A New Level of Understanding

Kodi has been helping me with my nightly routine before bed for over a year now. He helps me take my pants off, takes my socks off and hands them to me, so I can place them on the night stand where I can reach them easily in the morning.

One evening earlier this week, I was getting ready for bed and because my feet had swollen during the day I was having trouble rolling my socks off my heels, as I usually do before asking Kodi to pull them off my toes.

He sat on the floor by my feet watching, but wasn't going to allow me to struggle so, as he began to use a paw, gently 'grasping' at my sock and pulling toward the floor.

He actually helped me to get my sock off my heel, then gently took the toe between his front teeth and pulled strongly, until he'd pulled the sock off and handed it to me. He repeated the process with the other sock.

I am constantly surprised by how intuitive he is, how he problem solves for me. He knew he needed to help me and that pulling with his teeth was going to be awkward, so using his foot and toenails gently was the 'smart' thing to do.

I trust Kodi completely. I know he would never hurt me, he only wishes to help me, he loves me.

We are constantly experiencing new levels of understanding between us, strengthening our bond and the deep connection we've developed.

Kodi is far more attentive than most humans I know. Even my own husband will sit and watch me struggle until I ask for his help, even if I'm to the point of tears, but not Kodi, he's right there, trying to help, to alleviate my struggles.

I am so blessed to have this truly wise and caring husky in my life.

Hands Off!

Throughout the time Kodiak has been in my life, I have struggled with others who want to discipline him or take control of him from me. It's bothered me emmensely since the very first time someone tried to assume authority of him.

My neighbor had a habit of coming into our yard, when Kodi was very small. He would walk between the houses, across the yard from where I was located supervising Kodi in the yard. Kodi would run to him and, of course, in true puppy fashion, jump up against him enthusiastically.

My neighbor would grab him by the collar and try to force him down onto the ground. Whether I was giving Kodi a command or not, he would insist on pushing him down to the ground telling him "down".

Another neighbor saw me walking Kodi down the street where she had her motorcycle parked. As we approached the motorcycle, she came to the sidewalk and took hold of the leash. She said, "Let me take him." and snatched the leash from me, walking him on the sidewalk around the cycle, rather than allowing me to walk him past the cycle in the street. To say I was appalled would be an understatement.

Even in my home, as I'm trying to correct Kodi, neighbors and friends will give him commands, as I am doing so. Why they don't understand that it is confusing to him to have two people giving different commands is beyond me, but that's what they do.

I believe in a positive reinforcement method of training. I don't believe in being physical with my pets, but rather rewarding them when they obey a command. I've also chosen to use different commands than some others might, as I've also encorporated specific commands for Assistance training.

I use the commands 'paws up' and 'paws off' asking Kodi to put his feet up on my lap when picking an item up off the floor for me and to take his paws off my lap once I've retrieved the item from him. I only use the command 'down' when I ask him to 'lay down'. "Off" is the command for putting his feet on the floor, getting down off the furniture, etc.

Others come into my home and want to command Kodi, without understanding what commands we use. They take him by his collar and tell him 'down', trying to make him sit.

These folks seem to believe that Kodi's training is lacking. I acknowledge that he requires a lot of repetitive reinforcement, as he's true to his breed's characteristic of being stubborn and willful.

He consistently listens to me, I believe because I am the one person who works with him routinely and we have a bond. I am patient with his progress, as long as we aren't regressing and continue moving forward, because as he's aging and maturing he's also calming down and being more consistent.

I fear that people believe since I'm using a power chair that I'm not capable of controlling such an energetic dog, that they have to do so for me, without knowing me or my relationship with Kodi.

I wish folks would respect not only me, my home and Kodi, but our relationship.

Migraine Treatment ~ Kodiak Cuddles

I’ve been living with severe, chronic migraine headaches for some 19 years. Along the way I have also been diagnosed with sinusitis and sinus headaches, as well as tension, cluster and ‘rebound’ headaches.

