January 2015 Bark Box Review

Hi everyone!

Troy and I received our second bark box today (the large January 2015 box). Last month's box was great and if you didn't see that post click here to look at what we got in December.

This month's box in my opinion wasn't as amazing as the box we got last month just because there was only one toy and all of the other items were treats/food.

Here's a few pictures to show you what the box looked like.

Here's a picture of the inside of the box when you first open it. The theme this month is "Ice Age". The one and only toy included is pictured here. It is very fuzzy and soft. The arms make a crinkly noise when you touch them and the "body" of the toy has a honker inside. This is Troy's first "honking" toy. He doesn't seem to be too interested in it right now but in a few days he might enjoy it more. It took him a couple of days to love the yule log toy we got last month and then it quickly became his favourite toy.

So far these fish strips seem to be Troy's favourite product this month. As soon as I opened the box he started sniffing for these strips and I gave him one. He devoured it in less than 2 minutes (he's not a very aggressive chewer so your dog might eat it even faster!)

I haven't opened these treats yet because we have so many other types on the go right now. I know he will love them because he will eat anything - he's a lab ;)

At first I was sort of disappointed to see this product because it is dog food and I don't want to introduce new foods into his diet. However I have decided that on his birthday I will give him some of this as a treat (his birthday is May 27th).

The ingredients look pretty good!

This is a very interesting dog treat. At first I thought it was a hollow bone but then after reading the card with a description of each item in the box, I discovered it is actually a beef trachea. I'm sure Troy will love this as well and I plan on giving it to him after a hard day of work this week (probably Wednesday night).

A picture of the inside of the "tube". It's very thin so I don't anticipate this will last very long... We'll see

Overall I am happy with this month's box, I just wish there was another toy or fun item included (like last month's bandana). We are receiving another box next month but after that I haven't decided if we will continue our subscription or not.

The value of this box is good. The items total approximately 31 dollars (according to the card included) which is a pretty good deal depending on how much you pay (which varies depending on your subscription length).

If you're interested in signing up for February's box, click this link to get 10% off your order!
https://barkbox.com/r/PAETXPV37M?utm_source=old_ref&utm_medium=referrals&utm_campaign=url_copy&utm_content=100008

Did you receive a bark box this month? Was it the same? Different? I'd love to hear your thoughts below! :)

December 2014 Bark Box Review

Hi everyone! Sorry for not posting on the blog in the last few weeks. My brother passed away on Christmas Eve and since then it has been crazy around here.

I wanted to do a quick post to show you what Troy got in his first bark box (we get the large size). He is receiving another box in a few days so stay tuned to see what we get this month.

His December box arrived shortly after we came home which was exciting. It was his first Christmas gift this year! The theme for December's box was "Happy Pawlidays" (How cute is that?!).

Unfortunately we have already opened the box weeks ago and I didn't take as many pictures as I would have liked but hopefully you get an idea of what it came with. Here are a few pictures of everything included:

Charcoal treats with VERY minimal ingredients. They're not grain free but are still very healthy and natural.

Christmas bandana. It looks so cute on Troy!

Yuletide Log Squeaky Toy - Troy's favourite thing in the box and his favourite toy of all time!

JW Megalast bone - Troy is very picky with toys and didn't care much for this but my boyfriend's dog likes it so it's still getting put to use.

There was a bully stick in the box too but he gobbled that up before I could get a picture. Instead, here's a picture of Troy wearing the bandana from the December bark box!

Overall Troy and I are loving Barkbox. It's so fun to receive a package full of dog toys and treats without knowing what you're getting. Most if not all, boxes have a theme associated with them. This makes opening the box even more exciting. If your dog is a chewer you can request to have tougher toys included. I think it is a good value at $29 per box (it is cheaper if you subscribe for longer!). With the link below you can even get 10% off your subscription (even if you just order one box). Sadly it's too late to get the January box but if you sign up now you can still receive the February box (which I am sure will be Valentine's day themed)!

