Penny's Page: Life of a service dog in training

01/06/2022

🥳HAPPY 1ST BIRTHDAY PENNY!!🥳
Penny has grown so much in the months we've been fostering her and she's been on some great adventures. In August, she will go to her formal trainer for a period of time, then be given to her veteran. 🐕‍🦺🇺🇸

24/03/2022

Look who made an appearance in this BRCC video!🐕‍🦺 Don't blink !! https://instagram.com/stories/fraleykaren/2800704300371424843?utm_medium=share_sheet

07/02/2022

Penny is a busy girl! So far this year, she has been to two Texas Tech track meets in Lubbock. Despite quite a few distractions, such as cheering, people walking by and race starter guns going off, she was pretty well behaved. The gun sounds startled her a little at first, but now she is hardly phased by them. Penny is 9 months old today & VERY active. She has gone to several restaurants & multiple stores with great success. Our biggest challenge is people wanting to interact with her. She loves the attention, but teaching her to stay in constant attention to "her person" (currently me) isn't easy. Penny has the sweetest disposition & is very good on car rides. Even all the way to Lubbock she was perfect!

20/12/2021

Penny is seven months old now & is growing so fast. She's been on many adventures and does a great job in public. Even with many distractions, she usually stays in constant attention to Mark or me. Her favorite thing to do? Snuggle.

27/10/2021

Puppy raising isn't for everyone, but you still have an incredible way to contribute!

Looking to make a lasting impact on a veteran's life but don’t have the ability to puppy raise? Consider naming a puppy!

You can sponsor a puppy and follow along through their training.

Check out our website, www.usveteransservicedogs.org, to find out how to name and sponsor a puppy.

PD: A yellow lab sits on the concrete wearing a blue gentle leader and brown leash. He is looking up at the camera.

21/10/2021

Penny had her first inside restaurant outing & did great. Most people never knew she was with us, which is the goal. Thank you to 1000 Degrees Pizza for being so welcoming to service dogs!

19/10/2021

Today Penny is 5 months old!! She loves going on adventures & is a big snuggle bug. Penny is working real hard on her service commands and just needs a lot of repetition for her to perfect them. Constant training....🐕‍🦺

03/10/2021

Training time with a special appearance by Cheeto. 😄🦊

23/09/2021

Penny is 4 months old now. 💟 Learning the command "WAIT" is critical for a service dog. She really knows the correct release word- "OKAY"!

12/09/2021

While we were away at a wedding, Penny had a great time at Andy's house running with the big dogs & getting to snuggle with Sebastian. 3rd picture is Penny crashed out back at our house. She is worn out! 😆

08/09/2021

This is our dear friend Andy, whom we've known for many years, & his service dog Sebastian. Andy is the blessed recipient of a United States Veterans Service Dog. He & Sebastian gave us the courage and passion to become puppy raisers for USVSD. Please watch their short video on how Sebastian has impacted Andy's life. Grab tissues. Andy & his sweet family will be watching Penny while we travel out of town for an upcoming wedding & Penny will get to see first hand what a fully trained service dog looks like!🦮

This is "Andrew and Sebastian" by U.S. Veterans Service Dogs on Vimeo, the home for high quality videos and the people who love them.

06/09/2021

So far, Penny has gone on a short outing to HEB, our fire station & a brewery where a one man band was playing. Other than wanting to taste rocks, she was so well behaved on each adventure. A big challenge in going out in public is that everyone wants to pet an adorable puppy. Who wouldn't?!?! However, service dogs are ALWAYS working & should not be pet. Everyone asked first & many others automatically knew not to pet a service dog. I hated to say no, but thanked people for asking and let them know that she is working. Penny is learning to stay in constant attention to her person, which will be vital when she goes to her veteran.

06/09/2021

Today Penny is 14 weeks old. She has learned her name & is working on commands of sit, wait, okay & let's go. She is smart!!

06/09/2021

Hi Friends! Mark & I want to introduce you to Penny. She belongs to the United States Veterans Service Dogs; an incredible organization that provides highly skilled service dogs, at no cost, to veterans in need. We are blessed to be raising and basic training her for the next year, plus. After that time, Penny will go to her formal trainer to be trained, specifically, for the veteran receiving her. We will then get to be a part of presenting Penny to her veteran at her graduation ceremony. The main question we have received is: "How are you going to be able to give Penny up?" Honestly, it's going to be very difficult as we're already attached to her!! Raising a puppy isn't easy & giving her to her formal trainer won't be either. However, we remind ourselves of the future veteran she will belong to for the rest of her life. What that veteran did was beyond HARD. Leaving their familes for long periods of time and coming back with mental and/or physical injuries is truly HARD. Penny has a big job ahead and will be learning skills daily so that she will become a blessing to her forever veteran. Please like Penny's page to keep up with her progress and her journey as a service dog.