An Ultrasound of my face uncovered a previous skull fracture and bone fragments from a broken eye socket that were floating in my sinus. A CT scan and later an MRI confirmed the ultrasound results.

After years of treatment by a neurologist who prescribed a variety of medications that included home injections and being released from treatment after all his options were exhausted and he was at a loss as to what to do to help me, I was left to my own devices, dealing with the pain by laying down in a dark, cool and quiet room, putting moist heat on my head, trying to sleep them off.

Some days this strategy works, other days not so much. Sometimes my migraines cycle from one side of my head to the other for five or six days consecutively. On several occasions a single migraine has lasted for three weeks.

Today I had a particularly bad headache. I put heat on it, took some over-the-counter pain killers and went into my darkened bedroom to lie down. As soon as I was lying down with my pillow scrunched up under my neck Kodi came into the bedroom and jumped up on the bed.

He licked my face and nibbled my nose as he made soft sounds, much like a cat purring. He leaned his cheek against my cheek, slid down against me, leaning his shoulder into mine as he slipped onto his side with his back against my belly.

He looked back over his shoulder and licked my face before resting his head on the pillow next to mine. I put my hand on his shoulder and closed my eyes.

We rested there for a while. It was nice to keep warm with him, relax and de-stress.

A Neurologist couldn’t provide me with relief… because he wasn’t able to prescribe Kodiak Cuddles.

Sharing Your Bed or Four on the Floor?

I recently read an article about whether you should let your dog sleep in bed with you or whether four should always be on the floor.

It discussed how dogs are pack animals who sleep in 'dens' and how their sleeping arrangments can dictate their place within their 'pack'.

The article talked about how some dogs can interpret sleeping on the bed as being higher in the 'pack heirarchy' than they actually are, which can bring about some behavior issues and such 'characters' should probably sleep on the floor or in their own pet bed so the 'pack leaders' or 'alpha' members are clearly defined.

The article also talked about how sleeping on the bed can strengthen the bond between human and canine, as they can offer body heat and a sense of security to one another.

Kodi sleeps in bed with us, between us to be exact. He stretches out with his head always at the foot end of the bed, his hind quarters near our waists. He always starts the night with his shoulder on my hip, sliding down so his chin can rest over my calf or ankle. His body stretched out the length of my own with his back against my leg.

I've found that I can't go to sleep without him next to me, keeping me warm, supporting me so I lay in a comfortable position and allowing me to rest my hand on his hip or to wrap my fingers around his fluffy tail. He's become a soothing and comforting presence for me.

Because of my disability and pain level it is always difficult for me to get to sleep. I find that my body, my muscles, have difficulty relaxing. I sometimes have to consciously think about relaxing parts of my body. Petting or touching Kodi relaxes me, my breathing deepens and slows, I feel peaceful.

He also offers a sense of security, knowing he's there, that if he were to hear anything out of ordinary within the house, he would be alerted and because of our close proximity in bed, we would be alerted by his movements.

Though we are 'cozy' with the three of us in bed together, I don't think I could sleep at this point without him in bed. There's an emotional bond now, that I've become somewhat dependent upon.

Going for an Autumn Walk

This evening my husband and I were talking about taking Kodi for a walk before it got dark.

I stepped into the bathroom before getting my coat and power chair ready to go, as my husband got his shoes.

Kodi came into the bedroom and looked into the bathroom at me. I told him I was almost ready, then we could go for a walk. He looked at me, whimpered, looked at my sneakers on the floor by my night stand, then picked them up, one by one and brought them to me in the bathroom, putting them at my feet.

After he dropped my sneakers he went back into the bedroom and picked up one of my socks, which he took out to my husband. This makes sense, because he often helps me get my socks on when we are going out.

This evening he found a video cassette tape case on our bed where my husband left it when he brought some holiday cartoons out to watch. Kodi picked up the case and took it out to my husband, handing it to him.