Click here to get 10% off: https://barkbox.com/r/PAETXPV37M?utm_source=old_ref&utm_medium=referrals&utm_campaign=url_copy&utm_content=100008

* This post is NOT sponsored in any way*

Our first weekend at home

We have now been home for 4 days. We came home from training Friday morning on the Go Train & Transhelp bus. I was a little worried about how Troy would react to the train as he is sensitive to sound and it can be loud when it pulls into the station. He did so great. I gave him some treats and cuddles to distract him from the noise and he didn't get scared at all!

Once we were home he sniffed around the whole apartment and gave my mom a few kisses. After settling in he had breakfast and then I took him outside. On our way back to the apartment, he pooed in the elevator and in the hallway. I didn't get too upset with him because I knew accidents would probably happen. I just told him "No!" and cleaned it up.

Later on Friday we took a trip to the pet store to pick up some more food and toys. Once I got to the cash register I told the cashier that I was told 3 weeks ago that this store would offer a 30% discount to my service dog. He informed me that that program is no longer in place and currently there is no discount being offered but he would honour it this time since I was under the impression I was getting 30% off. I am very grateful that he honoured the discount but can't help but be disappointed that they no longer offer it. I guess I'll be shopping elsewhere from now on.

On Saturday we had some visitors come over to hang out and meet Troy. My boyfriend came by for the afternoon and we went to Square One to give Troy some exercise. He seemed to really enjoy getting out of the apartment. By the time we got home from our last minute Christmas shopping, Troy was panting and SO tired. After dinner my mom's friend came over to meet Troy. He was so tired from shopping that he just layed by my feet the whole night.

On Sunday my little cousin came over with my aunt and her boyfriend. I was really nervous that Hailey (my cousin) wouldn't understand that she can't pet Troy. She's only 3 and used to love to play with my cat before we had to put him down last year. She pet him once and then didn't really bother with him at all after that. She kept asking me: "Kelsey, why do you have a dog?". I must have answered that question 20 times on Sunday morning. Right after my family left, my mom had another friend come over to meet Troy. Like usual, Troy just took a nap by my feet the whole time they were here.

For the most part Troy had a relaxing weekend to get settled in his new home. We practiced pushing door buttons, fetching items, and nudging the cupboards closed but other than that, he had the weekend off. 

He has had two accidents in the building since we've come home. The second one happened yesterday in the lobby just after trying to get him to go outside for 20 minutes. Hopefully he will get used to going outside soon.

This weekend Troy has developed a bald spot under his chin that I think was caused by stress and scratching as well as a white spot (sort of looks like a pimple) in a different laoction on his chin. We are going to the vet (he's wonderful and offered a discount without even asking) on Saturday to create a file and check his weight so I will ask what I should do about it if it hasn't improved.

Within the next few days I'm going to post about our December Barkbox! Stay tuned to see what we got this month and for a mini-review on each of the products.

Have you liked our facebook page yet? Be sure to follow us on there for more pictures and quick updates: www.facebook.com/ssdandthecity

Here are a few pictures of Troy from this weekend:

He loves his new blanket- only $3 at Target!

Here's a sneak peek of what we got in our Bark Box. He looks so cute! I may need to invest in some more bandanas/scarves for him...

Waiting for the Train on Friday

Troy LOVES the sun. We even had to close the door to the sun room or else I'd find him tanning in there. I can't stand to be in that room for more than 30 seconds when it's sunny outside. It's WAY too hot for a dog to be in!

In the food court at Square One on Saturday. Such a good puppy.

Day 18: Graduation!

Yesterday was Troy and I's graduation. We are currently at home and doing great but that will be another post to come in the next few days.

We spent the day getting ready and relaxing before my mom came to have dinner with us. We all had a great last dinner together in the dining room. Some of the staff sat with us as well which was nice.

After dinner we had a little bit of time to relieve our dogs and take pictures with each other.

The ceremony went fairly smoothly and started on time which was great. It was a little long but that was to be expected with 4 different classes all graduating on the same night.

Unfortunately Troy's sponsors were unable to attend but his foster family came to see him! His foster mom is such a sweet lady and she even brought him a gift! I am so glad that I got to meet her. Troy didn't react the way I thought he would. He wasn't overly excited or out of control like some of the other dogs were when they saw their foster families. I am assuming he was calm because our bond has grown so much over the last few weeks. It was very bittersweet to watch him act this way.

