Azhais posted:

Alteisen posted:

His reaction is just so earnest when they tell him that 10 people where working on it.

Azhais posted:

Puppy's first trip to the beach

Dove from Above posted:

That's a really pretty beach. Where is it?

Alteisen posted:

Oh man I need to stop cutting onions at my PC.

His reaction is just so earnest when they tell him that 10 people where working on it.

IslamoNazi posted:

With sand like that it's most likely Australia. The worst part is if it is Australia, then it's a pretty poo poo beach.

ultrabindu posted:

Does anybody have any stories or pictures about service animals and their owners or service animals in training?

quote:

A few weeks ago my husband, mother-in-law and I went to our local county fair here in San Diego (previously known as the "Del Mar Fair", it was a great day!). As we were getting ready to leave I saw something that I had never seen before. It was a Pug dog wearing its service harness walking along side a man in a wheel chair. What a loyal pet companion in such a small package.

I was shocked! I had never seen such a small dog as a Service Dog. I have since spent some time searching the net and found that it is really not that uncommon. Here are a few of the services that I have found that a Pug performs:

"I’m a brittle diabetic, and he alerts me when my glucose levels are in the extreme levels. He has prevented many hospital trips."

"…my sister is 10 years old with Asperger’s Syndrome (high functioning autism) and she has a pug as a service dog."

"Our much loved pug of 15 1/2 years was a therapy dog and brought smiles and laughter to the elderly in retirement homes for many years."

"Pugs are being used as hearing dogs with "Paws with a Cause" service dogs headquartered in southwestern Michigan."

"I have a pug that I trained as a service dog myself. Mine retrieves dropped objects and provides emotional support, as I have social anxiety disorder and lupus."

Teddybear posted:

The job market is still ruff for new graduates.

RandomFerret posted:

Jesus, that's a huge head. I hope its mom was the pit bull.

The Monkey Man posted:

A pit bull/dachshund mix

CzarChasm posted:

Oh my god

It's like something out of an old cartoon

neonnoodle posted:

davidspackage posted:

I know plenty of people who don't like bull terriers (either because they think they're ugly, or are afraid of them). I think it's mostly the tiny eyes. But my GOD.

kinmik posted:

Zeroisanumber posted:

Bull Terriers were actually super-popular at the turn of the 20th Century and almost replaced the Bald Eagle as the animal totem of the US.

Weltlich posted:

I would support replacing the current psychotic sky-terror emblem with an animal that exemplifies unconditional love and loyalty.

Zeroisanumber posted:

Bald Eagles are really more scavengers than they are sky terrors.

Alteisen posted:

I love how apparently the best image of him is one where his dogs are all over him.

ultrabindu posted:

Does anybody have any stories or pictures about service animals and their owners or service animals in training?

Khazar-khum posted:

I thought you'd never ask.

You start their training when they are young, teaching them about other animals.




If you think you love your job, I have news for you: No one loves their job more than a service dog. This is Mia. She is my Seizure Alerter. She will be 15 this year. She's given us some real scares: she had to have a splenectomy last year, and bloat surgery in September, right after her daughter died of cancer.



Mia is a Standard Poodle. She adores going to work, especially when it means making new friends and introducing them to service dogs--and poodles. What we stress to people is that she's quiet because she's working. Poodles are very high energy dogs, which makes them ideal for service work. Off work she's not so quiet.

Here's her niece, International Champion La Marka Mercedes Blanc. (yes, that's her whole name)



Mercedes has gone from show champion to runway model, to costume model, and now seizure alerter. She loves babies. If we run into a baby in a stroller, she insists on a full inspection. Woe betide the mother if even one hair is not where Mercedes wants it. She gives the best Evil Eye while fixing the error.

Children will often run up and hug them. They love it. They do have a special command for visiting people. It's not always possible to stop a toddler in time, though, so we train them to enjoy it. It's an easy thing to teach.

blunt for century posted:

Mia is cool as hell! With her coloration, she looks like a fuzzy weimaraner

neonnoodle posted:

Beardless posted:

My uncle has a friend, Randy, who, due to a neurological condition, went slowly blind, starting when he was 22. For several years he was in a wheelchair because of it. He eventually was able to walk again, and started hiking, with his guide dog Quinn, as well as some friends.



In 2012, he became the first blind hiker to reache the summits of all 48 mountains over 400 feet in New Hampshire.





The guide dog in these photos, Quinn, passed away about a year ago, but he has a new dog, and has taken up marathons. He'll be running in the Boston Marathon this Spring.

All of the photos came from his website.