My Cousin Pele

My mom got an email this morning from her brother in Texas. He wanted to tell her about my cousin Pele graduating from Obedience School! Pele is the handsome black lab on the left side of the picture... the cute fluffy pup on the right side of the picture is his girlfriend Rooney. I don't know who the nice lady is... it must be Rooney's mom! My mommy's brother says that Pele will begin Phase 2 of his training at the end of the month. If he can complete Phase 2 then he'll go on to Phase 3. After Phase 3 he can take a state certification test so that he can become a full-fledged service dog! How exciting is that? (I know the pictures are grainy but that's how my mom got them in her email... sorry!)

What's really neat about this story is that Pele was found on the streets of New Orleans by my mom's niece (Shannon). Shannon managed to track down Pele's owner and his owner told Shannon that he didn't want Pele anymore. He asked Shannon if she wanted to keep Pele... if she didn't take Pele then Pele would have to go to the animal shelter. Shannon agreed to take Pele but there was one problem. Shannon is a college student and between classes and work she didn't have much time to spend with Pele. So she did what any college student would do... she called her mom and dad for advice. Shannon's mom and dad agreed to foster Pele until Shannon graduates in May. Pele made the trip from New Orleans to Texas during Spring Break of last year and he immediately made himself at home with Shannon's mom and dad. Here's a picture of Pele with my mom's brother.

We think it's pretty amazing that Pele went from wandering around the streets of New Orleans to starting a new life as a service dog. Congratulations Pele!

Love, Your Cousin Trooper