It's a Boy!

Yeah, I know, you've heard that before. It's not what you're thinking (though I wish it was!). Let me explain...

Look at that smile!

Tonight we got the exciting news that Spencer (with Grace as his assistant) will be the proud puppy raiser of a male black lab for the next year and a half! Spencer, Grace and I have been preparing for a couple of months to become official puppy raisers for Guide Dogs for the Blind. Our pup will be arriving from California around noon on Thursday. His name starts with a C, but we won't know what it is until he gets here. He is about 8 weeks old. The puppy club leader, Traci, had two balloons at tonight's meeting to tell Spencer what type of dog he would be getting. Blue for male with a C on it for the name, and a black balloon for the puppy's color. He also got to choose $15 worth of supplies from the store. He chose a food dish, chew toy, brush and something called Nature's Miracle which is supposed to be the absolute best thing for cleaning up accidents...a product I will hope never to use, but, realistically speaking, I hope only to go through one bottle.

How did this all get started, you might ask? First, you must know that Darrel has been vehemently opposed to owning a dog since before we were dating. He has NEVER liked dogs. Why? Good question. His answer: They're slobbery, noisy, messy, hairy, smelly, and like to jump up on people no matter how much their owners say, laughing with affection, "Get down, now! Stop that!" and then make apologies while still allowing their obnoxious dog to lick and jump all over you. Plus, you have to clean up their doo doo. And all of Darrel's mission companions were bit by dogs. O.K., Darrel, you have a point. But, you really don't want a dog EVER? Even with your own children begging you with puppy-dog eyes? No. NO. NO!! You get the point. I married Darrel, anyway. I could live without cleaning up after a dog, though I did tell Darrel I would probably get one when he left me a widow at a young age since he is so much older than I.

Moving forward to sevenish years ago. I was a Cub Scout Den Leader in charge of a meeting and ended up asking Guide Dogs for the Blind to come do a presentation. Some of their puppy raisers came and talked to the boys and showed what they did with the dogs. Spencer was about 2 at the time. I remember thinking what a great Eagle Scout project raising a Guide Dog puppy would be. I tucked it away in my brain and haven't thought of it for years.

Fast forward to this summer. I was swimming with the kids over at my parents' house. Spencer started to bellyache (for the hundredth time) about how Darrel wouldn't ever let him get a dog. In the course of explaining all of Darrel's very valid reasons, our conversation turned and I found myself telling him about the Guide Dog puppy raising program. I told him how I thought it would be a cool Eagle Scout project....meaning when he was 14 or so...and if Darrel could even be brought to consider such an idea. Mainly, it was just to put him off with the "maybe later" idea. Well, I should have known better. I really should have. But I had to go and open my big mouth.

Spencer latched onto the idea immediately. "Mom, can we look it up on the internet when we get home?" I thought he'd forget, but he didn't. We looked it up and wheels began to turn. Darrel was not happy with me. I tried to explain it was an honest mistake, but whatever it was, the end result was that he was being badgered about getting a dog--the one pet he swore we'd never own. I told Darrel the decision was his. I would support him either way.

After three weeks of deliberating, attending Guide Dog puppy raiser meetings, challenging the kids to keep the family room clean enough that a dog wouldn't be able to chew anything to pieces or eat bits of food that would make it sick, Darrel grudgingly relented. I was amazed, and proud, that Darrel would be willing to put up with a dog for a year so our kids could have the experience. In the few puppy meetings he attended, Darrel could already see how good Spencer is with dogs and how much good it could be for Spencer in return. Grace is also very excited about helping and works well with the pups.

So now we're in for it! Potty training, obedience training, and house manners. Hmmm, this is sounding oddly familiar. Only more hairy. As the kids will be at school most of the day, I get to be the co-raiser. Not exactly what I thought I'd be doing with my spare time this year, but since when do moms really have spare time, anyway? There's not going to be any perfect time to raise a puppy. It might as well be now. Famous last words, I know.

We'll be raising 'C' until he's between 13 and 18 months old. At that time he'll be sent back to the Guide Dog training center in San Rafael California for his formal training. If he graduates from the program, he'll become a working guide dog. If not, he could become a search & rescue dog or other service type dog or simply be adopted as a family pet. About half of the puppies raised don't make it through the formal training and are "career changed". One of the absolute conditions of Darrel's embarking on this adventure with us was that we would not be adopting our dog if he didn't make it through the training. The kids agreed to this, but they weren't entirely convinced. Spencer has asked me a couple of times if I thought Darrel might get to like the dog well enough that he would change his mind. I wouldn't count on it, but stranger things have happened.

Wish us luck!