Buffy’s Diary

Hi All
We just heard that Buffy has been bread. If the attempt was successful, she will deliver her puppies mid December. We’ll keep you up to date!

Hello Buffy Readers

There is a new dog in the Davis household.   To read all about it click here!

Mac and I just heard yesterday — Buffy has officially been selected as a breeder for Guiding Eyes for the Blind.  She has been given to a foster family who will care for her and help her along the way to being a mom.  Our guess is she may go into heat in July or August and then have puppies some time after that.

I have to admit there is a sort of heaviness in my heart as I tell you this. I am so proud of Buffy and how far she came.  As Mac and I have cared for other puppies while their raisers are out of town, we are realizing how much of a handful our girl was.  She was bossy and demanding and so not people oriented.  This made it a challenge to train her, because she knew her way was best.   But I loved her and still miss her.  Even though there are things I marvel about with these much younger pups, they aren’t my Buffy.  And now that Buffy is in the Breeding program, she belongs to someone else.  I look forward to meeting her pups in the future, but Buffy we probably won’t get to see again.

Hi there

This is Buffy, I’m writing Mom from doggy college.

Anyways, just thought you might like to see this picture of me “working.”  My new human was pushing a cart that he was going to use in our work together.  I decided that it looked like fun, so I got on for a ride!

Hi everyone

We just heard this morning about Buffy’s “In for Training” Evaluation.  Apparently the Buffster is having a lot of fun and adjusting well to live at the GEB Canine Development Center.  In fact, she has passed the initial evaluation and has been selected for further evaluation as a brood dog.  She will have to go through a complete medial and pass further temperament evaluations.  The staff at GEB will also look to see how Buffy’s siblings are doing, the regularity of how often she goes into heat and a bunch of other stuff.  So the decision isn’t final yet.  We will hear in the coming weeks/months as to the status of her evaluation.  If it turns out that she will not be used as a breeding female, then she will likely be enrolled in the guide dog training program, as her IFT showed her to good potential to be a guide dog.  So she’s staying within the GEB family!

Hello

My name is Buffy.  I am a little over 16 months old.

From the time I was 8 weeks old I lived with my first mom and dad — the Davises.  They loved me and cared for me and fed me.  With them I learned to sit, down, stand, stay, come, heel, over, back, paw, get dressed (sort of) and get busy.  I also learned how to walk on a loose leash. The gave me baths, played with me, fed me, gave me warm places to sleep, knew how to scratch me just right, how to throw the ball just right and gave me yummy treats to eat.

I was a constant companion to my dad.  Together we read the morning news on the computer, defeated the bad guys in video games, got the mail, walked all over Virginia Beach, worked in the garden, took out the trash, raked leaves and gathered sticks, ran errands, enjoyed the sun, frolicked in puddles and ran on the beach.  In the evening I loved to cuddle in his lap and watch whatever was on TV.

I was a cuddle bum to my mom.  I didn’t get to see her as much, but I went to work with her at the church when I could.  I always greeted her with lots of licks and a wagging tail.  I even learned how to be patient and stay sitting and wait for her to come to me.  She and my favourite neighbour Izzie and her human and I went for walks in the neighbourhood.  It took me awhile, but I always calmed down and was able to walk loose leash beside Izzie. In the evenings I would cuddle with mom too and watch TV.  But I was also the best foot warmer with a heartbeat that mom’s ever had.  She told me so!!  In fact, if her feet were really cold, she would find me and stick them under me to warm up.  She said dad didn’t like that when she did it to him.  I think dad liked it when I warmed her feet too.

Mom and Dad helped me learn how to be confident in all places.  They took me to a bunch of different stores once I had my vest.  We went to Target, Lowes, Home Depot, the Bank, the Post Office, Trader Joe’s, Harris Teeter, 7-Eleven, London Bridge Garden Center, Michael’s Beach Hardware, Arby’s, Chick-fil-A, Subway, Murphy’s, Walmart, Perked-Up, Lynnhaven Mall and a bunch of stores in there, Borders, Barnes and Noble and many more places.