While I was sitting in my recliner tonight, I finished looking through some catalogs that came in the mail today. I asked my husband if he wanted to look at them, to which he replied, "later, not right now."

Kodi took the catalogs, one at a time, off the arm of my recliner and walked them across the room to my husband, where he handed them to him.

Sometimes I think he's more human than some people I know.

Training Snag ~ Temporary Set Back

Kodi and I have run into a bit of a Service Dog training snag.

Kodi has experienced a number of stressful occurrences since we've started walking in the community. He's been charged at or attacked by other dogs four times, he's had children grab his tail when we're out walking and had groups of people surround him trying to pet and reach at him, people barking at him, etc.

Kodi has also been very sensitive to loud noises. He's not too bad with thunder, but fireworks going off right over the house terrify him. He's sensitive to backfires as well.

His training has been great inside the house. He's able to do most tasks without being given a command and we're always working on new commands, such as "hold", "release", "drop it" and "tug door".

He's getting much better about not vocalizing at the bank, sitting or laying down next to my chair when I stop to chat with someone and not jumping up on people who come into the house. He's very affectionate and wants to give kisses, so we are always working on deterring him from 'molesting' visitors and he's improving.

I recently consulted a service dog training organization for some helpful hints and tips as to how I can overcome some of Kodi's fears. They were very helpful in giving me some training ideas.

Because Kodi is stressed in certain public situations, I have a lot of trouble getting him to even 'pick up' dropped items when we are away from the house. They suggested working on it outside when I knew I would have the time to 'out wait' Kodi. I was to give him the command and if he refused, simply give the command again, remain calm and assertive, and just keep giving the command until he did as he was asked.

Yesterday, when our walk started it was cool, overcast and breezy. So, when we came home I decided to try this suggestion. I went to the door and got my keys out of my bag. I dropped the keys and asked him to pick them up. I used the verbal command and hand signal we've been incorporating, over and over, giving him time in between commands to respond.

Kodi sat there, looking at the birds flying over, the people walking by, me, the porch, the keys, the door, etc. He whimpered and shifted around, trying to lay down, sitting up, going closer to the door, but he would not pick up the keys.

We sat there for between an hour and a half and two hours. I offered him a cold drink twice, which he accepted. Finally he was crying, fidgeting and I was hot and sweaty, so we came inside.

Once inside, I dropped the keys to see if he would pick them up. He refused. I took off his vest and leash, put his things away and when I came back into the living room, he picked up the keys and put them on my lap, he picked up the throw pillow that had fallen and handed it to me.

I realized that I trained him inside, with nothing but his collar on. I don't think he's ever completed a task with his vest on and certainly only once maybe, with his leash on.

I felt horrible for putting him and myself through that on the porch.

I decided we will start with his vest on, and relearn these skills, then add his leash when we see how well he does with the vest on. Once we have done so, THEN we will move our training outside.

Kodi is extremely intelligent and intuitive, but in this case, he seems to have learned the skills in one environment, with certain circumstances in place and associates the skills with those circumstances.

He's 21 months old this month. We, as a team, are a work in progress... so we keep working. There is always improvement in some area with Kodi, so there is no reason for feeling badly or as if we've failed. I'm incredibly proud of what we've accomplished as a team.

New Lead ~ Said Goodbye to the "Halti"

Being a husky and true to his 'husky' nature, Kodi found it difficult to walk using a 'harness' or to even walk with his leash attached to his collar. As soon as he felt the least resistance against his chest or neck he would lean into it, digging in and pulling against the restraint, making it terribly difficult for us to walk him, especially me, sitting in a chair with a low center of gravity and not much leverage.

More than once, I was tugged so hard my shoulder popped. So we had to research, talk to our Veterinarian and we settled on a training device known as a "Halti" head harness, shown on Kodi in the picture.

It was not a muzzle, it slid around his nose and attached behind his head with a small lead under his chin that attached for security to his regular collar. The leash attached to the same ring under his chin that the tiny lead attached to, so when walking him, we were 'leading' him by his nose, rather than restraining him at his neck.

