Hi Everyone,
I am very happy to have CAROLINE here in Concord for the beginning of her public access training. She came about two weeks ago and we are planning on having her about a month (maybe I can convince Terry to let me keep her longer!) Now that I've done this a few times I'm know what to expect from a dog that is new to being in public. It's a really fantastic process to watch because I get to see how they start and I know how they'll finish. For example, the first time they walk into the Concord Mills Mall the look on their face says "HOLY COW I didn't know all this stuff existed! Look at that! LOOK at that! Look at THAT! What's that crazy person doing? A sliding door? It m-o-v-e-s! That freaks me out! Sit?? I can't sit! Who can sit in the middle of all this craziness!" But after a couple of months, they walk into the mall and say "Crazy person-who cares! Sliding door-no problem. A big moving train in the middle of the mall-I got it mom-I only look at YOU! What do you want me to do? Get my leash? Retrieve your keys? Ignore the screaming child poking my rear end? No problem!" It really is a beautiful transition to watch. Reminds me of when I used to teach first grade and the kids would start the year not knowing how to read and they'd leave at the end of the year-reading. It's a miracle and I'm honored to be a part of the process.
Speaking of being honored to be a part of the process, Jeff (one of our veterans) and his mom, Carol came up to Concord last night to participate in some of CAROLINE's public access training. I threw A LOT of challenges at Jeff (I'm certain more than I even realize) and he handled them all incredibly well. He and CAROLINE really operated as a team-they were completely focused on each other and worked hard. Excellent job Jeff! Thank you for being willing to step so far outside of your comfort zone!
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