With their patient guidance I was mostly able to conquer my only fear — going down stairs.  I really didn’t like working on that one, but now I’m glad they helped me through it, because I can walk up and down stairs easily!

When I was younger, I had a big attitude problem.  I had no trouble telling them what I wanted, when I wanted it and how I wanted it.  Sadly, all barks sound the same to humans, so they didn’t always understand what I wanted.  But they helped me to become a more patient, willing and obedient dog.  In fact I became quite sweet and loveable.  Though, how could you not love me?  Just look at how sweet my face is.

I have stolen countless socks, underwear, shoes, boots, pieces of mail and tv controllers… and phones…. and sunglasses.  Ok I’m a thief.  But I got better at giving what I stole back.  And I don’t steal any more.  Well not as much.  I only stole one thing this morning!

Now it is my time to move on to the next stage of my journey.  This morning I left for Patterson, New York where Guiding Eyes has its Canine Development Center.  I am traveling with Adler, who started lessons in Virginia Beach at the same time I did.  On April 6th I will go through my IFT — a series of tests to see how far I have come in my learning.  The good people at GEB will use these tests to see what kind of job will be best suited for me.  Dad thinks that because I am so beautiful that they will use me to be a brood (or mother) dog.  He also thinks that I will be a “Cover Model” for GEB.  I am not sure what that means exactly, but hey, I am cute.  Mom thinks that because I like to sniff everything that I will work with humans who hunt for stuff and will need my nose to help them.  But after watching the videos of previous dog’s IFTs they think I might just have to what it takes to be a GEB Guide Dog.  Whatever it is, I know that the good people at GEB will have the wisdom to set me on the proper path for the next stage of my journey.

I know mom and dad will be very sad without me at home.  Both of them will be, but mom thinks it will be especially hard for dad.  I spent so much time with him every day, doing everything!  So if you have any furry creatures they can snuggle with, send them their way!  I am glad that the lady that is driving me to New York gave them a little tiny puppy, only 3 months old, to watch for today.  She can’t replace me, but she will be a warm furry body to cuddle with tonight when I’m not there.

I have given mom the password and such for this blog, so as she finds out about my testing and what I’m up to, she will be able to post the information for all of you to read.

Thank you for sharing this part of my journey with me.

With wags and kisses

Buffy (Davis)

Hello to my loyal followers.

I apologize for my lack of posts in the last…. FOUR months.  My mom wouldn’t let me any where near the computer.  Why?  I don’t know!  I really have NO clue why she wouldn’t let me post.  Well we’ve barked it out and I think I’m allowed back on again.  Well at least for tonight.

So let’s see… 4 months of highlights… what to say.

Well on November 17th I turned 1!  Yep folks I am no longer a baby, though a puppy I remain until I’m 2.  For some reason birthdays are a big deal in the human world.  But me, I just like to find excitement and parties each and every day that I’m awake.  So mom bought me a new nylabone.  It was great, until I lost it somewhere.

What kind of excitement do I like?  Well usually I need to make my own.  Mom and dad try, but they just aren’t very good at creating fun.  The best?  Stealing!  I love, Love, LOVE to steal things out of the dirty clothes hamper (especially the scented socks that are in there) and papers out of the recycling bin, or off the desk, or the table.  Oh and mom has these blue fuzzy slippers that I absolutely adore.  She keeps trying to hide them from me, personally I think its to make the theivery more fun for me, but I ALWAYS find them.  But, I don’t know, mom and dad can be such downers.  For awhile they started to put me in my kennel after I stole something.  What a downer!  Don’t they know that I just want to play with them?  A little bit of “catch the Buffster?”  Apparently they missed that memo.  So they would lock me up.  So I don’t play that game as much any more.

Mom and dad left me alone with new people.  Twice.  Once was for Christmas and once in January.  I don’t like it when they do that.  It makes me sad.  So when they come back I make sure that they know that I missed them. I stay really close to them when they are home and don’t bark and I listen really really good.  But then I get bore of being such a good puppy and go back to my old ways.  The second time I was left at a kennel with lots of other dogs.  I slept in a kennel with dogs on either side of me.  It was fun.  Lots of playmates every days!!

