[nagdu] Welcome Home!

Tue Mar 16 10:24:20 UTC 2010

I am sorry for the lateness on congratulations, Marion.  We had lost electricty since Saturday the Tri-State Area New York, New Jersey (State of Emergency) and Connecticut, had a really bad few days of weather and on long island we had lost electricity since Saturday around 3:30 p.m. in fact, Nelson, my husband, woke up this morning in delight we got electricity, yeah.

Anyway, way to go on the new dog.  Being a first time guide dog user, when I was at GDF waiting in my room sitting on my bed, waiting for my trainer, Valerie, to bring me my Maxx for the first time, was like you said, waiting for my daughter to be born, and the doctor was doing all the work since I had C-Section, but none the less, now she is 21.

Maxx came into my room and gave me a big kiss, and love, and tail waggings.

So welcome Sarge to the group, give big hugs and kises to both Sarge and Louisa since dont want her to get jealous.

Cheryl, Nelson, Dina and of course Maxx.

Oh send pictures Pleasssseee to my e-mail address.

Cheryl Echevarria Independent Travel Consultant http://Echevarriatravel.com 1-866-580-5574 http://blog.echevarriatravel.com Reservations at echevarriatravel.com Affiliated as an Independent Contractor with Montrose Travel CST-1018299-10

> From: blind411 at verizon.net
> To: nagdu at nfbnet.org
> Date: Sat, 13 Mar 2010 18:59:31 -0500
> Subject: [nagdu] Welcome Home!
> 
> Dear All,
> On September 8 - 9, 1986, I waited for what seemed forever for the birth of my daughter Aislinn. When I got word of her healthy birth at 12:47 am, I was excited, proud, and anxious. I couldn't wait to hold her and begin this new relationship!
> Yesterday, march 12, I commented to my wife that the day was passing as slowly as that one nearly twenty-four years earlier as I awaited the newest addition to our family! Though I had many things I could be doing to pass the time, my anxious excitement would not allow me to focus on these tasks! . I checked the time frequently, counting down the hours until my new boy would arrive! I even took a nap, knowing that sleeping would make the time feel shorter! At about 3:00, a UPS truck stopped outside! My wife, Merry, and I laughed about the prospect of Big Brown delivering my new guide dog.
> At about 3:45 pm I received the call from Mike Gallagher, the Guide Dog Foundation's (GDF) Field Trainer, to let me know that he was on his way! The excitement built as the half hour trip from the airport was lengthened due to rush hour traffic and inclement weather. It seemed everyone else in the family was anxious, too! My wife, her guide dog, Kappie, my retired guide, Louiza, and I all huddled near the front window watching for the white GDF van to pull up in the driveway! About 4:10, Merry said, "They're here!" False alarm! It was another white van and it drove on by!
> At about 4:30, they finally arrived! With a few treats in my pocket to make a better first impression, I greeted Mike and inquired about how Sarge took the trip. "Just fine! No problems!" was his reply! He open the side door of the van and I greeted Sarge for the first time. He was more than happy to accept the treats, especially since he was not fed that morning in preparation for the big trip.
> "Welcome to your forever home!" was my first statement to him, followed by "He sure is a big boy!"
> "He sure didn't look that big in the pictures!" was Merry's comment!
> Merry went back inside the house and brought the rest of the pack out to meet him. They all greeted each other with excited sniffs. Everyone went inside and I gave him the grand tour of his new digs. His tail was wagging and he seemed interested in exploring the home. I sat on the floor for several minutes petting Sarge and reassuring him with several "Gud brau"'s. After about 20 minutes of petting, hugging, and chatting, we let Sarge off his leash. Kappie was definitely elated to have a new puppy in the house but eventually we got a display of the Pack order, as Kappie turned belly-up and later licked Sarge's muzzle in a show of submission to him. Louiza demonstrated that she was the top dog with a couple of well timed growls and an assertive first place at the water bowl. Mike, Merry, and I chatted about some particulars of Sarge's temperament and our training regimen. Mike left after about an hour.
> We fed all of the dogs and took them out back to relieve themselves. We let them all have run of the yard. Sarge and Kappie romped and played, while Lou took her usual position of "referee"! Afterward, we took the two guides for a walk through the neighborhood in harness. kappie and merry took the lead with Sarge and me following so as to not put too much stress on him too soon! I felt as if Sarge was doing more following than guiding, feeling as if he was dragging me. Since this was our first walk together, I didn't press the issue and try to develop our pace. We will do that over the next two weeks of training.
> Early this morning, I took Sarge for a little work around a two-block perimeter of my home. He did very well and I felt as if he was working, rather than just dragging me! With the exception of missing one overhang, he did a fine job. I re-worked him three times before he took me around it and once on another pass from a different direction. We sat together on a bus bench for about five minutes before returning home. On this final pass by the overhang, he performed perfectly!
> Around noon, Merry and I took a walk to the neighborhood grocery store. We had to take the long way, as we discovered last night that the wooden foot bridge on the more direct route had been washed out by the past two days of heavy Florida rains. Sarge pulled harder than during our morning walk, yet more controlled than yesterday's. This will be one of the issues we work on during training. I want a strong pull, yet I do not want to feel as if I am being dragged. I found one of my weight lifting gloves and will wear it for a few days, as I already have blisters on my left hand from the leather handle!
> I have some pictures of Sarge standing next to Louiza and Kappie that will give those of you who know either of these dogs a better perspective of his size. I did not send them with this message in order to respec those of you whose downloads are not as fast as others. If you would like to see one or both of these pics, please send me a message at
> blind411 at verizon.net
> and I will send them on to you!
> He is a handsome pup with a very sweet temperament. As I write this message, my granddaughter, hannah, is here and they have played together a bit. He is more than twice her size, so we are keeping him tethered while they are together. He has, however, given Kappie a couple of tumbles as they romped in the back yard. I am looking forward to beginning our training on Monday afternoon and the many adventures we wil share! More messages will follow in the near future! Thanks for reading this message and for your continued support!
> 
> Fraternally yours,
> Marion Gwizdala, President
> National Association of Guide Dog Users
> National Federation of the Blind
> 813-598-7161
> President at NFB-NAGDU.ORG
> HTTP://NFB-NAGDU.ORG
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