Maverick is learning things that average dogs would consider tricks.  The big difference is that Maverick does it in preparation to help a veteran live independently.  That’s quite a responsibility, and Maverick wouldn’t trade it for the world!  He’s looking forward to the day he can be one veteran’s very own wingman for life.  Right now he’s working on basic mobility tasks, alerting to a timer, and working on turning lights on and off.  He especially likes learning to open and close cabinets, because what he finds inside is always interesting.  Maverick is so happy to see the Hero Dogs volunteers every day.  He thinks they really ROCK!

Before you say it let me let you know that I have not lost my marbles.  I know that December is not yet over, but my puppy raiser insisted on doing it today.  Something about it being the last one for her to do.  Anyway, here we go.  December has been busy; in the first week  I visited Walter Reed National Military Medical Center three times, twice with Hero Dogs for a combined federal campaign event and once with my puppy raiser and her husband for a physical therapy appointment.  I have been there before but only to the pharmacy and the lab area.  I like it there!  I always get plenty of attention from people and I have learned new stuff.  I can now push the big  button that opens the door for the wheel chair people and I can open the lever door handles to the bathrooms there too.  My puppy raiser was soooooo proud of me.  The Hero Dogs photographer took lots and lots of pictures, which is always fine with me.  Here’s one of me picking up a quarter (and yes of course I gave it to Stacey).

 The beginning of this week I went to a place called Baltimore and stayed in a hotel again.  I am very good in hotels, I stay quiet and calm in the hallway and in the elevators.   We went shopping, ugh.  I mean its ok for food and stuff, but that looking for clothes is for the birds.  Speaking of birds, there were plenty of them as we were near the harbor.  I do not know what the problem is with looking at them, but for some reason Stacey wants me to “look” at her more.  Its ok, I figured out I can look at them real quick as long as I look back at her real quick!!!!! I just finished another round of training with some of my other canine friends on Thursday evening.  I got big hugs from my person at the end who said I was finally gaining ground on impulse control.  All I know is that I stayed on that silly “place” while all chaos was going on around me! 

Oh, and earlier that day, and I do mean early, Scotty and Libby picked me up and we went on a long car ride to the city to get our picture taken.  It seems we are in another movie!!!  This morning there was a long walk, lots of hugs, a trip to the vet, the drug store and the bagel shop. Hey I wonder what is going on around here today.  Stacey has all my stuff out like I am getting ready to go to the puppy sitters or something, but there is no suitcase for them!  She keeps giving me little kisses on my head and talking about boot camp and how proud she is of me and how she prays I will grow up and be a wonderful hero to one of our heroes.

November was still pretty slow in the beginning,  We took our long walks in the morning and then we took short very slow walks with our puppy raisers husband later on.  He is using two big sticks now to help him walk.  We did our normal everyday type errands; you know, the grocery store,  Pet Valu, the post office, the bank, the dry cleaners.  Blah , blah, blah.  Actually,  I am loving the extra walks we get too when the nurse comes, she is afraid of dogs. Can you imagine such a thing!  Later in the month, I get to stay again with the puppy sitters for a couple of days.  They have two dogs and two boys and it is lots of fun.  They did snitch on me about jumping up on the bed one night, oh well, a guy’s gotta try.   Jennifer took me to DC also for a CFC event.  She talked and I settled…  

Maverick and Uncle Sam celebrated Independence day at Baron’s K9 Country Store.

In July he also made trips to Pennsylvania and Virginia. In PA, he visited his favorite assisted living facility where he has great exposure to walkers, wheel chairs and seniors around whom he needs to be friendly yet very gentle. In VA, he visited a coffee shop, a small church, several restaurants and stayed at a hotel.

The biggest news for Mr. Maverick is that he turned one on August 3. Despite crossing this very significant milestone, he continues to have an energetic and playful approach to life. He amazes people with his polite out to dinner behavior.

In this quarter Maverick has really been focusing on the advanced commands and is thoroughly enjoying opening and closing drawers and doors. He loves paws up! We are continuing to work on the pushing of the elevator buttons; he wants to slap the paw on it rather than pin point with his nose. He is however a willing learner. In late August he visited a mega church and wowed me as he sat in a calm sit stay as hundreds of people poured out of the sanctuary.

