Tag Archives: Florida

Apex is having Surgery

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Apex hanging out at the hospital with Sue and her dad

We got some shocking news from Sue about Apex today. He is having surgery on Friday. On Wednesday night she took him to the vet because she thought he might have an ear infection. Well her vet is very careful with Apex and so she checked him over carefully while he was there and she found a “wart” on his knee that she didn’t like the “feel” of. So she tested it and found it to be a cancerous lesion with a wide base.

So he goes is at 7 a.m. tomorrow morning to have it removed and hopefully get a good clean margin. They took a sample yesterday and it came back as a “stranded” irregular cell structure (aka: fast growing tentacle style cancer). They have a specialist coming in from University of Florida tonight to check him over and be there for the surgery tomorrow. I know he is the best of hands.

Poor Sue. Her dad’s funeral was just a couple of weeks ago after a couple of months of being with him day and night at the hospital or care center. She is emotionally already stretched and to have this on top of it has got to be so hard. I’m am reeling from this myself. It brings back so many of the emotions of when Shadow our pet dog was diagnosed with cancer, also a fast growing type. Sue has asked us to pray for them including the vet who is also a christian and welcomes the help. I’ve decided to fast for the next 24 hours. I don’t want this to be the end of Apex’s career. But it would be better for him to loose his leg than for him to loose his life so young. He is only three years old. That is way to young. 

Graduation Anniversary

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One year ago today we were in Boring, Oregon for Apex’s graduation. What happy memories I have of that day. When it was over I just couldn’t stop smiling, I was so happy to see Apex and his new companion and was a wonderful match GDB had made. Today we have gotten to know Sue much better and have confirmed that they are truly a great team. They had there follow-up with GDB this weekend and everything went very well. The rep said Apex was doing great and was well adjusted. She was amazed at how well the two of them work together and how well bonded they are. They did so well on their evaluation that unless a problem crops up they will probably do the check by phone. 

Apex relaxing with Sue

Kennedy Space Center

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Today we drove out to Kennedy Space Center. Sue’s parents drove because we could all fit in their van. It was good to get out of the city and see some of the Florida countryside. The space shuttle wasn’t out today. They had moved it inside to fix some problems with the fuel tank. The KSC doesn’t use any tax money in the operation of the visitor center. It runs off the ticket prices which aren’t cheap but I like the idea that it pays for itself.

Apex guiding Sue at Kennedy Space Center

Sue and Apex with an Astronaut

We saw two 3-D movies on the IMAX screens. One on the Hubble Telescope and the other on the Space Station. On the first one we got to go in first (guide dog privileges). Sue didn’t go to the second one because the first one effected her limited vision and was threaten to give her a migraine.

Alligator at Kennedy Space Center

I got to see my first alligator in the “wild” by the lake behind the movie theater. They have an retire shuttle there that you can get into part of it. I imagined the cargo bay to be much bigger. Bill and I and Amanda stood in line for awhile to go on the shuttle simulator. It was really cool and not at all scary like roller coasters.

Raelyn and Bill with Apex under the Space Shuttle

After the Space Center we drove to Dixie Crossroads, a seafood restaurant that is her families favorite. I think that was one of the main reasons her parents wanted to come today. They are famous for their rock shrimp so I ordered that and Bill ordered crab legs and then we split them so we got to eat both. It was very, very good. The also serve little cornbread doughnut holes with powdered sugar on them that were so tasty. I had to restrain myself so I’d have room for the rest of my dinner.

Sue and her family at Dixie Crossroads

Another wonderful day in Florida. I hated to see it end because who knows when we will get to see Apex again. We stopped Sue’s house before we went back to the hotel so we could see Apex in his spiffy red sunglasses. It was hard to leave but we know that Apex is in good hands, that he loves is life and that he is well loved in return. We couldn’t be happier about his partnership with Sue and she seems to be very satisfied with his work as a guide dog.

Apex in his red sunglasses

Quiet Sunday Afternoon

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We were going to go to church with Sue and Apex but it turned out to not be a great Sunday for visitors so I looked up on the internet the closest LDS ward to her house and we went to church their. It was a big ward with quiet a few Portuguese speaking members.

