Becoming a Team

Charlie is starting to give more commands to Sunny, walk her more when out and about, gaining that trust together and teaching Sunny to rely less and less on Tyler and I.  We are still right with them to help when needed, but this is a big step in their future together as a team.  Did you know that's what it's called?  When a person and their service dog are together it's called a team.  In our case, the team includes Charlie, Sunny &/ Tyler and myself. As he grows older and more capable of handling Sunny on his own, it will be the Charlie and Sunny team.

There are still times when Charlie just wants to run and play and not have to worry about Sunny.  Which is totally fine!  He needs to be a kid too.  But we're seeing him want to be in charge of Sunny more and more.  Every chance we get we ask Charlie if he wants to walk Sunny.  Or we'll get him involved if we're doing some training with Sunny.  And this is important because the more Sunny sees Charlie giving commands, the more she will realize that he's in charge.  As Charlie gets older and big enough to handle Sunny on his own, it's our goal that he will become the sole handler of Sunny.  She is his, after all.

Charlie is also starting to ask for Sunny more and more when he is having a hard time managing his emotions, feeling scared or having a hard time sleeping.  Until now it's usually Tyler or I noticing Charlie having a hard time and giving Sunny a command to help Charlie.  But lately, Charlie has been doing that more on his own and giving her the commands himself.  Charlie is realizing how much Sunny helps him and is reaching for her in his times of need.  

And seeing them together is always remarkable.  I cringe to think of where we'd be in life without Sunny.  She's made such a huge difference.  The bond they've already made is incredible.  We're excited to watch them grow together and see what they can conquer together.