In September Maverick traveled to Lancaster, PA to participate in a WWII Navy reunion. He was the hit of the party to say the least. He was an ambassador of good will and a wonderful representative of Hero Dogs.

All that I can say is this month started off better than last month ended; no little operation! It was a rather busy month for my puppy raiser, Stacey. I could tell because I got to do lots of sleepovers. My first one in the month was with Ilene. Ilene loves me very much. Funny thing is I don’t think those two dogs that are always at her house were so happy to see me. Go figure. Stacey explained later that I stressed them out. I had to leave Ilene, which made us both very sad.

I went to JoAnn’s house next; that is where Hope lives with two other dogs who are pretty cute. It is fun there for sure; always somebody to play with. Hope likes me fine, as long as I stay away from her special place.

The next good thing that happened is that I started Puppy II at Jennifer’s. You know I love class! Lots of playmates and lots of treats! It is a bit more work now to get some of those treats, but it is always worth either the effort or the sit/stay, down/stay I have to do. We started working on this thing Stacey calls “touch.” At first, all I had to do was touch her fist once and voila a treat; now I have to do it three or four times before I get anything. Oh well, it’s all a big game to me. We started working on a “trick.” I have to touch her fist higher than usual. Piece of cake. Now on our walks I have to “heel” or “side” quite a bit more than ever. I do wish she would make up her mind sometimes.

Also this month two of the “girls” came home for something called Spring break, one of them brought a friend with her. What it means is more fun for me. Next, Nancy came (she is Stacey’s sister). One day we went to a place called a cemetery to see “Mom”, I guess we never found her because all we did was wander around outside sniffing (just me of course). No loss for me though, it was a sunny day and the smells were great. After a short car ride we went “out to eat”. This is never a bad time for me. I do have to “settle”, “sit” and “down” for pretty long periods of time, but I usually receive “food” in copious quantities. Although, you know if I really think about it, the amount of food offered in these situations does seem to be getter smaller.

Stacey had another concert. All that means to me is a chance to sleep over again; this time is was with Jennifer. Speaking of Jennifer, I got to finish out the month at Chez See Spot Sit. Stacey’s husband had an operation, so she had to be at the hospital quite a bit. I sure hope he did not have the same “little operation” as I did last month!!!

On the 11th of this month, I took my friend (and sometimes puppy sitter) JoAnn to a Girl Scout meeting in a place called Gaithersburg. I have to admit, that I loved being the center of attention again!! I had not done one of these meet and greets for a bit; it felt good to be adored again. JoAnn did lots of talking and answering questions. Then I had to do my part, JoAnn called them skills. All I did was sit, down, come, pick up a couple of things, hold them for a little bit and then drop them into her hands. I even got rewarded for playing a bit of tug of war. Wow, what a life!!! At the end, the girls all asked to pet me.

Naturally, JoAnn said yes. Yippee!! Could it get any better, yes it could! Those precious girls had baked me cookies, Girl Scout Cookies!! There was a bunch of them and I got one to eat right then and there. In the car JoAnn told me I had to share the cookies with the other Hero Dogs (Libby, Ike and Teddy). I was the only dog at the troop meeting I thought it was a bit unfair, but my vote did not seem to count. I came home with just two of them. I got over it quickly.

Less than two weeks later, life took a down hill turn for me. They day was all wrong from the get go. I went outside and got busy as usual, but when I came in there was no water and no breakfast/training session. My walk was a bit shorter than usual, and not a single treat. Woe was me. We took a short car ride to the Brookeville Animal Hosp. Upon entering, my hopes were raised; I know this place, I have been here before. Surely one of these adoring staff members would give me something to eat! No not one, not a kibble to be found.

What I got what was a small prick and a very long nap. When I woke up my mind was a bit fuzzy (no smart comments please) and my legs were a bit wobbly. I had a large contraption around my head, and the distinct impression that I had “lost” something very important. I had to spend the night there too. In the morning, when all the people were back, I just knew there would be food finally. Nothing. By the time Stacey came to get me I was starving. I do not know what they told her, but I still had to wait to be fed once we got home and even then after 4 missed meals, I got short changed. Only ½ the normal amount until we saw how I handled it. Are you kidding me!