Apex hanging out in his back yard

After church we went to Sue’s house for a relaxed meal with her daughter and brother. We had steak and pasta with a fruit crisp and ice cream for dessert. Apex got to have one of his special doggy ice creams too. After lunch we went out in the yard to watch Apex run around. Sue has a kumquat tree in her back yard so we got to see what they taste like. They are rather sour, like a lemon, but have more of an orangy flavor. I like them.

birds at the lake

Then we drove a couple of miles to a lake to feed the ducks. Bill did all the feeding but the egrets ate the most. The ducks didn’t seem too hungry and the geese were rather slow coming a quick to leave if anything startled them. There were also some sea gull, (they are different than the California gulls we have around here) and a squirrel kept watch over everything up in a tree.

egrets at the lake

It was a such a nice, peaceful day, perfect for a Sunday. 

Holy Land Experience

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On Saturday we went with Sue and her daughter (and Apex of course) to the Holy Land Experience. We got to see how Apex worked with lots of people around. They have a replica of the Tabernacle that the children of Israel used when they were wandering in the wilderness. It was interesting to see the reenactment of what the priests did in the temple. The other part I really liked was the Scriptorium where they presented a history of the Bible with lots of old scriptures including some pages of a Gutenberg Bible.

Apex in harness

Apex is such a lucky dog. Sue takes such good care of him. She brings snacks for him of fresh fruit and/or veggies everyday. He eats a dog food with no preservatives so she can only get 20 lbs at a time. Every time she goes to get more dog food the vet checks Apex over to makes sure that he is doing well and monitors his weight. Sue hopes that Apex will be able to be her guide for ten years. He just might make it with how well she takes care of him.

Apex getting pea pods for a snack

We had committed to go to the Top Dog banquet that evening so we headed back to the hotel late in the afternoon and just before we were going to turn left and Sue and her daughter were going to turn right, a car from a side street pulled out to make a left hand turn right in front of both of our cars. Amanda was able to miss the other car and Bill almost got stopped but we still hit the other car.

Our rental car with the bumper hanging off after the acident

After all the police reports etc. were done (the driver of the other car got a ticket), Sue called her dad to bring us something to tie the bumper back on the car so we could drive it back to the rental company and get a different car. They are such kind and generous people. We feel so lucky that Apex is part of such a great family. It was nice to have some moral and physical support with local knowledge when things went wrong. Because of that what could have been a very stressful experience was just an inconvenience.

We ended up being only a few minutes late for the banquet. They had a really good speaker, Kathy Nimmer, the author of the book “Two Plus Four Equals One”. She shared stories from her book about the partnership between service dogs and their handlers. She had us all laughing and crying. At one point one of the dogs their even spoke up to put in their opinion. It was great.

An Evening with Apex

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This morning we went to a couple of presentations at the Top Dog Workshop. One was on dog first aid and the other was on the GPS Trakker system. Both were very interesting. Not sure if we will make it to any more of the presentations. They are in conflict with what Sue has planned and I’ll pick spending time with Apex over classes that are more geared to guide dog users than puppy raisers.

Today we did a little shopping until it was time to meet Apex after Sue finished work for the day. When we got to her work she was outside waiting for us with Apex our of his harness and off leash. We he saw us and realized who we were he got so excited and ran around and jump like the “tigger” that he is. It was so good to see him all grown-up and strong. We brought him a huge nylabone and he loved it.

After all of the running around we walk a few blocks away to an Italian restaurant that is one of Sue’s favorites. Apex was all business again when she put the harness on. He is very relaxed when he guides and watches the world around him but he seems to know just what to do. We had a super yummy meal with Sue’s daughter and her parents. It was obvious that they all love Apex just as much as we do plus they are so grateful for the freedom and safety that he has brought to Sue’s life.

Finally we ended up back at Sue’s house where we relaxed on the couch with Apex. It is different to see him on the couch but it is good to know that the rules can be more relaxed in many ways when these puppies get partnered up. It was the perfect end to a wonderful evening with our first puppy. While we were on the couch I remembered to bring our my camera a snap a few pictures.

