Hey everyone! I'm Bucky. I like to eat everything in my house. I like to wake my owner up at 2 AM and 6 AM and I am only satisfied when I am covered in dirt.

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On Saturday, March 20, a red mini van arrived at my house. When I walked outside I tried my hardest to look professional, but I couldn't contain my excitement. Like a child standing over another child opening a birthday present, I was more then happy to help the man open the car door. I looked into the cluttered van to see two cages and four dogs. The older dogs were on the seat above and the puppies were in cages on the floor. The black one, slamming itself against the cage walls, was Bratchet. The yellow one, asleep on the hard ground, was mine. His name was Bucky.

Occupaws is a guide dog training association stationed in Wisconsin. Every year they distribute two or three litters of puppies to families willing to train them. To train a guide dog puppy you need to attend two meetings a month to learn commands and practice them, and you need to be willing to commit and work with your dog on your own everyday. First, you need to fill out an application. Then you get assigned a puppy who will go through a long process to see if it is healthy. Next, an Occupaws employee comes to your house to see if you, your house, and your family are fit for the job of training a puppy. Finally, you receive your puppy and your guide dog training manual filled with rules and commands that would blow your mind. You keep the puppy for a year, and return it fully trained. Finally the puppy is shipped off to California to harness train, and then given to its new owner. It is a long and hard process and it is a HUGE commitment--I've learned that and I'm only on day 3-- which is why of about 40 puppies, only 10 go on to become guide dogs.

So far, Bucky knows the command "come" and can hold his bladder for about 15 minutes. We are making progress, but we will still have a few sleepless nights here and there. Our first obedience class is tonight and I am desperately waiting to be around people who feel my pain. It will be a long journey, and a hard day when I give him up. Inside I have to remember that someone actually needs this mess of a dog, and its my job to provide it for them, in perfect condition. I also have to keep reminding myself that there are only about 362 days left (yes, I am counting).