Hello!

My name is Kyia (girlandpup). I have been raising pups for Guide Dogs of the Desert since I was 15 years old. My first puppy was Nick, an amazing black lab that taught me a lot about life and helped me to become a wonderful trainer. He is now working in California as a mobility dog as he was career changed because of an air sniffing problem. Nick was one of the smartest labs I have ever had the honor of working with. The second pup I raised was Bodo. She was a female black lab, much smaller, and not as smart as Nick. She had the biggest warmest heart of all the pups. As the story goes, when she was almost a year old her puppy raisers dropped her off at the school and said that they where done with her hyperactivity and high maintenance. They called me one day and asked if I wanted to finish her off. She turned out to be a really great dog. When she went back to the school I got a phone call the next day from the kennels thanking me for all the training I did to make her a better dog. She is still in formal training and working on some distraction issues, but my hope is that she can overcome these and graduate. Currently, I am taking a break from puppy raising and attending university full time. I miss it so much. Actually, I feel like I can be a more productive and happier member of society when I'm raising a pup. The university is working on changing their service dog policy because it's outdated. Hopefully by next semester I will be able to raise another dog. If you have any questions about puppy raising, wonderful stories to share, or exciting moments with your pup, post them here!
Girl and pup