He could still drink, eat, play ball, pant, bark and yes, bite, if necessary, but if he pulled against the Halti it would tighten around his mouth, making it difficult for him to defend himself should he be attacked by another dog (which has happened 4 times when we were out).

To control the Halti I wrapped the leash around my wrist, which meant both hands were occupied when we were out, one hand holding his leash, the other controlling the chair's joystick. This was problematic if I had to get Kodi a drink, use the pooper scooper, or go into the bank and try to handle a check or cash, if Kodi was moving around beside me, pulling my hand away.

I went on a service dog supply site and found a leather leash with brass hardware, used in police, Schutzhund and Service Dog work.

It's 6 ft. long and has a series of rings over its length with a hook on each end. It can be adjusted to 4 different lengths, attached to a wheel chair, used as a temporary tie out. It's very sturdy, being two layers of leather with both stitching and rivets.

I bought one and attached it to the frame of my power chair. Hooking it to Kodi's Halti was problematic, as it was heavy and pulled his head down, putting unnecessary pressure on his nasal passages along the top of his nose. So, I took a chance that he had learned the lesson meant to be taught with the Halti and I hooked the leash to his collar.

I was pleasantly surprised to find that Kodi stayed right next to my chair, he didn't pull hard and actually allowed slack in the leash between us. He had an easier time drinking out of his travel water dish and was more eager to put his gear on to go for walks. He certainly experienced a sense of 'freedom' he hadn't been feeling.

My husband can put the leash around his waist and hook it to itself, keeping his hands free and using his body weight to prevent Kodi from pulling him as aggressively as he did when he held the leash in his hand. (He has always seeminly had an understanding that we are a team and he must cooperate with me, therefore responding differently than he does with someone walking upright.)

We have used the new lead when going into the bank. Kodi follows behind me and I'm able to use my hand to control the doors, rather than being tethered to Kodi by my wrist. It actually keeps him closer to me. It provides me with a sense of security as well as freedom.

I'm also secure in the knowledge that with this lead, I could affix it to the seat's support frame, if the chair should ever quit running, and Kodi could pull me home. I would not have to be concerned with being stranded.

We are always learning and progressing as a team.

Adding More Skills

Kodi and I are always working on learning new things and re-enforcing skills we’ve already learned.

Recently, we created a ‘tug’ tool that we affixed to our bedroom door, for training purposes, so Kodi can start working on “Tug Door”.

Thus far, he’s doing great, as we reward his efforts, even if all he does is take the tug tool into his mouth. When he holds it in his mouth and pulls, even the least little bit, we reward with lots of praise and a treat.

He’s tugged hard enough to pull the door nearly closed. We work on this skill a couple of times a week, while practicing skills that have been acheived.

One evening, while readying for bed I asked Kodi to take off my pants, after he was on the floor. I asked him to “tug pants” and he took a pants leg in his mouth and pulled on it until he pulled it off. He did this twice and then offered me the pants.

When he got back up on the bed, I asked him to “tug blanket”. I lifted the edge of the quilt and he took it in his mouth, stepping back, as he pulled the quilt and sheet back at an angle.

We practiced “tug blanket” several nights in a row and each time Kodi was able to turn back the bed, pulling the covers at an angle, revealing the sheet enough for me to get into bed without sitting on the quilt.

I’ve been walking Kodi, from time to time, without his Halti, affixing the leash to the heavy ring on the back of his vest. He’s done wonderfully with this change, but I continue to go back to the Halti as a means of re-enforcing ‘not pulling’.

The next skill I plan to introduce, once we have some consistency with “tug door”, will be “Hold”. There are times when Kodi picks up an object for me, but before I can reach for it, he drops it. We need him to hold the item until I can take it from him.

I’m always looking forward to working on new skills with Kodi, he’s so intelligent and quick to respond.

