Tippy II, 2004-2019
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Mini Aussie-Poodle Service Dog
Born July 21, 2020, Adopted - TBD
Named after Service Dog Tippy II & Rudy family dog
Proposed names / nick-names: Tidy, Ty, Tippy III
Other breed names: AussieDoodle, AussiePoo
("Doodle" originally refers to Labrador - Poodle mix)
Rudy, 1990-2008
Toy Aussies I trained in May, 2020 when they were 8 months old. A friend in California brought me her toy Aussie (top tri merle) to train while I was house shopping around Carson City, Nevada. She was surprised to hear I enjoyed him as he barked a lot with her, but not me. She said she was willing to give him to me since I needed a service dog, this one was compatible and I was having a hardship finding one. The owner's family suddenly insisted on keeping him after realizing how well trained he became and how beautiful he grew in just those few weeks.
New Dog Search Since Losing Tippy July 7, 2019
Since losing Tippy who lived to be 15 years old, all I wanted was to have him back. Of course nature doesn't care about what I want and requires all life to die to make room for new life, so I searched for a replacement. At first I wanted any suitable young dog from a shelter, after struggles with that, I wanted one from a shelter that looks like Tippy, again, after struggles with that I wanted a mini Golden Doodle from a breeder, then I wanted a toy or mini Aussie, then I finally searched for and found a mini Aussie Poodle on the petite side.
I made a huge effort visiting many websites, adoption centers and filling out many applications in southern California only to be met with resistance and denial due to the following reasons:
Fierce competition with others applying for the same dog (young and healthy)
Abundant, easier to get older Pitt Bulls, Chihuahuas and sick dogs
No response even after filling out an application which is disturbing considering I specified disabled vet, just lost service dog looking for replacement; no courtesy follow-up by them
Discrimination based on me living in an RV
Discrimination based on not being a local resident
Poor or no selection of dogs suitable for service dog training
Covid-19 pandemic severely limiting viewability of dogs available for adoption
In the meantime I met various people who allowed me to train their dogs as I offered to for free just to be with other dogs and hone in on my dog training skills which are much better than I thought. A Teddy Roosevelt Terrier breeder in California offered to sell me a puppy without any problems, but I didn't prefer such a short and stocky dog. This is the only instance I was able to actually adopt a dog during my long, dramatic search.
One day while walking along a beach near Morro Bay, California, I pondered what to name my next dog. I came up with Tidy because it's a mix of Tippy and Rudy, my last two companion dogs. The name also has a meaning to be clean and neat.
After 11 months of searching, a breeder in Oregon who sold out of puppies referred me to another breeder in Oregon. I was just in time to get at the front of the line. The litter of 10 had various colors and patterns and there was one pick of the litter for future breeding. All dew claws were removed, but there were debates about tail docking when the puppies where prime (3 days old). All tails were left full length due to most families increasingly wanting full tails and other reasons.
It's often been lonely living without a consistent companion. However since I grew up as a latchkey kid, I adapted better than most would being extremely solo.