Foxfire

Graduation day, February 2, 2002, was a cool day in San Rafael, California, but the excitement, joy and love that was in the air warmed us all.  I was very excited to see my raiser families.  They were so surprised to see how much I had grown.  They were so proud of me and said I looked so handsome and dignified in my harness.

I am so excited about my new life with Robin.  I will be living is Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada with Robin and his family.  He has a wife, three children and a retired guide.  How lucky I am to have such a large loving family.  

Robin, Pete, & Foxfire	Foxfire with his "Kong On A Stick"	Robin, Mary Jo & Foxfire

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Foxfire's Journal

August 13,  2002

Austin's soccer team did very well this season they made it all the way to the National Playoffs.  Verlina makes great snacks for the team.  Well, we all get tempted now and then, and this one day there was this whole pan of Chocolate Rice Crispy cake in the car.  While Robin was helping on of the boys I just helped myself.  I just could not resist.  I must say that Robin and I were in the dog house together.  And every time someone went by us from Austin's team they would say. “Look at that face.  With a face like that how could you accuse him of eating that Rice Crispy cake?”  So now it is a great joke amongst a lot of us. If any one mentions going for a snack or junk food they all look at me and Robin and remark that they could have had Rice Crispy cake but someone decided to eat
all of it... some how I don't think they were always referring to Me!!!!

 July 5, 2002

We have just come back from our vacation.  Saskatchewan has about 100,000
lakes.  Many are in the northern part of the country and many are only accessible via fly-in camps.  However, we were at a lake that is spring fed and is about a mile wide and about five miles long.  It is about 35 to 40 feet deep.  Robin’s sister has a cabin there.  We spent a week sitting on the shoreline, fishing, mini golfing, golfing, swimming and skiing.  Robin’s  children enjoy tubing and knee boarding.   Robin, on the other hand, likes to just ski.  He is still frightened about going over the waves the boat makes.  I guess they call that the wake.   I was reluctant to get into the water but I did come in and swam out to Robin several times just to get a pat and then swim back to shore.   At any rate we all had a blast.

The temperature for the past number of weeks has been in the thirties C scale
or in the nineties F scale.  We have had about five days where the temperature hung around 95 to 98 F.

Robin has taught me another command.  "BACK".  If we are going down a
sidewalk and Robin realizes we have gone to far, he says   “BACK”.  By doing
this we will do a 180 degree turn and go back in the direction we just
came from.  This is very useful.  Robin says I am a great dog and learn quickly.
 
Just before we went on vacation, Robin had to file a complaint against his employer over non-compliance of a settlement on guide dog access in his building.  The Canadian Human Rights commission helped settle a complaint of guide dog access back in 1999.  However, his employer decided to break this settlement and started to restrict our access within the building.  We will win this one again but it takes time and is stressful.  However, it is a right that one must fight for.  We have on our side, a supreme court ruling in a case called Peters Vs University Hospital.  Here Yvonne Peters was not allowed access in a hospital to visit her father-in-law.  The ruling came out that a dog going through a hospital as a guide is no more of a risk to the health of patients than a visitor that owns a dog or a cat.  Expert witnesses have shown that the oils, hair, saliva and dander are all on the clothing of a visitor and will come off just as it would from a well-groomed guide.  As such the Supreme Court ruled in favor of guide dog access where ever the public is allowed.  It was a great victory back in the early eighties.  As such with this ruling we will gain full access once again and all will be well.
 
June 3, 2002

I snuck onto the computer.  My Master forgot to shut it down.  Since I was not put onto a tie down I thought I would try to send out an email to you.  Dogs, I tell you this hunt and paw method of typing is difficult.   Let me see... Oh let me tell you some of the news about Robin and I.  Over the last, say, five weeks I have been really testing how my new Master's handling skills.   I have sure given it all my best.  I have walked over curbs, not stopped   stepping up on the up curbs, tried to cross kitty corner, slowed down my walking pace, and, well, the list goes on.  My Master was getting very frustrated.  He even called in the Guide Dog specialists.  A Bill Archie came out to see what was going on.  Well, I knew he was coming so I started to behave myself.   Did you know that three times a week we walk from his office to our home.  That is seven kilometers which is close to four and a half miles.  Any way, It is a long walk with many crossings and many busy streets.  After a couple of weeks of this I had not much time to play head games with my Master. I tell you it was very tiring.  My Master was also trying to get me to do moving rights and moving lefts.  I was never taught this and he kept thinking that I knew how to do this.  Well, when Bill came down he showed Robin, my master, how to do them.  Mind you, Bill told me that we almost had it licked anyway.  Bill told us that not many handlers do as much walking or travelling as we do.  I was trained to do the basics.  What my Master needed was a bit more.  Good thing I am a quick learner. I have decided that Robin knows how to handle guide dogs pretty well.  Did you know I am his fourth Guide?  His first dog was a cross named Oban, his second a pure bred Standard Poodle and his third guide was another cross,who lives with us as a retired guide.  His name is Vaughn. Ohhh, I hear the human coming so I better go.