Helping with Household Chores

Last Friday, as I was working around the house, in an effort to get things organized for the long weekend, I found myself a bit of a 'butter fingers', dropping things on the floor or simply needing things out of reach.

Kodi stayed close to me all day, as I moved through the house from room to room.

I started in the bedroom, where I set about folding clothes, as I haven't been able to get my power chair in that room since I got it 2 and 1/2 years ago. (We just had the doorway widened.) I was folding clothes, laying them out on the bed, as Kodi lay on the bed watching me.

When I went around the bed to fix the quilt, I found my husband's dirty clothes on the floor around his hamper, so I asked Kodi to jump down and pick them up for me. He licked my face, then jumped down and picked up two socks, a pair of underwear, a t-shirt and a pair of sweat pants, one at a time, and handed them to me.

When I went out to the kitchen to unload the dishwasher, I fumbled a small bowl and dropped it on the floor. Kodi came out and hesitated for a moment, not having picked up dishware for me before and carefully picked it up and put it in my hand.

I gathered the febreze and carpet freshener and headed for the living room, where I set about straightening the slip covers on the sofa and loveseat. As I was doing so, the bottle of febreze fell on the floor. Kodi came over and picked it up, handing it to me carefully, so as not to spray it.

When I put the cleaners and things away, I moved to the desk in the kitchen and straightened there a bit. As I was rearranging things on our 'media center' some business cards fell on the floor. Kodi picked them up and placed them in my hand.

I rewarded him for a day's hard work with a long walk and a romp through the yard to play with his tennis ball.

Yesterday, as I was sitting in the living room relaxing, crocheting, my scissors fell on the floor. Kodi was at my feet, laying down, but he stood, used his paw to move the scissors from the rug onto the floor and picked them up, placing them into my hand. He was rewarded for a job well done.

Later, as I was crocheting away, oblivious to much around me, besides counting stitches, Kodi got up and came over by the far side of my chair, between my chair and the decorative table and proceeded to pick up a skein of my yard that had fallen, unbeknownst to me. He put it on my lap.

Later, when I had placed my things on the arm of the loveseat beside my chair, our oldest cat started pulling apart my yarn, chewing on it. Kodi stood up and watched for a moment, then I said, "take it away from him Kodi" and he DID! He gently reached up and took one end of the skein in his mouth and pulled it away from the cat, handing it to me.

Last night, when readying for bed, I tried adding something new to our routine. I asked Kodi to 'tug blankets' and he turned down the quilt and sheet for me, taking it in his mouth and backing across the bed until he'd turned down the corner making enough room for me to sit down so I wouldn't sit on the quilt.

With some consistent practice, I'm convinced there isn't much Kodi couldn't do to help me.

How Does He Know?

Lately I'm simply astounded by what Kodi does, how he seems to know things, without a word from me or any previous source of reference.

We were walking to the park earlier this week and just before crossing a parking lot to the park, I was forced to take my power chair over an area covered by fallen limbs and sticks.

The clearance on my chair is only 2 inches, so things easily can get stuck, hung up on the under carriage of the chair, caught in the tires. Sure enough, a branch got caught under my chair. I tried to back up, thinking if I did, it would untangle is, push it back out the front of the chair, but it didn't work, I tried to turn, thinking that might break it and free it, but that didn't help.

I stopped for a few moments, trying to figure out how I might free the limb, when Kodi stepped in between the leg rests of my chair and took the stick in his mouth, pulling on it. I moved the chair backwards and the limb was free.

How did he know to take the stick in his mouth and hold on to it like that? How did he understand what I was trying to do was to free the stick? I gave no command and we had no previous source of reference for him to pull from.

Just two nights ago my husband was in bed, I was in the bathroom and Kodi was bringing his toys into bed. My husband kept putting the toys on the floor and he kept retrieving them.

Kodi jumped off the bed and disappeared into the living room, returning with one of my sneakers. He brought it into bed and my husband put it on the floor. Kodi got down and picked it up again and brought it back into bed. My husband put it out of bed again. I asked him to be patient a moment as I asked Kodi to 'go into the living room and get my other sneaker from next to my chair.' He looked at me as I repeated my request, then jumped down off the bed and went into the living room.

