Midnight at Ten months

Well the boy is now ten months old, actually he was born on the 3rd of June 2010.

I found his pedigree papers the other day, 

I had forgotten his registered name is --

SHERTONA SPECIAL EDITION.

He was the only puppy, hence the name.

This picture was taken when he was about 14 weeks old, 

it was his first day in a "working harness".

He still had his baby haircut and was so small.

Last week I wrote a new article  for Pet Stock,

here it is -------

                               Midnight at Ten Months

I cannot believe Midnight is now 10 months old, he is no longer a “little puppy”, now he is an adolescent, that challenging time all dogs  [and children]  go through!!!!!

 He is pushing the boundaries constantly --- never heard the word “Sit” in his whole life, and as for walking to “heel”, I am obviously talking to another dog, not him!! 

Just as well he is not my first dog, I know adolescence is just a stage, he will grow through it.

I think this is the time when I need to remember all the things that Midnight and I have achieved in seven months ----------

We have learned to trust each other enough to travel 7kms safely alone.

We can catch trains and ride in hoist buses with a carer. 

Attend council meetings and conferences, without Midnight moving from the side of my chair.

He has learned to stand still when I have a bad episode and not interfere when strangers come to help me.

My disability makes it very difficult for me to put on his collar and harness, Midnight knows when I give the command ”paws”, he must place his front paws on the chair I have chosen, push his head through his collar and harness and keep still while I slowly do up all the buckles!!

We have been working on the command “leave it”, an assistance dog must never pick up anything from the ground  or table, and definitely never ask for food. Sometimes it is really hard to walk past a piece of chicken lying on the ground, but he is now doing it.

An important thing I have learned, is how to protect him from potentially dangerous dogs. Because he is always attached to me and cannot defend himself Midnight can be a target for other dogs, a dog attack is a very scary thing when you are in a wheel chair.

This week my trainer – Chris, brought a manual wheel chair to our lesson, she wanted to replicate as much as possible, my limited movement  and possibly make training easier for me. It was very interesting for me to watch Middi working with someone else in a chair, thank goodness he was just as cheeky for Chris, as he has been for me lately.

Of course Middi and I have learned other things since we started on our long journey towards Assistance dog registration , but this is enough for now I think!  

Easter holidays are coming up soon, please remember chocolate is a cumulative poison for your dog, please don’t let him join in the egg hunt!!

Remember, if you see us roaming the area, come and say “Hello”, Middi and I love to chat, we can tell you about our holiday on Phillip Island – a puppy paradise.

                       Anne and Midnight.

Its interesting to look back on what we have done, and see how "the Boy" has grown and matured.

Like all children he can be very good 

and also very naughty,but I certainly love him!!!!!!!

                  Until next time --- Enjoy Autumn