogs. I cannot wait to see what I am going to be one day!

We'll talk to you all soon and wish me luck tomorrow!

End of First Week

Now that I have been here just about a week, I have realized that these people are really good to me and I am loving my new family!!
Saturday we had our first training and it was so exciting since I got to see my brothers and sisters again!!! Yeah!!! We go to play and run and attack one another just like we used to do...it was so much fun!!! But the fun soon ended and we all were pretty sad. There were alot of people standing around asking questions and answering questions that the families had. It was very hard for us to stay still and be good since all we wanted to do was PLAY! We all did pretty good from what I overheard.
In class we had to walk nice and run threw these things with holes in them and when we went to the end of them....WE GOT TREATS!!! and lots of them!! That part wasn't as exciting as playing but it was still pretty neat. After class I was pretty tired so after the long ride home, I got to home and sleep....ahhhh!
As we went into the next week everything was pretty much the same. Lots of training at home, sleeping, playing with Bindy and getting used to that crate at work (which I figured out if I was quite, I got treats and taken out more often). I have gotten pretty good at the crate thing...I will even lay in it at home just to take a nap! I have come to figure out my bed isn't a bad place and the crate isn't all that bad either. At least I get to spend the day with my Mom.
I haven't gotten in too much trouble since Bindy is always right there on top of me! I have seen Mom get mad at Bindy when I was the one getting in trouble and Bindy would try to step in and take over....Mom did not like that! She would say "Bindy!! I got this!" It kind of made me happy to see her get in trouble but I don't like to see Mom get made at either of us. I try to be a good boy and I think my Mom would agree I am being pretty good.
I can tell you, the only thing I haven't done very well is eating. Yes, eating! I'm not sure what happened to me...one day I was fine and the next day I was eating so fast.... I would throw up right after I ate :( I don't understand what got into me! I really can't explain it! My Mom thought I might be sick at first, so I wouldn't get as much food as I normally did but then I over heard her talking to Dad and she said "I think he may be competing with Bindy because he doesn't do this at work with lunch". I thought to my self "She may be on to something". I didn't throw up at lunch time, but why? I didn't know what was going on but after a few days of this, my Mom came up with an idea.....a bigger bowl!! When I saw the size of this bowl, I almost died!! I was like Yes!! Imagine all of the food that will fit in that!! Awesome! Boy was I wrong :( I got the same amount, in this huge bowl, that slid around the floor as I was trying to get my food! I was so annoyed!!!! BUT....I stopped throwing up! So I guess she was onto something!

This is me with my head in my extra large bowl!!

So needless to say, my first 2 weeks here have been great! I get fed, I get my belly rubbed, I get to play with Bindy and the Boy. So far so good!

Sad Day

I'm sorry I have to jump ahead in time a little but yesterday was a sad day here. My big sister Bindy had to go onto her guide dog training. She had to leave us to continue her education, which one day I will be doing.

I wasn't sure what was happening but that Mommy was very upset and had these things running down her face at times. Everyone was giving her hugs and kisses and I was told to "Say goodbye to Bindy". I didn't know what that meant so I just attacked her as I always did and we played! Mom then took me and put me in my bed and the next thing I know, everyone was going out the door and all my humans came back but no Bindy :( Everyone was so sad but I got so many kisses and hugs and it was nice not having the "Moose" around to butt in. I spent most of today looking for her but she is not here. Maybe she will be back at some point but I had a great day playing with everyone and helping with yard work!!

Here are some pictures my Mom has taken of Bindy as she grew up:

 We all wish you well Bindy and I hope I can be half the dog you are!! You taught me well and I will use everything!! I am sure if I forget something Mom will remind me ;)  I will take care of the family for you and I will love them just as you did.

 I PROMISE!!!