Jordie

Day 20 - Zonda

Zonda is a blonde girl we got to know well too!  A repeat visitor and another one who became a good friend of Jord's and one we have met regularly for play dates.  Zonda is currently working hard as she undergoes her formal guide dog training.

Day 19 - Winter and Jord

Winter is another black girl we have fallen for over the last year. (That's Winter on the left and Jord on the right and they are great mates.) We have been lucky enough to have Winter come stay a few times plus we catchup with her regularly for park play dates.  Winter has recently passed all of her assessments and is going to be a broodie (breeding dog) for the Guide Dogs. 

Day 18 - Walking the walk

Proud day - Jord's sister Janey in her guide dog harness, doing her graduation walk! This is what we are raising money for - to help deliver a 4 legged life changer!

Day 17 - Are you my mother?

This is Jordie and her mum Gina.

There's alot that goes in to making a Guide Dog.  The broodies and stud dogs are thoroughly assessed - temperament and physically - before they make it into the breeding program.

We are good friends with the family that has Jordie's mum Gina, and Jord has been lucky enough to go for a few sleep overs at her house when we have been away.

Day 16 - What's in a name?

The day Jordie arrived.

If you are a Guide Dog puppy raiser, you get your puppy delivered to you when it is about 8 weeks old.  Before that, you will have submitted an application, you will have been to an information session, you will have had someone from Guide Dogs come to visit you and your house to make sure everything is ok, and you will have been to a 2nd information and training session.

The pup comes with a name and all the pups in the litter will have a name that starts with the same letter.  Guide Dogs will cycle through the letters of the alphabet, although I think there maybe some letters they skip over!  Our first two dogs were "V" dogs - about 18 months apart in age. Our third dog, Jordie, is from a relatively small litter - 4 in total, and they were up to the letter "J" when her litter was born. Two girls and two boys. Jordie, reclassified; Janey, now a working guide dog; Jared, a stud dog; and Jesse, also reclassified.

Day 15 - Are Cows allowed to do Pawgust? We weren't sure so we thought we'd be cows for a bit and eat some grass!

Day 15 - Checking on the park on this sunny Pawgust morning

Day 14 - a Guide Dog to be

This is Velma. She was our 2nd pup. She made it all the way through the program and became a Guide Dog. She went and lived in Queensland. She was matched with a guy called Brian, who we met when Brian was in Melbourne doing the live in program out at Guide Dogs HQ in Kew. The live in program is where the client and dog meet and get training on working as a team before they head back home. Brian was roughly the same age as us and it was very special to meet him and see first hand how excited he was with Velma to guide him. 

Day 13 - the very high bar

I'm not sure of the exact stats on how many of these specially bred pups get through to being a guide dog, but there's a pretty high bar to get through to the end game of wearing a guide dog harness!  If a pup passes assessment, which takes place around the 12 to 15 month age, they will go on to the formal training program, which takes about 4 to 6 months, or will go into the breeding program.

If a pup doesn't pass assessment there are still lots of career options: therapy dogs, companion dogs, service dogs and if none of those jobs are a fit, there is a long list of people wanting a pet dog.  A pet dog is called a reclassified dog.  Guide Dogs go to a lot of trouble to make sure a reclassified dog is placed with the right family.  The new owner buys the dog from Guide Dogs.  Afterall, Guide Dogs is a charity, and the pet you get is fully vaccinated, desexed and very well trained.  

We have puppy raised 3 dogs so far, and have temp cared for about 20 pups in the last year.

The pup in this picture is our first Guide dog pup, Vashti, the first day we got her. She was an absolute live wire. She made it about half way through her formal training before a career change. She became a very successful Customs sniffer dog out at the Melbourne airport.

Day 12 - Corporate Irv

The Zenith staff put on a really good PAWGUST morning tea - sausage rolls, chicken sandwiches, choc chip cookies, rocky road, raspberry and almond slice, date balls.  Irv did not get a single thing to eat, but he did get lots of donations! Thanks Zenith. 

Day 12 - Irv working the crowd

Irv took the fundraiser monring tea very seriously!!

Day 12 - Irv's helping out

I (Jordie) asked Irv to help out with the fundraising so Irv caught the tram in to the city with Dion to visit Bronwen at work for a morning tea fundraising event.  On the way in Dion and Irv started talking to a couple of nice ladies on the tram, and Dion was telling them all about Pawgust and Guide Dogs. The ladies were so impressed they gave Irv a donation on the tram!!!!  Tomorrow I might send Irv out to go travelling on the Guide Dog tram - that would be fantastic for our funtraising total.  Our fundraising total is looking pretty darn good - thanks everyone.

