The Waiting Game

So, the word around here is that we must find a new home for Kyo. It makes me sad because I did adopt him from the Humane Society and I was supposed to be his forever home, but unfortunately, he is interfering with the guide dogs. He is a great dog, but extremely needy. He is incredibly trainable-I've trained him to pick up objects and bring them to me. For example, he can bring me shoes, leashes, telephones Etc. We think he is part lab and part Great Dane and it is the Dane in him that brings out this needy/separation anxiety behaviour. The good news is, I think I've found a good alternative to him living with us. I contacted an organisation called PAALS that trains service dogs for varying cognitive/physical disabilities. One of their dogs was recently placed with a soldier that returned from the Middle East with physical disabilities. They have only been in operation for about six years, but they are growing and doing some really cool things.
I had Kyo temperament tested almost four weeks ago ad he passed. He has a few issues-like he doesn't like people touching his paws-but these problems can be fixed. He also is a huge counter surfer. He is so tall already it doesn't take much more for him to lift his front paws up off the floor and place them on the counter. Again, this is an issue that can be fixed. It's something that I have been working on with him, but being blind, it's hard to catch him every time. I've started keeping him on leash in the kitchen, or locking him out of the kitchen with a baby gate. I figure prevention is the best method right now.
Anyway, after the temperament test, Kyo was sent to the vet a week later and had his hips/elbows/joints checked out for any potential weakness. When all was said and done, the vet thought that the joints looked good and that he could not see anything that would stop Kyo from becoming a service dog. The only thing now is that we're waiting for the official evaluation to come back. The vet-who specialises in this sort of thing-does the tests, which consists of a bunch of X-Rays and knocking him out. Then the results are sent off to two different organisations, OFA is one of them, and then we wait for their evaluation.
I hate waiting! Kyo had the procedure done three weeks ago and the results were sent in about two and a half weeks ago. I would just like to know. If everything is okay, then it will be one of the happiest days of my life. It will mean that Kyo will go to a great home and may even graduate and serve a great purpose. Even if he doesn't make it, they will find him a fantastic home that will love him and make him the centre of their world-and that is just what he needs. If the tests come back positive, then I'm back to the drawing board, trying to figure out where Kyo can go to live. I want him to be somewhere he is the centre of attention. He needs to be doted on and with having the guide dogs, we just can't give that to him. He can't thrive in an environment like this, but if he were the service dog, getting to go everywhere and being a person's number one guy, then he would grow and probably be one of the best dogs out there. I don't even want to think of what will happen if the tests are positive-I guess I've kind of thought I'll cross that bridge when I get there because it's quite sad for me.
So, now all I can do is pray that Kyo's hips and elbows check out and that we find out soon. This waiting is driving me nuts. :)