Sarah and I had a nice long weekend to begin adjusting to a household without Vinson. Watson, our shepherd, took to the change very quickly, enjoying the chance to lay around with his toys without being tackled, chewed on our yelped at. For us humans the transition is a bit slower but going fine.
One of the most noticeable changes is the incredible silence in our home, cars and my office. Even by puppy standards, Vinson was on the high end of boisterous behavior, so his absence is palpable.
What are we missing most? Vinson's groggy morning kisses. The way one side of his lip would get stuck on his tooth, making him appear to be making a funny face. Playing ball in the big field at work.
It was difficult to travel to The Seeing Eye this morning without my little yellow friend. Thankfully Watson still makes the trip with me, but walking into the office without the wild yellow pup seemed very odd - like I'd forgotten something at home.
Yes, there are lots of reminders of Vinson everywhere we go: toys scattered at home, work and in our cars; water dishes at work; bags of puppy food; bitter apple spray; and of course, photos and videos. They're all great reminders of the incredible year we shared with him.
There are some positive changes for us too. Trash cans are back on the floor where they belong. Tissue boxes have been returned to reachable places. Our household dog poop and hair shedding output has been cut in half. Socks and shoes can once again sit out of the closet. There are no more trips outside during work - always the comedian, Vinson had a way of waiting to park until the weather let loose a downpour.
We do wonder how Vinson's doing in the kennel - if he's adjusting to his new bunk mates and routines. But overall the transition has been slightly easier than we thought it might be. It is manageable in that we always knew this time would come - he was a Seeing Eye puppy from the day we met and we knew he'd end up back here for phase two of his journey.
Sarah and I are super proud of what we've done together in raising Vinson. We worked very hard to get him through some unexpected moments, from breaking his leg to eating underwear. Now it's all up to him and the trainers. We're hoping for the best and will keep sharing our experience as the days move on and as we hear any progress updates from The Seeing Eye.
In the meantime, thanks so much for the wonderful comments you've been sharing through this blog and on The Seeing Eye's Facebook page. It's been over a year of shooting and posting photos and writing about our experiences on the blog and it's really fun to hear from all of you who've been on the other side of the screen!
-Ryan
Ryan,
ReplyDeleteThank you for your kind words too.
I remember when our pups leave, our current pets, Loper and Enrico go back to a type of play they can not manage with a puppy around. They lay on the floor, backs down, feet in the air and mouth each other and sing - really! Not howl or bark, they sing notes at each other and wiggle their backs on the floor! I am sure you will find some nice surprises with Watson in the coming weeks - fun, cute, interesting behavior that can come out now that a pup does not rule the roost! Carolyn
When will your next SE pup be joining you? Different breed? Maybe a girl?
ReplyDeleteLaura - Sarah and I do plan to raise another puppy in the future but have agreed to wait a bit to allow Watson to settle in as our forever dog. Also, we want to wait until Vinson is trained and matched, as if he were to become a career-change dog for any reason, we'd adopt him.
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