May 15, 2002

A Big Hello.. I am so sorry I have been frightfully busy.  The conference in Toronto was keeping me on my toes.  I can tell you that it was a great success. Robin was elected by our peers of about 80 disabled persons to represent them on the National scene.  It was a humbling experience for Robin.   He will be the voice for persons with disabilities on behalf of all the members across the country.  Thank goodness for email so they can contact Robin and keep him well informed about the issues and barriers that need to be worked on. There is so much to tell you but I have so much to do.  I will get back to you.

March 25, 2002

Robin and I are going through a testing period at the moment.   I love my new home and job. There are so many new and interesting things I want to check out.  Often times this is not what Robin needs me to do.  I am learning there are no short cuts and no doing things my way.  You can't blame a dog from trying, can you???

Our ACCESS conference in Toronto is slowly coming together.  We have booked the hotel, accepted eighty participants, prepared the program, comfirmed the speaker list and are now working on the workshops and facilitators.  Our slogan is Not for us - without us  and  Speaking for us -- with us.  It simply means that our unions and employers cannot do things without including us and asking us for our opinions. So, Robin and I will be headed for Toronto May 8th and returning around the 13th. I think I will enjoy Toronto.  At this conference Robin's position as an Equal Opportunity Representative for Persons with disabilities becomes open.  He will run again but may not get re-elected.  I am Robin's campaign manage.  How can people resist me and my wrinkles!  We are certainly going to be noticed and each time some one comes over to see if they can pet me, Robin will have an opportunity to campaign.   (grin)  Whether Robin and I get re-elected doesn't really matter.  What matters is that the person we elect represents those of us with disabilities and will speak for us on our issues.

Spring is finally coming to Saskatchewan.  The temperature will get up to zero today or about 32 F.  Our summers usually get quite hot with temperatures ranging from 75 to 110 F.  So I will  get to see all four different seasons this year.  Lakes around here have about 3.5 feet of ice yet, however most of our snow has gone. Within the next week we should have no snow left. Easter is coming up very quickly and I can hardly wait to see what the Easter Bunny will put in my basket.   (grin)  Hope you all have a happy Easter.

March 16, 2002

We do have snow here still.  However, there is not much left.   Spring is on the way and even though it is about -10 C..hmm I am not sure but about 15 to 20  F. Just a guess (grin)   Last week we had a few very cold days.   It was -27 C and with the wind chill factor added in, it was -39  which would be close to -35 F.  That is a cold day.  The trick on these days is to not let my paws get wet and freeze.

I have been to the kid's (Brianna - age 13, Austin -- age 11 and Kiara -- age 8) school.   There are about 650 student's in the school.  It reminds me of the days I attended Serra School with my raiser who is a teacher.   Robin is a member at large on the community association and a member at large on the parent council, so I get to go to many meetings.  Robin's wife Verlina, is the soccer coordinator with the community association.  She has just put together 19 teams for the outdoor season.  I guess I will be going to see some soccer games!  

Statistics Canada, a government department, has just announced that our city ... Saskatoon ... has 192,000 people.  So we have about 1\5 th of the population of the entire province.  Saskatchewan has just under 1 million people.   Mind you, all of Canada has only  about 33 million.  Large country with few people. Robin was at a meeting on Friday with the Province of Saskatchewan Elections people and they were discussing putting Braille numbers on the templates so that a visually impaired person can vote without assistance.  They agreed with Robin's proposal and they will try it in the municipal elections in Saskatoon before adopting it to the entire province.  All the people at the meeting thought I was so very cute.   They all want to grab my cheeks and pull on them.  Of course, they didn't get too.

February 23, 2002

I love my new home in Canada and I am doing just great.  After I left the guide dog school I went to Ottawa for five days. Robin is the representative for Persons with Disabilities for the Canadian Labour Congress and for the Public Service Alliance of Canada.  His volunteer position is national in scope.  He meets with the Canadian Labour Congress not to discuss union issues, although Union is the main driving force, however, he serves on a national committee dealing with Disability Rights.   His other hat, if you will, is to represent persons with disabilities on a national committee on "equal opportunity".  The meetings are usually in Ottawa.   At any rate, while in Ottawa I experienced a warm winter day.  Allow me to preface this by stating that a few days prior to our arrival it had snowed quite a bit.   When we arrived it was much warmer and the snow had started to melt down.  The side walks were "slushy". I had trouble at the start distinguishing between the end of the sidewalk and the start of the road.  (Remember I was raised in sunny southern California, what is this White Stuff!!) There were three to four inches of "slush" where we needed to stop.  After a few attempts I quickly understood and slush no longer was a problem.  We had a grand time in Ottawa working the streets in the downtown core. I love to work!

We got home Thursday afternoon and I met Robin's wife, Verlina, and his three children -- Brianna - age 13, Austin -- age 11 and Kiara -- age 8.  We drove home from the airport and while everyone waited in the van, Robin went into the house and said hello to Vaughn, his retired guide.  After doing some obedience with him, Robin left him in the house and went back out to the van.  He took me over to the park across the street and put me in a sit stay.  Robin's wife, Verlina, brought Vaughn over and we were introduced.  We instantly loved each other!  We said our HI's and played a bit.  We did some obedience together and then walked home together.

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