Lawerence is the frist...and last...German Shepherd my family raised. He taught us a lot about his breed of dog....which may or may not be why he is called "the Brain-cell" (refering to the fact that he only appears to have a single one). He wasn't emotionally cut out for being a guide dog so he went to live with a family in Oregon.

Kim was a very sweet girl and had the gumption and drive to be a good guide. Unfortunatly she also had some health issues with her hind legs (sharp calcified fragments in her stifles)that caused her to limp. For that reason she was dropped from the Guide Dog program early on. She now lives with a very nice family in Idaho. She has also had surgery to take care of her legs and will spend the rest of her life pain free.

Madison was officially raised by my little sister Mandy, but in all honesty all our guide dog puppies have been a family project (its that whole "it takes a village to raise a child" mantra). Madison was a energetic but well behaved boy. He was also a very big boy. When he graduated as a guide in 2002 he tipped the scales at over 90lbs

Picata was one of two dogs that I co-raised with my friend Christy. She would spend a week at my house and then a week at Christy's. It was the perfect arrangement for two busy High School seniors. She was the first and only yellow lab I raised. She was also very very very sweet and very well mannered. She graduated in August of 2001 and now lives in Bellingham, WA with her handler John and his family.

If the name sounds familar that's because its the same Pierce in the pet Dogs area. Pierce never left home after he was picked up off the puppy truck. Well he did briefly, but he made short work at guide dogs and returned home a.s.a.p.. Pierce is just a huge puppy (like in the picture only much much bigger now, but still just as cute.) and being a guide dog was not what he was cut out for (despite the fact he'd look so handsome in a leather harness). He adores my mother and gets upset whenever she leaves the house and he can't go too. So he pouts and sucks on his bear till she comes home.

Retta was the first dog that I co-raised with Christy Veach. She was probably one of the best behaved dogs that I raised. She also has the family's record time for graduating as a guide. The period from when she went back for guide training till the time she graduated was only about fours months. Guess that means she was a smart girl too. Gotta loves those black labs...they are definitly the best.

She now lives in Pennslyvania with her handler Jenny.

Tudor (after the britsh royal family) has the honor of having the most unique name out of all the guide dog puppies. Not there is anything wrong with the name Tudor, its just that most people don't connect it to English history...they just assume he has a gas issue problem or something. We got more funny looks out of people when we told them his name....

Tudor now resides in Pocatello, ID with his handler Trent.

If I had to pick a favorite Godiva would be it. She was the best dog I raised. The two of us just clicked right I guess. She had a very blocky head and people always thought she was mixed with rottweiler. She had her bad habits of course, but I just can't think of any right now. Although if you asked my mother I'll bet she could think of a few.

Godiva is still working as a guide in Morgantown, West Virginia with her handler Vicki.

Henrietta (or Henry) was the wild child. She was a mover that's for sure. The only dog we had that could clear the couch in one leap. A member of our guide dog club raised Henry's mother and it appears that particular trait is genetic. Henry was a good girl despite all her energy. She graduated a member of Guide Dogs' breeding colony and lives with her family near San Francisco, CA.

Baxter was very similar in personality to Pierce. Actually they also share some very similar features a well. Baxter was my older sister Carrie's dog. He was career changed and ended up withe the daughter or our ferrier and her family in California.

Faraday was the first guide dog that I raised from the traditional 8-week old puppy. I remember him being a very exhuberant boy. That exhuberance often got me into some interesting fixes. I distinctly remember being drug through a mudpuddle on one occasion. He also liked to "show" you things. To do this he would take your hand in his mouth and haul you all over the place. He was careered changed due to hip dysplasia. He lives with the Mangles, friends of the family, in Vancouver. He has a "brother" Mickey. He also has a "sister" Georgie Girl, who is a welsh corgi. This picture is from when he visited me this past Christmas. Faraday is getting sooooo grey. I was shocked. Other than the hair color change he is doing great.

Daffodil (Daffy), was my very first guide dog puppy. She was a "change-of-home" puppy that I got when she was nine months old. Being my first dog Daffodil was kind of like my guniea pig. I worked out most of my handling kinks with her. She graduated in 1995 as a breeder. She had two litters and was then retired. She passed away from Luekemia in the spring of 2003...she will greatly missed and always remembered.

Jessa was the very very first guide dog puppy my family raised. She was one of Carrie's, as you can see by the very adorable photo of them. Jessa has cataracts and therefore didn't become a guide dog. Although, I think she much prefers life as a couch potato. She became a family pet, and now spends most of her time "patrolling" the yard and napping on the couch.