Sammy's 1st Birthday Party

What a year it has been. We are so proud of the progress Sammy has made. She completed a 2-week dog training course with Central Florida K9. She and the staff worked so hard together. During her first year she earned her AKC S.T.A.R. Puppy and her AKC Canine Good Citizen. Congratulations, Samster! We are so proud of you!

While she does have the ability to listen and be a good girl, Sammy still remains the stubborn Frenchie at heart. We must work with her on a consistent basis to maintain her ability of heel, sit, down, off, and leave it. To help do this, for a short after her two week training, we did attend weekly evening classes for additional reinforcement of good behavior. We believe the best gift you can give a dog is training. We did notice an overall improvement, but again, CONSISTENCY. While things continue to improve, Sammy can be Sammy. She keeps us on our toes.

She was able to do so many things; riding with mom on the Scooter in her K9 Sport Sack, bike rides in our Burley Tail Wagon, became a Philadelphia Sixers and Eagles fan, show us her allergies and skin sensitivities, discover the Dog Park, find her love for the outdoors and so much more.

As a first time DogDad, I never knew I could love an animal as much as I love Sammy. She has a special place in my heart. It felt wrong not to celebrate her birthday and give her a small celebration. Mom bought a cake (we recommend trying to make your own as the one we bought had lots of room for improvement) and we were able to have dinner at our favorite dog friendly restaurant, Yellow Dog Eats. Sammy (and Diego) got to eat almost a whole cake how they wanted too, and it was just so much fun!

We can see Sammy growing into her own as a strong french bulldog and we don't want to miss any of it. She challenges Diego for alpha around the house and one day he might have to relinquish his title as 'The Alpha'. No matter what, she will always be our little Sammy and we will look out for her through all the challenges and adventures ahead.

Cheers to turning 1 and look out YEAR 2!