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It's a girl! ‘Elsa’ has arrived and with that happy event comes a name change to our journal; ‘Emmit’s’ Journal will now be called the Southern Lakes District (SLD) Journal. ‘Elsa’, a Golden Retriever puppy, is the newest addition to the Mobility Dogs team on the South Island. This nine-week-old ball of fuzz came to us in late October via a stork visit from Sally, who works in the Mobility Dogs Auckland office. Sally reports that there were more than just a few ‘ohhhhs’ and ‘ahhhhs’ when ‘Elsa’ was spotted by the other Air New Zealand passengers. ‘Elsa’ will be raised by Vivian and Tony, a retired couple in Queenstown. Since they are away on holiday until the end of the month, we have been taking care of ‘Elsa’. It’s a tough job cuddling a too-cute-for-words puppy, watching her silly antics and seeing her eagerness to please as she learns a few basic commands, but somebody’s got to do it.☺ And so our MD family here on the South Island continues to grow.
‘Emmit’s’ Big City Adventures Two trips to Dunedin in early October during the Otago Festival of the Arts gave ‘Emmit’ some valuable big city experiences. Besides walking the congested, noisy streets and frequenting coffee shops, restaurants and the mall shops, ‘Emmit’ went with us to several concerts and plays with a variety of music and sound effects. His behaviour was stellar on these various public outings. Training Progress ‘Emmit’ now knows 50 commands including paying over the counter and opening doors and drawers. We have a short review session of most commands every so often. Work continues on his leash walking as he has a tendency to pull ahead. We have recently started using a Gentle Leader and have seen a big improvement.
‘Elsa’s’ schedule revolves around sleeping, eating, toileting and playing with ‘Emmit’. As of this writing, she is eleven weeks old, weighs 8.1 kg, has learned her name and knows some basic commands (bizzy bizzy, sit, wait, come, shake, down, leave it). Speaking Engagements At a garden tour and luncheon of our local walking group, the Wakatipu Walkers, we were asked to talk about Mobility Dogs. After our informal presentation, a member of the group initiated a donation and the hat was passed. Another speaking engagement found us presenting at the Quilters, Weavers and Allied Crafts Club, and again we were surprised and pleased when, after our presentation, we were handed a cheque.
Puppy-Sitters Sourced We had a second informational meeting at our home to welcome people who have shown an interest in puppy-sitting. As a result of this meeting and subsequent follow-up, which included home visits and training sessions, three more families have joined our pool of competent puppy-sitters. Arrowtown Market Day We are beginning to make plans and source items for ‘Emmit’s’ Stall at Market Day on 27th December. This is a fund-raising effort, and all proceeds from the sale of hand-made paraphernalia for dogs and donated produce, baked goods and arts and crafts will go into ‘Emmit’s’ fund. It promises to be a fun-filled, doggy day, and in the December journal entry, we’ll have more to tell you about this much-anticipated event.
Happiness is…
Posted: Wed 19 Nov 2008 |
© Copyright 2008 | Mobility Assistance Dogs Trust | Registered Charitable Trust CC24410 | New Zealand
Last week we were invited to speak at the Rotary Club of Fiordland in Te Anau. ‘Elsa’ had her initiation into the MD speaking circuit accompanying ‘Emmit’ and us on the 170 km drive to Te Anau. The president of the club kindly invited us to stay the night at his home. Club members were quite impressed when ‘Emmit’ demonstrated several tasks and were delighted and somewhat surprised when wee ‘Elsa’ eagerly responded to 4-5 commands. Both dogs even received a round of applause. At the close of our presentation, we opened it up for discussion, and enthusiastic questions flowed. A few days later, we were again warmly welcomed when we spoke to the Association of Presbyterian Women in Queenstown. 