That thing on and around my head was such a nuisance. Stacey kept laughing at me when I banged into everything; she said poor boy but did nothing to get rid of it. Cody would not come near me for a week. I felt fine, but they kept treating me like such a baby. I had almost no freedom in the house (i.e. no running or jumping) and my outside time was spent only on the short leash. No long leash play sessions. I am also fairly certain that I missed at least if not two of my long week-end walks with the dog walking group. What’s that about?

Have you ever heard about the post holiday blues? Well I have. Suddenly the house was quiet again; less people, less petting, less playing, less reward to counter surfing. Life got back to normal very quickly. Stacey had way less distractions which meant for focus on me and less opportunity to “misbehave.” (That is what she calls it. I call it looking out for numero uno).

I did not have any meet or greets this month either. No photo shoots, no adoring fans. Just normal ol’ socialization outings; you know the bank, the post office, Pet Valu, Sam’s Club, blah, blah, blah.

On a higher note, there were two more weeks of puppy class to finish up. I love puppy class, I love puppies, I love people, I love playing, I love treats, I love………………

Ok, so the entire month was not a write off. I finally got to know what Cody and Stacey were doing on Sat. and Sun. mornings when I had to stay home with Dave. One Saturday Stacey said ok buddy you’re ready for this. I think it had something to do with me not pulling as much on my leash. We loaded in the car, took a very short ride (yipeee, have I told you that riding in the car is not my favorite thing in life) Its ok but not in my top ten, if you know what I mean, Anyway, I digress (like I know what that means).

When we go out there they were; 4 more dogs. It was the dog walking club. After we all did the initial leash tangle tango we were off. Oh what a walk we had. It was a blast!! All the smells were new and exciting and at least for the first walk or two all Stacey expected of me was to not jump on my new friends when they came close. Other than that it was loose leash, baby!!!! It ended all too soon, the wimpy ladies got cold feet, hands and noses. Not me, I was as warm as toast.

I started another class in obedience. They might think they are fooling me, but I know the dogs are different, but it is the same old “tricks” that I learned the last time. Oh well, I guess if I am honest there is still some room for improvement.

In the beginning of the month I was a bit bummed because I heard that my people were on their way to some place called Cyprus, and I did not get to go with them. It turned out to be ok; I went to places I had stayed before and got to play and play with them and their dogs. I really think everybody likes me!

Soon after I got back home, people they called “kids” came home for the holidays. They started sleeping in all those empty rooms. Next they put this great big stick right in the living room. They fussed all over it for quite some time and that night I noticed it “glowed”. It smelled amazing, but every time I got close enough just to grab one of the smaller sticks Stacey would call me. Once or twice I ignored her, but she just pulled on my leash a bit and asked me to “give”.

Giving is not so bad; I almost always get something just as tasty in return. Actually, that reminds me taking and giving is pretty much the best part of my life. Here in my house, they have this habit of dropping stuff and asking me to “take it” , “hold and “give” We do this alot, I love it and when they finally stop dropping things my belly is full and I am pretty tired.

Oh, I can’t forget to tell you about Lewis. One of the girls (kids), the married one, brought a husband and a dog home for Christmas. He was very, very small; but because of puppy kindergarten I knew exactly how to play with him. He was very fun, and he had even more energy than me for playing.

I went for another one of my meet and greets at a place called Gillys; Molly was there. We did not get to play; they said it was too small. Speaking of small, that night Stacey promised that would be the last time I had to wear that tight blue vest. Good thing; it was getting hard to breathe with that on. I think, because I did not get my bigger vest immediately, I did not go for as many outings as normal; this was ok with me because Lewis was kind of tiring me out and there were lots of people to play with.

On one morning they all hung out around the BIG STICK in the living room and played with wrapping paper and boxes. There was stuff in the boxes, and when they opened them they said things like, ooooh, aaaah, how pretty, thanks, just what I wanted. All I know is that they gave me a new toy for tugging on and some special yummy treats.

