Every morning we have a Q & A with Jeremy to see how all our nights went. We learn a ton from hearing other families experiences and all of Jeremy's thoughts and responses.
Today we upped the distractions!!! We've definitely learned what Sobe's two distraction weaknesses are. Tennis balls and other animals! Jessa, one of the trainers, brought her adorable kitty in!(hahahah oh my goodness... video below):
We spent the afternoon talking about Healthcare, Grooming and Correct Play. HUGE topic!! I knew 4 Paws was strict about chew toys and "play" time with our doggies but I didn't know exactly why. It was really interesting and beneficial to get the training and thoughts behind this.
There is just so much information coming our way every day. Thankfully, they give you hand-outs every day on the material that was covered. In fact, this was tonight's quick project:
I just picked up a cheap binder from walmart, and Homewood has an office room where I printed off a temporary photo and they have a three-ringed hole punch! I figured I better get organized with all this paperwork!! Lord knows I'll need it later! This would be a great project to start with your kiddos before the trip while you're anxiously waiting!! Kind of building a journal/training book as you go!!
*BTW, this is totally my opinion, but everyone kept telling me to wait to get supplies, (toys/food/crate/brushes) until after we get to 4 Paws and I'm really glad we did. The only supplies we have at home is our crate (which we waited to find out what/who our match was) and a food and water bowl. 4 Paws will give you quite a few recommendations specific to your dog and her breed and her personality. For example, Sorren the dog next to us in class is a big time chewer... they'll probably end up having nylabones and kongs everywhere!! Sobe, not so much. She is good with one nylabone but we might need to have tennis balls at home, in each vehicle and probably in my purse just in case!! ;) We even bought a brush the second day we got here in Ohio and it's not the one to use. Now we have the names of two other brushes that will be perfect for her coat! (During class today, Ben was literally on amazon putting items in our cart!!) It feels weird not being all prepared before you leave for two weeks but it's really ok and I'm glad we waited.
Hallelujah!!! Silverman reinforcements came in today!!! Meet Gammy and Gobah (my parents):
After we got them checked in we headed to Maggie Moo's for a local fundraiser. Mark's 86 year old grandma put on a 4 Paws fundraiser for him! Mark and his family actually live in Alaska but his grandma lives right here in Ohio. A bunch of us in the September class tried to stop by to show support:
Of course, this is one of the times I cried. I very much remember how much work fundraising was and how touched and amazed I was by the village surrounding and supporting us. Still can't believe we're here and our dream has come true!! I want Mark to get his service dog NOW!! Here's his fundraising link: http://www.firstgiving.com/fundraiser/maureentyskiewicz/4PawsforMarkFundraisingPage
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