Day 11- Guide dog rules

The advantage of being a reclassified guide dog (says Jordie) is that you don't have to follow all of the Guide Dog rules anymore. Jordie is on the couch - Irv is NOT on the couch, he is in the dog bed. The reason we are doing Pawgust is to provide the financial means for pups like Irv to complete his training so that one day soon, Irv will be guiding his client around and changing their life. Jordie plans to stay on the couch and keep raising money for her mates.

Day 10 - Jordie and Irv

Hitch has gone home and Irvin has come to stay. This is the 5th time Irv has stayed with us, so we know him well and he settles in very quickly.  Irv is 15 months old and he has passed his 1st round of assessment tests.  He now has to wait a few months before he starts his formal guide dog training.

Jordie and her Pawsome Pawgust Friends

Day 9 - Jordie and Hitch

Waiting for our afternoon walk.  We passed the $6,000 mark for our fundraising today, and our Puppy Raiser Victoria team has now raised nearly $12,000!!!

Wow oh Wow!! Thanks everyone

Day 9 - Jordie and Hitch

Hitch wore his training jacket out on our walk this morning. He's very good for a 7.5 month old pup. No pulling, nice steady pace, good distance out in front - a little bit of sneaky sniffing, but otherwise very good. When we got to the park we took his jacket off and he had some free time to do all the normal dog stuff

Day 8 - Jordie and Hitch

We had two big walks out in the park today. We found this branch to chew on our first walk.  When Hitch is off the lead he can do normal dog stuff. When he is on the lead with his special orange guide dog in training jacket on - it's strictly business. He has to walk on the left, no pulling, no sniffing, no talking to other dogs. Focus, focus!

Day 7 - Jordie and Hitch

Sleep, wrestle, repeat. Hitch is the blonde one and he is doing Pawgust as well.  We have done so many steps today. Inside, outside, downstairs, upstairs we have been everywhere!

Day 7 - Visitor preparation

Busy day today. Out for our morning walk then back home to get the guest room ready for Hitch, a 7.5 month old Guide Dog puppy who is coming to stay for 3 nights while his puppy raisiers are away. 

Day 6 update two - Prepared for the rain this time

Got my Gorman on and hitting the road for the arvo walk

Day 6 update - Best part of a rainy walk

Towel Down !

Day 6 - No one told me I had to do this in the Rain!

Cold, wet morning in Parkville but we're out doing our steps for Pawgust anyway.

Day 5 - Might have over done it this morning

Well over my usual morning walk total of 5000 steps.  I really need a rest after that one and it's only Monday

Day 4 - Lazy Sunday Walk

Even had time for some stick chewing!  Still managed 13627 steps.

Day 3 - Walk and yoga

Saturday morning yoga - some down dog while chewing a stick.  

2nd August - Day 2

Our morning routine is a 45 min to 1 hour walk in the park. Makes for one happy 4 legged girl! Sets the humans up for a good day too!

1st August - day 1

Off and racing! The early bird gets the good chewing sticks!

July 27th sunset walk

We're ready for Pawgust to officially kick off on August 1. Sunrise, sunset - we love to be out walking! Thanks to everyone who has donated so far.

I am raising funds for Guide Dogs

Jordie is a reclassified Guide Dog puppy and Jordie and her family are taking part in PAWGUST 2019 on behalf of Guide Dogs Australia because we want to help Guide Dog puppies in training and support people in our community living with disability.

During the month of August, we will be walking at least 30 minutes a day, every day, rain hail or shine (that's roughly 2km every day which is no small feat in the winter weather!) to raise vital funds for Guide Dogs and support their puppies currently in training.

We completed this challenge in 2018 when Jordie was a GDV pup in training.  Unfortunately Jord's allergy issues meant she was not destined for the life of a guide dog, but fortunately for us, she has become a fulltime member of our family and the Quality Control Manager for the temporary care we now provide for GDV puppies when their puppy raisers are away.

Will you please show your support to Jordie's Guide Dog cousins by donating to us today? Anything you can give will help.

Thank you so much.

Jordie, Bron, Dion, Declan and Cadell