MY DAD - PAXTON

My dad is Paxton, (actually Paxton III - there was other Paxton's in the same litter, but they just call him Paxton), and when my mom and dad were told by the by the local CCI chapter that they were getting a Paxton puppy, (at a local chapter meeting on September 29th), the whole place yelled and jumped for joy. Seems that my dad is quite a prized CCI sire. There's a yahoo group devoted to my dad and his offspring, and you can't join unless you have one of his puppies. My mom is part of this group, so she get photos of my parents, grandparents, siblings, cousins, etc. And she gets to posts photos of me so they can watch my progress also. Mom even got a copy of my genealogy chart. I'm glad I only have one name - some of my ancestors had 5 and 6 names, (whew). Mom thinks it's much easier to just say Balsa, DON'T. Dad says that I'm going to grow up thinking that's my name.

I have two half-sisters who are part of the local CCI chapter. One is already a CCI graduate, and she helps a very nice lady who is in a wheelchair with a spinal cord injury, the other is almost ready to leave her puppy raiser and go to advanced training in Santa Rosa, CA. I also have a nephew that I will be meeting next month when I start my puppy kindergarten classes. (I have so many things to learn in the next 14 months!! - I have to go to class EVERY week and do homework !!).

So far my dad has sired 202 puppies, (they even do DNA testing to make sure that we are his puppies), and 63 have been placed in service. He was born in 2007, and only a handful of CCI dogs are kept "in tact" for breeding purposes. So, he was a pretty special dog right from the start. On the top left side is a photo of my dad that was taken this summer. He's quite a beauty. Mom and everyone else thinks that I will be a big girl like him. Mom says if I'm a big girl, with my mild disposition I would be a wonderful wheelchair dog for a disabled child. I love kids, and if I could help some a kid someday - that would be the greatest thing ever.

Here is a photo of my dad when he was a little puppy with his dad. My dad's not much bigger than I am in this photo. But now, he's a lot bigger than grandpa.

Right now my favorite things to do are: eat, cuddle with my mom, rough house with Rowdy, (mom says Rowdy is a very good baby sitter), collect rocks and sticks on my walks, eat, sleep on my mom's feet at her office, tear the leaves off the plants in mom's office, eat, go for walks around the neighborhood, hunt for the cat in our house, (I know there's one here somewhere and I will find it), eat, and at night snuggle with mom some more, ( I hope she can still pick me up and hold me in her arms when I grow up).

1st trip to the VET

Saturday, (Oct 9th), mom and dad took me to meet the vet at Riverton Animal Hospital.  First thing you should know is that they have a VERY mean cat in a cage.  That's where he belongs.  The other cats that are running all over the place seem ok, but man do they ever have the run of the building.  This guy must really be cat lover.  Anyway, he seems to also like dogs, so he can't be all bad.  They checked me over, put me on the scale and said I weighed 14 lbs.  Reviewed my medical charts from CCI and proclaimed me a fine looking young girl.  The doctor said to come back in 2 weeks for my second set of shots and to keep doing what we're doing.  Mom had to embarrass me to no end by telling the vet that I had been constipated for the last 12 hours.  He checked my belly and said everything seemed fine and if I didn't go by this evening to give him a call.  By the time we got home, I showed her - I walked out to the back yard and I definitely was NOT constipated any more.  She felt so silly telling the vet how worried she was about my pooping habits.  I bet that won't happen again for quite a while.

HI - MY NAME IS BALSA

I arrived in Utah on Oct 6th at 9:00 am. My mom and dad, (Barb and Dave), have been waiting for me to join their family for almost a year now. Of course mostly because mom didn't fill out the foster paperwork until dad finally pushed her and said "OK, we've built a new puppy-proof house, fill out the papers and get them in the mail". They were extremely surprised that within 2 weeks of filling out the papers the CCI organization, (Canine Companions for Independence), called them for a phone interview and the next day send out a CCI investigator to inspect their home, them, and their other pets. They were immediately give a thumbs up for adoption. CCI already had a puppy for them to raise, but they ask to wait until the week of September 20th for their puppy, so they could enjoy something called a Maui vacation.

In case your wondering what CCI is all about go to CCI.org but I am giving you fair warning, have a box of tissues handy, some of the stories are pretty heart wrenching. The link in on the right hand side.

Anyways, on September 22nd, mom got the call that I would be arriving at the Delta cargo hanger. Imagine someone as important as me traveling in cargo. You would think they would spring for business class airfare. Well, mom was waiting for me and she grabbed me up and hugged me and let me give her lots of kisses. First thing she did was give me a sponge bath - boy did I enjoy that! Then I got to walk around the cool grass and take care of business. Then we drove over to her office, (well I slept on her lap while she drove). Everyone there had to hold me and tell me how cute I was, and how I am going to be a big girl. And at the end of the day they all remarked about how quiet and well behaved I was. Guess this office work isn't all that hard after all. I just have to eat, take small walks, and sleep on my mom's feet while she works. I think I can handle this life.

Then we drove home, and I met my big sister Rowdy. She's a Border Collie, and she's so much fun to play with. We ran around the back yard, rolled in the grass, and dad even taught me how to climb the stairs unto the deck. Today my favorite things are to chew on the pieces of bark that mom has around her garden beds, carry sticks around in my mouth, cuddle with mom, and of course eat and eat some more. I just love to eat. By the way, I pretty sure there's a cat around this house, but I can't see it and I have looked everywhere for it. Make note to self: Find that cat.

When it was time for bed, mom took me for a small walk to the end of the street. Then I cuddle on the couch and she explained to me that I have a very important mission in life. Some lucky person is going to blessed with all the things that I am going to help them with in their life. But for today, my job is to just be a puppy and let everyone love me. I can handle that. Well - it's been a long day for me and I need to get my rest, mom says I have a long day a head of me tomorrow. Tune in and see periodic updates and PHOTOS. They may come late, but they will be there - if I can get mom to help me with the typing, I still am having trouble figuring out this keyboard thing...