He promptly came back with my sneaker in his mouth and jumped back up on the bed.

I had never asked him to go into another room and retrieve something for me before. I didn't even hold the other sneaker in my hand as an example of what I wanted him to get.

How does he know what I need or want from him without even saying a word, giving him a command, providing an example or working on a particular skill?

I have to believe our bond grows ever stronger, connected on a spiritual level.

Practical Training Part 2

Today I needed to go to the local pharmacy to pick up my son's prescription. My husband had my car, so I thought, if the weather was good, I would take Kodi and we would walk.

I called the pharmacy and asked if since Kodi is a Service Dog in training, would they still allow entrance. They told me yes, in training or not, if he's a service dog, he can come in.

I put Kodi's Service Dog Vest on and we walked along the bike path. We took a side street and crossed the main road. When we got to the pharmacy, I stopped near the building, in the shade, and offered Kodi a drink of water, hoping doing so might calm him a bit.

After putting his dish away, I took his lead in hand and we went to the doors. They were automatic, so I gave him the command to go 'behind my chair' and he went there, following me inside.

Once inside, he was curious at all the smells. He sniffed the floor as we went back an aisle, passing a customer who was shopping. We turned and approached the pharmacy counter where two elderly customers were waiting. We stopped to wait our turn.

Kodi sat or stood next to my chair within arm's reach quietly, as the other customers were being waited on. He only made one little sound, one time, otherwise he was a good boy.

When we were waited on, I signed that I picked up the prescription and as I took the bag from the pharmacist Kodi stood up and tried to take the package for me. I reassured him that I had it and we went down an aisle toward the front of the store. We passed another customer and stopped in an open area where I could put the bag into my side pouch.

We started toward the exit. I gave him the command to go 'behind my chair' which he did, as we went back outside.

When we reached the outside of the building, I took him off to the side and gave him a lot of praise, pet him and told him he was a good boy. He rubbed his face against my thigh and hand, licking me.

On the walk home, he had his head up, loping along, enjoying the fresh air, obviously proud of himself.

It felt wonderful to be a successful team!

Practical Training

Recently, I needed to stop at the bank, while I was out with Kodi. I asked my husband to walk with us, so he could stand outside with Kodi while I went into the bank.

It was the first time I would try to take my power chair into the accessible entrance of the bank. They have two sets of doors with a foyer in between. The doors don’t have an automatic opener, so they present a challenge to a person in a wheelchair.

Service Dogs have to be able to enter a business or public area appropriately. They have to walk through the doors, staying out of the way of other patrons and maintain spacial awareness of the power chair. They have to be quiet, refrain from seeking attention and remain within 24 inches of the chair.

I can train Kodi to complete a number of skills at home, but wasn’t sure how I would work on training him in a public setting, as most businesses don’t fully understand the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) in regard to Service Dog access, illegally disallowing professionally trained Service Dogs, let alone owner trained dogs.

As I approached the teller in the bank, another employee came out of a nearby office saying to the teller, “There’s a dog outside you would absolutely love.” The teller looked at me and said “I see you going by with your dog all the time. Why didn’t you bring him in?” I explained that he wasn’t adequately trained to behave properly and I didn’t want to make it more difficult for other Service Dog teams in the future. She asked me to bring him inside, so I called out to my husband and he brought Kodi in.

Once inside, they fawned over him, petting him, giving him 6 dog biscuit. I explained that I’m training him to be my Service Dog and anticipate not being able to take him into businesses with me until he’s at least 3 years old, much less a ‘puppy’ than he is now.

The woman offered for us to stop in, any time we walk by the bank, practicing going in and out of the doors, practicing proper behavior indoors, in close quarters with strangers.

