The End of the Line *UPDATED*

[My first glimpse of baby Fullerton and his brother Forte through the bars of a crate at the airport. Both babies have their heads next the the window of the crate, Forte is looking at us and Fullerton is looking off to the right. All you can see is there cute red little heads] I got news about Fullerton today. I came back down to earth long enough to announce that FULLERTON IS IN PHASE TEN!!!!!!!!!!!! I am so excited! I have started looking at graduation dates to make sure they will work, there is no way I would miss seeing my boy in harness! It's not for sure and I don't want to give my hopes up but it's so stinkin' close. The next bit of news whether good or bad will come by phone. . . I will be eagerly waiting to see what path Fuller decides to take. I am extremely proud of the boy, and hope he finds a forever person soon.

[Me and Fullerton sitting in the training van on our last day together. Fullerton is sitting next to me looking my direction with his eyes closed. I miss my little red dog, but am so happy for him] Oops, I got so excited about Fuller being in phase 10 that I forgot to put the phase descriptions. Again he has skipped a phase, so here is what he did in phase 9 & 10. GO FULLER!!

Phase #9

• Final obedience testing, including on-leash obedience with the mobility instructor wearing a blindfold
• Off-leash obedience with distractions
• Workouts with unfamiliar or novice handlers
• Final traffic testing with instructor under blindfold and "real life" traffic situations

Phase #10

• Final guidework testing: city streets. Includes working a 40-50 minute route with the mobility instructor wearing a blindfold in downtown Gresham or San Rafael. The route covers nearly every aspect of guidework (curbs, street crossings, stairs, buildings, crowded sidewalks, traffic, etc.); obedience exercises are done along the way.
• Final guidework testing: inside buildings (malls, stores, etc.) Includes working escalators, elevators, stairs, etc. with the mobility instructor wearing a blindfold.
• Final physical exams.