Alfarata Acres

Hi Kimberly:

Thought I'd write you a brief note and let you know how the pup settled in.  We had an uneventful car ride as he just slept on my lap the whole way snuggled in his blanket.  Upon getting to the prison, I found his info packet and received his name...Bridges.  Not as bad as some, but odd for sure.  I didn't even get in the door before staff was ooohing and aaaahing over his cute little self.  He ate it up and gave lots of kisses and cuddles. 

He walked quite nicely up to the block with me and was a good boy doing his business out in the grass before we went in :)  His two handlers, Richard and Reggie were head over heels with him and he already has them wrapped around his little paws.  He was a bit overwhelmed at first with all the guys and bigger dogs, but we gave him some space and after a half hour nap in Richard's lap, he was up and ready to explore.  He and our 12 month old Clifford were fast friends where as the other 12 month old Mel, who has the mentality of a frat boy and is a bit over the top, got quickly corrected by your little man when Mel stuck his big old head very forcefully in his face.  Mel was horrified and pouted for the next 20 minutes....serves him right and is just what he needs.  The younger pups were delighted to have another playmate on board.  After an hour of exploring and playing with the others, he was fast asleep in Richard's lap again when I left. 

Thank you again for your generous donation of this beautiful pup.  I will keep you posted how he progresses.

Warm Regards-

Pam

Here's a picture of Bridges before I took him into the prison.  It will be the photo that is on his ID.  Reports from my staff at Smithfield say he has already settled in and is a bundle of joy.  The staff and handlers are madly in love with him and he is being spoiled rotten as everyone wants to hold and love on him. 

Thank you again!!!

Pam

12-21-2010

Hi Kimberly:

Here's a picture of your boy, with his new "brothers".  Sorry it's so hard to see him, but black just doesn't photograph well inside.  The dogs, in order, are Guy, Clifford, Bridges, Mel, and Barlo.  The two big boys, Mel and Clifford are leaving January 10th to go back for their "big boy" training at CPL, and will be replaced by 2 10 week old puppies from CPL.  We are very excited.  Bridges continues to fit in very well.  He and Barlo are great friends, and he and Guy will tug on the rubber ring together forever.  He is a good sleeper, and had little trouble transitioning to a crate, though he has started to do a bit of whining when his one handler leaves for work at 4:30 am.  We are working on that.  He has not had a single accident since he has arrived...the guys are tickled!!  He even had an overnight with a volunteer when his one handler became very sick and we just wanted him out of that environment until his handler was a bit better.  He was a very good boy and got rave reviews.  The volunteer didn't want to give him up :)   He is mostly just working on relationship building with his two new handlers at the moment.  He already has solid sits and downs and walks nicely on the leash.  What a good boy!!! He had just woke up from a nap, so he looks a bit grumpy..hee hee!

Happy Holidays to you and your family!!!

Pam Graci

CPL Volunteer Trainer

Bridges;

The newest addition to the S.C.I.-Smithfield Puppy Program. As a 9 week old Golden Doodle, he has a lot of energy. He loves being outside and really enjoys the recent snow we have gotten. He is napping quite a bit, but still sleeps well throughout the night, only waking to let us know that he needs to do his business.

He is great with putty training, having no accidents inside thus far. He is very intelligent and seems to learn quickly while exploring his new enviroment. Beings a cute little black fur ball, he is adored by all the staff, especially the female staff members. Bridges looks forward to his meals as well as playtime with his purple squeaky bone. We all look forward to watching him grow and learn to become an excellent service dog, which wouldn't be possibe with out the generosity of the volunteers within the community. Bridges and his trainers, Richard and reggie, thank you all and wish you the happiest of holidays.

 

Hi Kimberly:

Sorry, it's been awhile since I wrote to you.  I have a couple new pictures of Bridges, though they are inside at the Ag Arena...as we know...black dogs do NOT photograph well.  I tried to lighten them up with very little success.  One of my volunteers has him out this weekend and has promised to take some more pics of him..hopefully they'll turn out better in contrast with the snow we have had :). 

Bridges is starting to show his real personality, and we are still just adoring him.  He has been going through a bit of a shyness/fear period the past week or so, but nothing that I am concerned about as many puppies this age go through something similar.  He is a bit too reliant on the other pups for his confidence, so we are making sure to give him plenty of socialization experiences with him all by his lonesome so he has to stand on his own four paws.  He is still sweet and cuddly and continues to enjoy crawling into laps for snuggle time.  He was very good at my agility trial, even with all the commotion.  He sat or slept quietly in the corner we had set up and got to meet many new people and pups. 

He is a very serious little worker, and takes to his training quickly and easily.  He has very solid sits, downs, walks beautifully on a leash, and has learned a really nice recall.  He is starting on stay and leave it this week and will have his four month evaluation when I return to the prison on Monday.  I am sure he will pass with flying colors!

Stay warm!!!!!

Pam