To his foster mom (and everyone else too): Troy and I are doing wonderfully and he already seems to love his new home. He was amazing on the train and bus. We went to the pet store this afternoon too and now he's sleeping - like always!

Tomorrow my boyfriend is coming over and I plan on taking Troy to the mall for a short amount of time just to get out of the house and get some exercise. On Sunday my little cousin, aunt, and some other family friends are planning on coming over for a Pre-Christmas visit. I don't anticipate Troy having any problems with all of the company but hopefully they listen to the rules and don't interact with him too much! If my cousin doesn't understand, I'll have to put Troy in my room for an hour or two while she's here.

Here are some pictures from yesterday at grad:

Troy's foster mom, my mom, me, and Troy :)

Day 17: Where has the time gone?!

Wow. It's hard to believe that tomorrow Troy and I are graduating and then we leave on Friday morning!

Today we just practiced some more "fetch" and watched some educational/entertaining dog guide videos with the seizure response class.

We took a very short walk this morning but then it started to rain/snow so we headed back inside after just a few minutes. It was nice to get outside with Troy today even if it wasn't for very long.

After a few guest speakers, videos, and talking with our trainers we had individual play time before dinner.

I wish I had more to tell you about today but since it's the end of training, things have really slowed down to give us and the dogs a bit of a break before heading home.

Tonight I plan on packing up most of my stuff. My mom will be picking up my manual chair, walker, and suitcase tomorrow night so that all I have to worry about on Friday is getting my power chair and Troy home safely. We are taking the go train from Oakville to Port Credit and then transhelp home from the Go station. I don't live very far from the school so I thought that Friday would be a good opportunity to test Troy on the Go train as I take it fairly often. I want to know how he does before I plan anything with my friends downtown.

Tomorrow if the weather is nice Troy and I are going on our first walk without any trainers! I hope it doesn't rain or snow so that we can get out for a bit in the morning.

I don't have many pictures from today as most of the day was spent relaxing and talking about information but here's one of the videos we watched today of Rick Mercer visiting the Lions Foundation Dog Guides. It is really entertaining and funny but still educational and brought a lot of awareness to LFC Dog Guides:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LjVbYES3ygg

I'll be sure to get some pictures at grad tomorrow to share on my blog. I'm sure I'll even see some of you there. Troy and I are both really excited to meet everyone!

P.S. Tomorrow's post may have to be posted on Friday afternoon depending on what time grad finishes and how tired we are!

Day 16: Troy's sponsor!

Today was another fairly low key day. Everyone is really tired and just ready to go home. We have learned all of the commands and skills so for the next few days we are focusing on practicing what we feel we need to work on the most and talking about caring for our service dogs, travelling, going home, etc.

Today was also very sad for our service dog class. One of our class members will not be graduating with us and is leaving tomorrow morning. His dog was not cooperating the way we had all hoped and will be going through some more training after the holidays before the school makes a decision regarding the dog's working life. The dog may be placed with a different handler in the same program, a different program, or the dog may be "disqualified" and sent to a loving family to be cared for. We all feel terrible for both out class mate and for the dog but life must go on and it's better to go home without a service dog than to go home with one that won't listen and/or could possibly put you in danger.

We had some guest speakers come in throughout the morning and afternoon to talk about travelling with a dog guide, fundraising and sponsors, and media. We also talked about laws and human rights for service dog owners.

The afternoon was exciting for Troy and I because we found out that he is sponsored and we got to find out who his sponsor was! Troy's sponsor is the Hamilton Masons. A few members will be attending the graduation this Thursday so we will get to meet them and they asked if they could take a picture of Troy and I for their website. The Hamilton Masons also sponsored a dog in the seizure response program named Winn-Dixie (Dixie for short). Each service dog costs 25 thousand dollars to train but that can be a lot of money for one person or company to raise so the lions foundation asks a sponsor for 10 thousand per service dog. This is still a very large amount of money and the amount to sponsor a dog varies depending on which program the dog is in (it ranges from 8-12 thousand dollars). I am extremely grateful for their donation/sponsorship of Troy and I am sure Winn-Dixie's handler is grateful as well.

