It’s been almost 5 months since we adopted Brodie and Scott and I wanted to send you a note letting you know how he is doing. Brodie recently graduated from his Manners Level 1 class at the Dog Training Club of Chester County. If we could sound like proud parents for a minute, Brodie was the star of the  class (or clown depending on the day). He did really great and learned so much. Now when people come to the house there is little to no jumping. He is great at his doggie push ups (sit, down, sit, stand, sit) and has really picked up “stay” and “leave it”. For graduation we had to teach him a trick of his own so he learned “crawl” and did great! We are now looking into registering him for his Level 2 class, then he will get tested to see if he qualifies for agility classes. On the nicest day in May we took Brodie on a road trip to the shore. He LOVES the beach and ocean. He dug multiple holes and would have played in the ocean for hours if we let him. Once Labor Day passes we are going to take him back down while the weather is still warm. He has become a different dog since we first met him. He follows us around, he just loves being around us, even if its just laying his paw on our foot when the tv is on. He has totally mellowed out, not nearly the crazy tail chaser he was in February. At the suggestion of our vet and trainer Brodie is now on holistic dog food. Since is has a lower corn count, there is less sugar converting into energy which I’m sure has helped too. He has put on some weight but still super lean (and super fast!). He has become the neighborhood mascot and everyone knows him. The little girl next door to us has named him “chocolate cheese” because he looks like this chocolate cream cheese muffin at the bakery in town. He is so great with all of the neighborhood kids, they all know him. He has a girlfriend too, Laya, she is a goldendoodle. She is about 6 months and is a total puppy. Brodie is a good sport, she bites his ears and roughhouses with him and they get along great. We made the mistake of watching Marley and Me. That night we let Brodie sleep in bed with us and he now has taken over. He is the only dog we know that likes to sleep on his back. He has become our little watchdog, gives a hearty bark when there is someone around that he doesn’t know. Every weekend we try to take him on a special excursion, either a different park or a road trip somewhere. Needless to say, Brodie is family and we can’t imagine what life would be like if we didn’t have him.

We hope you have a great summer and we will keep you posted on any other developments. Feel free if you are ever in the area to call and stop by. We attached some pictures for you (they were too big to send more than two).