#GrowingUpGuidePup

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Meet Macklin!  

He’s the very first service dog trained by our founders, Matt and Amie Chapman.

“I started puppy raising because I had a classmate in college who was raising a puppy, and I thought that it would be fun.Macklin was given to us from Guide Dogs for the Blind to raise for them. 

We had him from 9 weeks old until 18 months of age.We taught him basic obedience, house manners and how to be calm and relaxed in public.The hardest part of training him was giving him back. 

The best part was watching him grow and mature, and of course seeing him graduate.Macklin worked as a guide dog for a blind partner for almost 8 years before he retired.”

- Amie

https://growingupguidepup.org

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Patrick hit a milestone when he was 15 months old. He remained calm when he was introduced to a dog that he didin't know!

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Cam'O faces some unique challenges in his quest to become a service dog follow the link to read more!

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Colt discusses their resolution to not compare her working partners and discusses the differences between her older service dog partner and current partner.

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With only a few weeks left before Patrick returns to Guide Dogs of the Desert​, Amie and Matt take him to PIER 39​. Patrick shows no hesitation when asked to navigate a mirror maze that ended up making him nauseated.

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What about retiring service dogs? When do they retire? Why do they retire and what happens next? Read more to learn about retiring a service dog.

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Ricki was career changed for having a squirrel distraction issue when she was a guide dog puppy in training so I guess we shouldn't be surprised this happened.

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Check out our latest blog about Colt's experience traveling with a service dog. Traveling with a service dog introduces additional things to consider and take account for while going to and from destinations. In this post, we hope to share with you a bit what that can be like for a service dog handler! Special thanks to Colt for sharing your experiences!

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A glimpse of San Francisco combined with a day of Patrick training at 9 months.

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So you want a service dog? There is a lot to consider. Here is a nice piece put together by Robbi Flynn that will really get you thinking.

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Patrick is exposed to fireworks and a strange object he finds kinda scary.

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Here's an important look at some of the potential and likely downsides of using a service dog.

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We're back with an update! Amie also talks with Pet Chat Mary Argo PhD about Patrick and the rest of the gang.