Day 10

In around 15 hours, I’ll be in the middle of our Public Access Test.  Omri LOVES an audience so this will either be the biggest challenge ever or a cake walk.  Because he loves an audience, he’ll either be on his absolute best behavior, or he’ll be so wound up from all the attention he won’t be able to focus. I am thinking about taking Omri to 4Paws in the morning before our test & letting him get rid of some of his excess energy.

I know some of you are wondering, or maybe you’re not, what did we do today at training?  We worked some more on obedience, avoiding people food, avoiding distractions, and practicing for the Public Access Test.  Jeremy went over the ground rules & told us what to expect & what to do before we get there.  We also got our “times” for when we take our tests.  4 Paws does have a handout that spells out what they test & they offered one to each of us.  I didn’t get one because I’ll stress about it & freak out if we don’t get something perfect.  (Do I have OCD???  Maybe just a little bit.  Ok, ok, ok…a BIG bit!)  This afternoon, Jeremy talked to us about what to expect on the plane, train and automobile on the way home.  He also talked about settling in at home, introducing other animals, going to school, etc.  He talked about the ADA & where the dogs can/can’t go & what they can/can’t do, that kind of stuff.  It was very informational & he said we can call or email any time.

 

Oh, I almost forgot, Matthew gave Omri a bath today!  It was so funny!  Omri isn’t exactly Mr. Sensitive, but he HATED his bath.  He looked so pathetic, I couldn’t help but laugh.  Unlike some of the others in our class, Matt didn’t get soaked.  (I guess that’s an advantage to having the only Lab in a class full of Golden Retrievers.)  Omri seriously had his feelings hurt!  He pouted for about 3 hours afterwards.  I told Omri, “You’re a LAB, you’re supposed to LIKE water!”  One of the trainers, Jenna, said that he’ll LOVE going swimming, but she has yet to see ANY dog like bath time.  ( LOL—ironic, huh?)

 

After training, we did laundry, then we went to McDonald’s. Omri’s nose was working triple-time in there. When we got back to the hotel, I started packing up everything. I also took the kennel apart so we can take it back to 4Paws in the morning. Omri looked at me so funny. I think he was trying to determine what exactly I was doing to his house. I wish I would’ve had the camera ready for the expression on his face. Talk about priceless!

 

The second picture to the left is Omri after his bath.  (I think you can tell he still wasn’t thrilled about it, huh?)

I have a prayer request.  A dear friend of mine, Kelly, was put in the hospital for a bad staph infection that has gotten worse.  If you want to read about it, go here.  She has 2 daughters, and she is a stay-at home mom.  She hasn’t had a very good experience so far—she just really needs some dedicated prayer warriors to go to our Father.

 

Love,

Dea

P.S.  Have you ever seen a happier dog?