Snuggling on the couch with Apex

One more day until we see Apex

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We made it to Florida really late yesterday. Our flight got in just before midnight so we slept in this morning. After all we are on vacation. We don’t get to see Apex until tomorrow so we decided to go to Universal Studios and see the new Harry Potter experience. The rest of Islands of Adventures was not too crowded but Hogwarts had lots of people. It is really cool. They have it set up so it is like a winter trip to Hogsmead including snow on the roofs of the shops. They have all the stores etc.t that they talk about in the books.

Hogsmead

The lines just a week ago were really long, something like 5 hours but today it was less than an hour. The last part of the line you are inside Hogwarts and it is amazing. They have portraits that talk and move and the effect is very realistic.

Inside Hogwarts

 
The concept of the ride is you are riding a broom and boy was it ever intense. You transition back and forth between a virtual environment and a physical one. It was exciting but I was glad it didn’t last much longer or I might have thrown-up. I wasn’t up to any more roller coaster today.

Hogwarts

 
I can’t wait until tomorrow afternoon when we get to see Apex. It has been almost a year since he graduated!

Florida Bound

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We are off to Florida for a fun adventure. We will be attending the Top Dog Conference on Friday and Saturday. We have a couple of days to do whatever we decide to do and one day to visit my Aunt & Uncle who are on a mission at the Deseret Citrus and Cattle Ranch. The rest of the trip we will be hanging out with our first pup, Apex and his handler. He has been a working guide dog for almost a year so it will be fun see how he has matured. We are keeping flexible on the schedule so we can adapt to whatever opportunities comes our way. I’m sure there will be more to do than we have time to do it in.
Casey gets to have an adventure of her own by spending the week we are gone with our friend Lisa. It will be good for her and she will get lots of love and kisses. If Bill can get things to work properly by using his phone to get access to the internet, I hope to do daily reports on this blog as to our fun. If not I’ll have to do it when we get back.

Package from Apex

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We got an huge box of citrus from Florida today. Sue had sent an email saying that something was on its way from Apex. I was amazed when it showed up. The box is full of tangerines, oranges and grapefruit. Boy are we going to enjoy eating these. They all taste really good. The tangerines are so much bigger than we get in the stores here and the grapefruit are amazingly sweet. Thank you Apex! (and Sue).

Casey started on the Tylan Powder today. She wasn’t sure she liked how it tasted but she did eat her food anyway. She is on 1/4 teaspoon twice a day for at least a couple of weeks. I’m looking forward to no more middle of the night poop runs!

Update from Apex

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Yesterday I sent this photo to Apex’s handler and gave her an update on Banta and introduced her to Casey. It was one year since we put Apex on the truck to go back to GDB. It is so much fun to hear how Apex is doing. Here are some excerpt of what she wrote:

Apex is doing wonderful and we are about to leave the country again bound for Haiti this time.  I am planning on traveling with the team from my office/church as we go to work with our sister churches in Haiti. I will be at the school, teaching during the days and working the revival services at night. Soon after we get back from there – I will be traveling to our cabin in GA for a few days of R&R.  This will be his 1st time at the cabin and I can not wait to see what he does with the ducks and the pond…
Apex is also having a wonderful time visiting the 3 local nursing homes.  The Alzheimer’s patients love seeing him come in.  The children finally are back at school and Apex loves recess time and lunch time more than ever.  Our 1 child that is autistic loves to read and pet him so Apex is learning to love story time as well.
He is up to 70 lbs and his chest is broader than ever.  He runs like a freight train out of control and then all of a sudden it at eye level.  My boss loves watching us play here at the office while I am waiting for the bus to go home.  He calls him “Tigger” -quite appropriate since I work just minutes from Disney.
I have been blessed with Apex and regaining my freedom to travel and go where I want to again.  I have been able to travel again with out fear of falling or of getting lost – both of which I did on a regular basis with the white cane. I have been able to shop for my own groceries again because he navigates the aisles and people for me. I no longer feel like a blundering idot while trying to find my way – Apex is wonderful and once we have been there – he can find it again and again – traveling with him is a great joy and long layovers are not so long now with him at my side.