Reaction among the CCI faithful has been mixed – the complaints are mostly about the size of the CCI logo in relation to the 35. Fair enough, but I still like it, and here’s why.

Schriever Air Force Base Takes Note Of Its Namesake Assistance Dog In Training

Nice official Air Force follow-up story today about one of the dogs in the KSDS military litter I mentioned last month (“KSDS Names Future Assistance Dog Litter After Military Installations “).

Schriever Air Force Base here in Colorado Springs has a new article both online and in the printed edition of their base newspaper this week about – who else? – their namesake dog, Schriever:

(Click on the image for a nice giant high-resolution version.)

KSDS Names Future Assistance Dog Litter After Military Installations

On a happier note than my last two posts…

KSDS, a great small ADI-accredited assistance dog organization in Kansas founded 20 years ago, has a tradition of naming its puppy litters for specific themes.  Most recent one was a military theme – they named all the dogs for military bases – what a fantastic idea!

That’s Miramar pictured above – here are all nine names:

• Barstow  —  Marine Corps Logistics Base Barstow, CA

“A Pup’s Journey to Greatness”

Today I’m gonna give you a chance to see something most people never get to see.

When they’re 8 weeks old, Canine Companions for Independence puppies are brought to the national headquarters campus in Santa Rosa by the breeder caretaker of the mama dog who gave birth to them. They are checked out thoroughly by the veterinary staff, given an identifying tattoo in their right ear, washed, and then sent on their way to puppy raisers across the U.S., who will raise and train them for the next 15-18 months. (You can read more about breeder caretakers and CCI’s very carefully controlled breeding program here.)

Every Service Dog Placement With A Veteran Should Be As Great As This One

I said I was gonna stay positive and show you examples of how things should be rather than ones where I know they are not, and this story is a great start.

When you see someone talking about service dogs for veterans, I want the image of this team to immediately pop into your head, because this is the model, on both ends of the leash.  Beyond just being a great story on its face, as you read it, compare what you see here – and, just as importantly, don’t see – with some of the other very visible “service dogs for veterans” stories of late.

Canine Companions for Independence Assistance Dogs On-Duty For Veterans

Great picture of two Canine Companions for Independence assistance dogs and their humans taken during the recent US Paralympics Military Sports Camp that was held at Naval Medical Center San Diego (NMCSD) Oct 14-17:

Left to right – Buddy Hayes, her Service Dog Ellie, Kristin Valent, physical therapist at NMCSD Comprehensive Combat and Complex Casualty Care (C5), and Facility Dog Tommy who is assigned with her there. (Click the image for a larger version.)

Resistance Is Futile (No, Not From The Borg – From Yellow Labs Like These)

I’ve mentioned being at the Canine Companions for Independence graduation at the Southwest Regional Center in Oceanside, CA on Saturday. The primary reason for the trip was actually to pick up three dogs that were just released from advanced training and bring them home to Colorado.