“Derby” The Next Puppy In Training!

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We got all the votes in, there were several great contenders for “D” puppy names (Derby, Dublin, Duke, Denali, Dodger, Dante, Darwin), and the final name is “DERBY” my next Guide Dogs of America Puppy In Training!

Picking Up Your GDA Puppy

I was very excited to pickup Derby and invited a couple friends to help document the occasion with video and pictures. When I went to pickup Stetson I left two hours early and got to Sylmar an hour before pickup. I had to sit and wait for a little over an hour. This time I left an hour and a half early and arrived a half hour after schedule pickup. I guess traffic can be unpredictable. It was driving me crazy going only 5 mph up the 5 freeway. I guess I should have taken the 405…

We finally arrived and Louise, our puppy program manager was going through orientation and I think stalling till I arrived (sorry everybody!). We filled out our paperwork and got our puppy packages (bowl, brush, collars, toys, tags, etc.).

Finally down to the kennels to pick up our puppies. Unfortunately, the video camera ran out of batteries and my digital camera broke, but I do have some pictures with my brother’s camera when I got home on Friday. My friends Erin and Traci took a few pictures at GDA with their cameras too, but I haven’t seen them yet.

Derby, Puppy In Training

Here are the first few pictures I took of Derby when we got home:

Derby sitting by the fireplace

Derby on the bathroom tiles

Derby with Linus sitting on the couch

Derby looking like a Sharpei

Derby has a lot of loose skin around his face. I’m sure he’ll fill that in over the next couple months. In the picture above he looks a little like a Sharpei.

I’ll try to get some of the pictures from GDA up on the site when they become available to me.

I hope everyone else in the “D” litter had a good weekend!

Top Picks For Our Puppies

1. BEST DOG CHEW
   We Like: Beef Collagen Sticks - All of our pups love to bite, nip, and chew. We love using Collagen Sticks to help divert these unwanted behaviors.
2. BEST PUPPY TOY
   We Like: Calmeroos Puppy Toy w/ Heartbeat and Heat Packs - Perfect for new puppies. Helps ease anxiety in their new home.
3. BEST DOG TREATS
   We Like: Crazy Dog Train-Me Treats - We use these as our high-value treats for our guide dog puppies.
4. BEST FRESH DOG FOOD
   We Like: The Farmer's Dog - A couple months ago we started feeding Raven fresh dog food and she loves it! Get 50% off your first order of The Farmer's Dog.

Check out more of our favorites on our New Puppy Checklist.