Some of you may or may not know that I am legally disabled and due to my disabilities I require the use of a service dog, now and again. This past January I lost my service dog, Hurley, due to kidney failure. He was my service dog for nine years. I adopted him from a rescue at 9 weeks of age and his training began that very day. It took a few years to get him 100% and from there he has traveled all over the United States with me. Delta loved having him travel, despite his intimidating size, because he was so good with the kids on the plane. It was always a cry free flight, when Hurley was on board!
Since Hurley’s passing I have known that I would need to get a new service dog to start training as soon as possible. I also knew that I needed a little bit of time before I would be ready.
The last month or so I have been looking for my “match.” I have looked at two different puppies and neither has been quite right or they would potentially not reach the size I will require for mobility support. The dog that I am looking for needs to be around 3 feet tall, at the shoulder, so I can put my full weight on him/her. They will need to be sturdy and strong. As far as temperament I need a dog that will be smart, loyal, calm, aware, able to easily deal with change, good with all kinds of people and animals. This is not an easy task, if all dogs were like this they wouldn’t be in shelters…so finding the right rescue dog and being able to help the dog understand my needs and be willing to trust me in all situations is not the easiest accomplishment.
Tomorrow I will be going to a local rescue and doing a temperament test on a 7 month old pup that may be right for me. If he is I will post lots of pictures and if he’s not I’ll hope he gets adopted quickly! Wish me luck and be thinking of names as I may need some help!