Kruizer Gets Suspended

As a parent, whenever you get an unexpected call from school, your heart skips a beat. Is everything OK? Did someone get hurt? Or, what did they get themselves into this time? I'm happy to report, I've never gotten a call saying one of my children was in some sort of trouble...that is until today.

Who thought that child would be about 2 1/2 ft. tall, have a soft blonde coat, the most impressive puppy-dog eyes and floppy ears. Yes, today, I got a call from school asking me when I could pick up "the dog." Turns out today at recess, while he was in a down-stay, Kruizer decided to do a little socializing with a dog he spotted across the school grounds. He slipped out of his collar and ran off to greet his new friend. And if that weren't enough, he then caught sight of a tennis ball. Being his favorite thing in the whole wide world, and already feeling his oats, he decided he would just join in on a game of catch. Whoops.

As my son described the situation later, I had to chuckle. Too bad the teachers and principal didn't see the humor as I did. I guess the whole scene caused quite a commotion on the playground, leading to our furry friend's stint in the Principal's Office.

As a result, I have agreed to keep Kruizer home for now -- at least until we can step up efforts on training (yes we will be at all the Sunday trainings from now on!) and working with distractions. Service doggy boot camp, here we come.

Kruizer Goes To School

Kruizer's boy started school on Monday. A new school, new teacher and new classmates is usually a recipe for disaster. But not this year. That's because Kruizer has been going with him.

Of course, he was an instant hit, with the kids lining up to throw a ball or play with him at recess. This ended up being a little bit too much, so I ended up in class this morning, going over some ground rules so that dog and boy alike don't get too overwhelmed. All went well and I had a class of 30 kids quiet and behaved for a half an hour. That's the kind of affect that Kruizer has on all those around him. Its pretty amazing.

I'm not sure if Kruizer will be spending all his days at school, but its really coming in handy right now.

Part of the Family

I realize its been a while since I've posted last, but things have again (or still) been crazy around here. Kruizer's boy is in the hospital and that is no fun for anyone -- especially Kruizer.

He looks downright depressed. There's a sadness in his eyes that is visibly noticeable. After two months he and his boy have a strong bond and nothing is the same without him around. The good news is that Kruizer visits the hospital almost every day and when he does, they both light up. Also, Kruizer's boy is doing better and may be able to come home in the next week.

In his master's absence, we took Kruizer to a training session. Here he not only got a visit with his puppy raisers and dog-pal Pat, but he met many of his younger siblings. It was quite a sight to see so many adorable Lab puppies with tiny vests on. As similar as they lookit was amazing to me how each one has their very own, very distinct personality.

It was also wonderful to see all the different families there. What made us feel particularly good was that three of the families were there because of either seeing Kruizer at work, or hearing about him. I'm very happy to spread the joy and share in the fun.

We're looking forward to the next gathering -- and hopefully Kruizer's boy will be on hand to show him off.

Ripples in a Pond

Just read our puppy raisers' blog entry about their new charge Kaboose. In it they mentioned that someone decided to get an autism dog for their son after witnessing Kruizer's calming affect on our guy.

Ahh yes, I remember the day well. Kruizer's boy had to go to a group that was brand new(which he hates) and they ended up sitting at a table talking about feelings (which he hates even more). As long as he held onto Kruizer's leash he was OK. But as soon as he was told to let go of the leash, he fell apart. When he was allowed to hold Kruizer again, the change back to calm was almost immediate. It was like a light switch going on and off.

Thinking back over the last couple of months, I can recall several instances where Kruizer has given our son this emotional buffer. There was the time he was upset and started screaming when he had to get into the car. As soon as we put Kruizer in with him, he settled down and was fine the rest of the trip. Or the time our son curled under the table with Kruizer when a restaurant trip became too overwhelming for him.

Then there were the many blood draws he has had to endure over the last month or so. Once very anxiety producing, these are now no problem as long as his dog is by his side.

Kruizer comes with us to pick up his boy from his day treatment program almost every day. Its amazing how they both light up after a day apart. The bond is beautiful.

I'm not sure if Kruizer will spend every day at school come fall, but he will certainly be available to help his boy transition to his new environment.

I know I must sound like a broken record, but this dog is changing not only our son's quality of life, but that of our whole family. Some days the change is very subtle, but it is there all the same. I'm so glad to hear that another family will get to experience this firsthand. If your puppy is anything like Kruizer (which I'm pretty sure it is), you're one lucky family.