The rest of the day was spent practicing some more fetches and down stays. We didn't get to go outside for very long today as it was raining so we had a good play time session tonight.

Here's a really cute (and slightly annoying) video of Troy playing with a squeaky toy. It looks like those are his favourite toys now. He especially likes soft and squeaky ones!

If the weather is nicer tomorrow I'm sure we will take a walk outside to work on some more distraction stuff but other than that I think it will just be another relaxing day (which is more than fine by me). Everyone is tired and since we don't have anything new to learn it's pretty much the end of training! I am excited to go home but also kind of nervous because you never know how the dog will react to the change. Hopefully his behavior doesn't decline too drastically. I'm sure we won't have a problem because he is such a gentle boy and very well behaved but I won't know what will happen until I'm home...

Day 15: Our first shopping trip together

Today was mall day! Troy and I spent the majority of the morning and afternoon walking around Oakville Place. The school paid for our lunch which was much appreciated and I had butter chicken poutine from New York Fries (it's been way too long since I've had either of those things). After we quickly ate, the class split up and was given about an hour to shop around. While we were shopping the trainers would spy on us and watch to see how we were doing.

My first stop was David's Tea but after waiting in line for over 5 minutes and still barely moving, I decided to leave. I didn't want to waste all of my time in one store. Also, that location is really small and Troy was just in the way the whole time. The David's Tea in Square One and the location at Yonge-Dundas square are much larger so when I get home, I look forward to going there with Troy instead.

We also went into H&M to just walk around and practice going through tight spaces. H&M is not a very accessible store to begin with so with a service dog it was definitely interesting. Let's just say I'm glad I don't really shop there...

The last store we went into was Bath and Body Works. I wanted to see how Troy would react to: A) a very crowded store full of women gushing over him and B) all of the different scents that sometimes overwhelm me, never mind a dog. We spent about 15 minutes in the store. He was VERY well behaved and the only thing he sniffed were the fuzzy socks with foxes on them. He probably thought they were a toy since they were right at his level and fluffy. As soon as I said "Troy, right" and moved forward a little, he completely ignored the socks and kept walking with me. I thought he would have been sniffing many more things and be slightly nervous or scared in such a crowded store but he wasn't. Bath and Body Works is another store that isn't always the most wheelchair-friendly so I was really proud of how he handled it. Whenever I'm shopping with my boyfriend and want to go in Bath and Body Works he always stays outside since two wheelchairs are nearly impossible to maneuver around the store. So, yay Troy! You did a fantastic job today buddy :)

Once we got back to the school it was around 2:30. We had an appointment for our class to buy items from the gift shop. I bought a snowflake Christmas ornament with the dog guides logo in the middle. I was going to buy a black spring jacket with the logo on it as well but the smallest size was way too big for me.

We practiced a few fetches and an alternative to fetch which used to be referred to as take it/go give but now you just have to say "okay" when you or another person is holding an item out to the dog. Troy did great with this and grabbed every item from the trainer then immediately gave it to me.

After dinner we had a 20 minutes play time. Today we got to play in pairs and he got to play with Frito (the dog who he is always cuddling with in the dining room)! It was so cute to watch them play together. Frito would always steal the toys that Troy had in his mouth and then he would try to take them back from her unsuccessfully. He didn't really care. He was just happy that he had another puppy to play with!

After play time I gave Troy a bit of peanut butter in his Kong and now he's sleeping on his bed beside me like always. I'm not too sure what the plan is for tomorrow but can you believe there are only 3 more days until graduation? Time has gone so quickly these last few weeks.

Here are a few pictures of Troy from today:

Waiting patiently for everyone at the mall and ignoring the kids trying to talk to him :)

Frito and Troy staring into each other's eyes at lunch <3

Waiting to be picked up from the mall



Troy trying to steal the Christmas toy from Frito. Looks like I may have to get him some Christmas toys. He seems to love the santa stuffy and candy cane squeaky toy more than anything else...