Towards the end of my stay there the boy dogs started to really like playing with me.  They paid lots of attention to me.  I didn’t quite understand why initially.  But then suddenly I understood all too well.  I went into heat for the second time.  That awful diaper got put back on.  Though it was better this time.  It only lasted 3.5 weeks instead of 5!  And last time it was like this psycho-puppy invaded my body.  She was a grumpy puppy and was very noisey all the time.  This time I was much calmer.  Dad said it was like I was on hormone-induced doggy-vallium.  Whatever that means.  But I was just happy to curl up and sleep.  Preferably on something soft or on mom and dad’s feet.  Just whatever was handy.

The BIGGEST news to share is that soon I will head back up to New York for my “In For Training” assessment.  That means that on Easter weekend I will no longer live with mom and dad.  I’ll go back to where I was born and they will see if I have what it takes to be a guide dog for blind people.  I also heard that they are looking at my litter for more mom and dads, so maybe I’ll be a mom.  If not, the good people at Guiding Eyes are good at figuring out what kind of job is best suited to a dog like me.  I am excited to find out.  In the mean time I have to practice, practice, practice.  And mom says I need to stop my theiving ways.  Ya right, like that’ll ever happen!

Just thought I’d show you me in my “dogula” costume.

So yesterday was apparently an exciting day for humans in Virginia … or maybe in this whole country.  They do it every year on the same day.  The humans love it.  They talk about it.  Yell about it.  The moving picture box in the living room talks about voting.  Humans get really excited about it.  (Well mom doesn’t.  She said it was illegal for her to vote… go figure)

But I’m really not sure what the big deal is.

Dad took me to vote and I got to wear my vest.  We went to the voting place and there were a bunch of people there.  I was really excited to be there. I mean with how exited humans get about voting, I figured there would be a big party or something.  But it was NOTHING like that!  We went to the voting place and there were a bunch of people here, but no party.  They just stood in line, quietly.  Then walked over to a booth, quietly.  Then they walked out of the room, quietly.  No one wanted to play with me!!  How does that happen?!  Especially when you’re as adorable and irresistable as I am.

The only good side is that dad gave me lots and lots ot treats as I worked well.

So two nights ago I had a very interesting experience. Mom and Dad forgot to put me to bed.  Or at least I think that’s what happened.  Dad took me out to get busy like usual.  But then instead of putting me into my crate, he moved my big cozy place into their room and put it in the corner.  Then he told me to “go place” and gave me my bedtime snack.  Mom and dad did a bunch of stuff in their room and then went to bed and turned the lights out.

Well, not one to ruin my own good fortune, I went to sleep.  Then a few hours later I woke up.  I felt a little guilty about letting them forget to put me to bed, so I went over to say hi to mom and reminder her I should be in my crate.  I was quiet of course, I didn’t want to wake up dad.  She scratched my ears and then said something that sounded like “go place.”  Still being tired, I went back to my place, curled up and went back to sleep.  A few hours later I woke up.  Thought it really was time I went back to bed, so I got up and walked over to get mom to take me back to my crate.  Another head scratch.  Another “go place” (I think) and so again I went back to bed.  The next time I woke up I figured I wasn’t getting anywhere with mom so I went to talk to dad.  He did the same thing!  But instead of going straight back to bed, I figured I should see if mom had come to her senses yet, so I walked back to her side of the bed.  But she still wasn’t getting up.  So I went back to my place.

I kept checking in with them — probably 5 times throughout the night, just trying to be helpful.  But for the whole night I was allowed to stay in their room!!  It was fantastic!  So much more comfortable than my little crate.

The next day Dad told me that I needed to learn how to sleep through the night without checking in with them every hour or so, because when I was partnered with my blind person, they wouldn’t like it very much if their new roommate (that’s me!) kept waking them up.  I don’t get it, I was just being helpful.

Well last night mom and dad didn’t forget to put me in my crate.  But maybe they’ll let me try again…I really want to be a good service dog, so I need to practice all this new stuff now, while I’m young.