All the people in the house was a win win for me. Stacey would explain all the rules for me to anybody around, but they where not nearly as good at obeying them as she is. Once or twice everybody would leave the kitchen and forget to hook my leash up, you know, tether me. KOWABUNGA, Surfing is fun. Stacey calls it “counter surfing”, and she did not seem as excited about it as I did. I think my next new word to learn is “paws off”.

A day or two after Christmas I started having something called diarrhea. Actually, in the beginning it wasn’t bad at all; I got to go “outside” ALOT. Things went downhill quickly; they stopped giving me my food. Stacey said she was sorry and that it had to be because I had a sick belly. I was so hungry, and I kept showing her that I felt just fine. Finally she let me have small amounts of some special food and I stopped having to go outside as much. It seemed like forever before I got back to having a full belly again. Maybe counter surfing isn’t the greatest idea in the world, or maybe it was the pine needles or the prickly brown “balls” on the ground outside or the…

What else? I went to a horse-show and WHOA those horses were HUGE. I also went to the 4-H kids at Montgomery County Kids-n-Dogs Club. And, I’m a star! I went to the Discovery Channel where everyone there just loved me. Seriously, I had more people coming out of their cubicles just to see me and rub my belly. How cool was that! Then they wanted to take some pictures of me. I was such a good boy during my photo shoot. As a matter of fact, they took the picture of me here, holding the flag. I was a very good boy!

I received the best holiday gift ever…my very own sponsor! Thank you so much to Misty and Jonathan Schindler for sponsoring me. Your generosity will help me grow to “be all I can be!” Thank you!

What a busy few weeks I’ve had. I was photographed and interviewed (though Jennifer did most of the talking) for the gazette newspaper, and I was on TV. I’m getting pretty popular, maybe it’s my sweet innocent face, plus I love everyone.

I also love chewing! The nylabones and the shank bones are nice…but the carpet, especially the kind with the fringes on it, that’s really cool. I am having a hard time understanding what is going on sometimes. I start to chew something, a chair, furniture, carpet, etc. and then my puppy raiser distracts me for a split second. But I see her. I see her take a bottle of something and spray it on the things that apparently I’m not supposed to chew. YUCK! That stuff is gross. She called it bitter apple and it’s nasty. Hmmmmm, she didn’t put it on any of my bones though, so I think I’ll stick with those for a while.

I’m doing really good with my potty training. I don’t really understand what’s going on but because Stacey is so consistent with me and my schedule, I am catching on very quickly. I am a very smart puppy! I’m so curious too. I really like to wedge my small body into even smaller places. I like to get behind things, and under things and I like to hide behind the couch when no one is looking (which never really happens).

I love to stetch out really long, my breeder Ellee says I stretch just like my mom! I also love to sleep on my back.

Well I am settling in to my puppy raiser Stacey’s home really nicely. They have a really big dog here, something about a “golden-doodle” they call “Cody”. They say we have similarities but frankly I don’t see it. They took me to the Olney-Sandy Spring Veterinary Hospital and I’m very healthy!

I’m doing pretty good with my crate training. I fuss a little bit, but not for long. I must admit it is pretty secure feeling. Looks like I’m going to be out of the small crate in a week or so cause I’m growing really fast.

I started puppy kindergarten and already have my first best friend, “Cricket”, a labrador. Puppy kindergarten is fun!

I’m leaving for vacation soon and I am going to stay at two different people’s houses. All the people around me say that it is good for me to get used to being in different places and around different people. I hope I have a good time.

Yep, I did! What a blast! Except, I can’t figure out how the new people knew I had the same rules at their house as I do at home. They always have a leash on me, they watch me like a hawk and they wouldn’t let me on their couch or in their beds either. Oh well, I had fun anyway especially playing tennis ball on the kitchen floor. I played by myself for a long time while several people watched and laughed. Not quite sure what was so funny but when I tumbled myself up, over, under and around the kitchen chairs after a tennis ball, they were in tears.

I also met a really big German Shepherd Dog named “Buddy”. Even though he is so big, he was so nice to me. Look! He even let me share his bed and his toys…while he stayed on the floor!