The next time we went to the bank, I took Kodi inside. I didn’t have his backpack with his service patches on, but knew the employees were familiar with him, so I didn’t anticipate any problems. An employee from another office came out asking “What’s that dog doing in here? Only Service Dogs are allowed.” A teller spoke up for us saying he is being trained.
To protect Kodi and myself, I ordered a mesh Service Dog vest from a Service Dog Supply Co. They affixed patches to either side of the vest that say “IN TRAINING”. I attached one of his “Please don’t pet me I’m working” patches.

Today, with his vest on, the first time we’ve really been able to go out, as it’s been raining for days, we went to the bank to withdraw some money for Sidney. We were alone, so we had to maneuver the doors ourselves.

Kodi went through the first door ahead of me. He stepped to the side and waited for me, then I opened the second door and he went in ahead of me, stepping to one side. After I was inside, we went to the first teller. He tried to put his paws up on the counter, but I told him paws off and he got down. He did this a couple of times, looking for a treat, before he sat down next to my chair and quietly waited.

He whined once, knowing he would get a dog biscuit, but sat still waiting patiently, even after another customer came in behind him and walked around us.

They gave him a biscuit, which he ate, as I put my things away in my side pouch. We went out the doors in the same way we came in, with him going through first and stepping to one side, waiting on me.

I was so proud of him. He seems to always know when his vest (or backpack) is on, he’s working. He doesn’t pull, is less distracted, more attentive of me – stopping to put his paws up on my lap, kiss me, sniff me, checking on me.

We are well on our way to eventually getting ‘certified’. It’s not required by the ADA, but it helps eliminate any concerns a business establishment might have.

He continues to amaze me with his ability to learn, to serve and to care for me and my needs.

Kodi Performing Service Dog Skills ~ Video Blog

These are some videos of Kodi performing his 'Service Dog' skills.

Inseparable

Lately, "Kodi", my husky companion, and I have been inseparable.
While we do spend 99% of our time together in the house and backyard, we usually aren't right in each other's space the whole time.

The last few days, he's right at my feet, all the time. Even in the yard, he comes and sits next to me, lays in the grass at my feet.

He's sharing his toys more easily, readily, lately. He's attentive and affectionate more-so than ever before. I didn't think that was possible.

I can't sit at the computer very long, without him pushing in between my body and the computer. He tries to help me with everything, even picking up my sneakers when I take them off and offering them back to me.

He is my guardian angel, my shadow. He won't go to bed and sleep until I am in the bed with him. He helps me ready for bed, even learning recently how to take the 'hair-tie' out of my hair.

When we are ready to sleep, he laying between my husband and I, his chin over my leg or ankle, I rest my hand on his hip, or his tail, so we are touching, before going to sleep. There's something comforting about knowing he's there, close by.

He comes in the bathroom with me and lays outside the shower stall while I shower, he lays in front of the tub, against my feet when I'm sitting in the bathroom. If he's not in the bathroom with me, he jumps up on the bed and watches me until I ready to leave the room. If I'm cooking or doing dishes, he's laying on the floor close by and will stand up and move with me if I leave the room.

It looks like we're going to be able to start walking again soon, as I'm supposed to be getting a new power chair in 2 weeks. I'll get to work with him on some new skills, and we'll get to spend time together outside, walking, going to the park, etc.

He's started this 'new thing' when we're coming in from outside, as we're walking around the deck. If he sees something in another yard or across the street, he'll put his paws up on the banister. If I walk to his side and put my arm around him, he'll lean in against my body, lift his chin up so he's looking in my face and he'll lick my chin, still leaning against me, as we look out to watch what it is he's caught sight of.

Our bond continues to strengthen. I'm excited about the training possibilities, as he becomes more attentive and attached.

The next time I groom him, I have to look for those 'wings'!

Always Surprising Me

Today, I was sitting in my power chair, preparing to cut my husband's and my son's hair for them. As I was getting the clippers and scissors out, Kodi came to me, wanting a little attention.

