Day 1

Today we met our CCI class. Of the eleven students, about half were skilled companion teams like us and half were service dog placements. We also had two students who were there for successor dogs (replacements for their original dogs, whether through passing or retirement). Our first day of training consisted mostly of lectures.  Miles was remarkably reasonable for most of the lecture time.  Right before lunch, we got to see the new dogs on our tour of the facilities.

Miles with our class of dogs in their kennels.

After lunch, we were able to work with four dogs.  Each of them was very different.  The instructors like to see how the students interact with different dogs and vice-versa. By the end of the afternoon, Miles was about done with class and the basic commands of "Let's go," "Sit," "Down," "Shake," and "Release."  We think he will do better with some of the more interactive commands.

Some of the dogs that look like golden retrievers are actually labrador/golden retriever mixes.  They were very fluffy!  As the afternoon practice session progressed, we got better at working with the dogs and more confident with the commands.   We still have our homework to do and are hopeful that Miles sleeps well tonight.  However, he did have a nice long swim in the hotel pool!

Tomorrow we will be working with more dogs and perhaps some of the same ones from today.