Guide Dogs of the Desert Graduation Ceremony

Yesterday I attended the graduation ceremony for three recently trained guide dogs for the blind. The Guide Dogs of the Desert are based in Palm Springs but serve a very large geography. The graduation ceremony was held at their facility in Whitewater, just outside of Palm Springs. They have a marvelous facility, including the dog kennel area. It was immaculate and was very inviting. before the graduation exercises, I had a chance to chat with the management team and a number of guide dog trainers. I was very impressed by the folks who run this organization. The trainers are volunteers who take on a three month project of training a dog in their home. Many reported how difficult it was to hand over the trained dog they raised as a puppy, and bonded with daily for 90-120 days. There were three dogs that graduated yesterday:

Above left: 'Woody" a Chocolate Lab & above right: "Bonnie" a Yellow Lab.

Above: This is "JP" (John Paul), a Standard Poodle, who seemed a bit jumpy on stage.
The local media were present, filming the event, I'm sure it played well on the evening news. I mean, who doesn't like guide dogs? During the graduation exercises, they had the trainer and the new recipient make a statement, which was very touching. They also showed a slide show of the dogs "growing up", which had the audience in tears and laughing at the same time. After the ceremony, I bought one of the 2008 Guide Dog Calendars. If you want one, the cost is $10.00 with a $2.00 shipping and handling charge. They have an order form on their website.

-Rick Rockhill