I pet him, told him he was a good boy and proceeded to rub the heal of my sock against the foot rest of my chair, so I could take it off in preparation, so I wouldn't get hair clippings stuck in my sock and then track them all over the house.

I pulled my heal a little too hard and the sock fell off. Kodi immediately picked it up and handed it to me. The other sock, I gently rubbed against my foot rest and wiggled my toes. He sniffed the toe of my sock as I said, "Kodi tug it". (First time we tried this skill)

He gently took my sock in his mouth and pulled it off my foot, handing it immediately to me. What a good boy! He got a nice treat for his efforts.

We had tried to teach him to help me with taking my slippers off, several months ago, but he really didn't understand what we were asking. Today, he didn't hesitate.

Once he had helped me, he went under the kitchen table and laid down out of the way, as I cut both heads of hair. When I was finished and my husband was sweeping the floor, he came to my side, up against my chair and leaned against me as I pet him, wagging his tail happily.

After my husband and son had showers, I slipped in to wash all the hair clippings off. Kodi laid right outside the shower stall while I was inside, then went in on the bed when I came into the bedroom.

When I sat down on the bed to dress, Kodi came up behind me, rested his chin on my shoulder and licked my face.

He is my sweet angel.

More Than An Assistance Dog, More Than A Companion

Recently, Kodi has proven to be more of a 'protector' than I ever had imagined.

After being outside, on a cold windy winter day, we came inside, at which time I had to go to the bathroom. I gave him his 'good boy' treat and hurried into the bedroom.

As I approached my bed, a serious case of Winter asthma hit. I could hardly breathe, couldn't catch my breath. Now, moreso than going to the bathroom, catching my breath became the priority.

I leaned over the side of my bed, my chest hurting, and put my head in my hands, trying to focus and slow my breathing, to take a couple of deep breaths. I could hear and feel my own wheezing, as I struggled.

Kodi heard me and came into the bedroom, jumping up on the bed next to me. For a split second, he sat there, just watching me, then he laid down next to me and began to push his nose in between my hands and my face.

He whimpered softly and tried to lick me, as he pushed harder and harder with his nose, until he had his face between my face and my hands.

When he had finally nuzzled in and had my chin resting on the top of his head, he lifted his head, forcing me to lift my head. As he got me up off the bed, he stood up under my chin with the top of his head and began to lick me, rubbing his face against my face.

In the matter of a moment or two, focusing on Kodi, I was able to catch my breath and the attack passed.

Then again, one day last week, I was in a compromising position and needed my husband's help. I was calling and calling out to him, but he wasn't hearing me. It turned out he had headphones on and was listening to loud music.

Kodi came into the room, stood in the doorway and looked at me with a tilted head, as if to say "what do you need momma?", so I told him "Get Daddy... can you get daddy?"

Kodi turned and ran into the other room, where I could hear him whimpering, crying, trying to get my husband's attention. Then I heard my husband asking him what was wrong, at which time I yelled for him again and he heard me.

Effectively, Kodi got Daddy for me, he brought help to me when he could not help me himself.

I am so incredibly blessed to have this intelligent and caring creature as my canine companion.

Kodi's First Christmas Morning

Kodi celebrated his first 'real' Christmas this year. He was only a little more than a week old in 2007 when Christmas arrived. He was unimpressed by the Christmas tree, something we thought he might 'get into'.

The only thing about Christmas-time that truly affected Kodi was the cold weather. He loves being outdoors in the cold, snowy weather. The cold weather seemed to affect my power chair, preventing us from walking twice a day, or even daily for that matter.

On Christmas morning, Kodi had a present under the tree. As we began to open our gifts, he was diligent about 'picking up' discarded wrapping paper and bringing it to me.

When we put his gift in front of him, he could smell the treats that were inside. He wasn't sure what to do, so I pressed his paw through the paper and the pictures above, tell the rest of the story. He worked the paper open, put his nose inside and took out the treats one at a time.

He makes every day special, just by being here with me.