Black Dog and White Dog

Suki and Yagu: Showing a guide dog puppy how it's done!

I think I've lost track of all the trains, busses, cars, and places we've been in for the last three days.

Anyway, we managed to handle both the reception area of the airport, the train station, the huge arrivals hall, and the street outside where we had never been before, and we managed to navigate the horrible street and central bus station in Tel Aviv at night! Bracha hugged me and gave me a treat afterwards because she said I did such a good job getting her through there.

But we did have some fun on this trip, too. At Sde Boker we met Yagu, an 8-month old black Labrador puppy from Beit Oved who is being raised by a couple of students. They left him in the care of someone at Sde Boker and Bracha said we should meet. So we went out to that wonderful place where there is a plain and a cliff overlooking Nahal Tzim and they let both of us off the leash. I almost caught a lizard, but it got underneath a rock. So we ran and ran. Yagu was a bit rambunctious about coming back when he was called, so I came back right away when Bracha blew her whistle just to show him how it's done. Then Bracha gave me tidbits and gave David some to give to Yagu, too. Then we ended the walk and Bracha put me back in harness, and yep, we showed him what being a guide dog is like and how it's done.

At the little folk festival Bracha got on stage to sing and Margaret, the nice woman with hair the same color as my fur, held me and petted me. Then Bracha sang the song about me and Margaret walked up at the end and let me get up on stage with Bracha and everyone clapped their hands. I'm not sure whether they were clapping for Bracha or for me, but I didn't really care. I was so happy.

But when we got back to the lawn, oh my, did we make a mistake. There were little burrs from the clover all over the lawn, and after we had romped about for a while I looked at myself and YUCK, I was covered with dozens of the little things. They were in my fur, under my ears, in the places between the pads on my paws…everywhere! Bracha had to sit with a brush for the better part of an hour and gently pull them all out of my fur. I'll never go on that lawn again! And Yagu, being a Labrador with smooth fur, got up and walked away without any of them stuck on him! I guess my softer golden retriever fur is like a vacuum cleaner when it comes to burrs.
But I'm so glad to be home I hardly mind the fact that Bracha put the horrible Elizabethan hat on me again! I still feel a bit itchy under my ear, and the vet told us that we must not let me scratch it and then it will go away. I'm getting tired of that smelly stuff Bracha keeps putting on it anyway. I'd like to get rid of it. But oh, my soft pretty bed again! I know everyone tried to be hospitable and gave me little rugs to sleep on, but it's just not the same…


Suki and Yagu getting acquainted...

And relaxing under a rock together after a good run