Zeus | Retrieving Freedom

Sponsor Announcement

Many thanks to David and Monica Mundhenke for their generosity in the sponsorship of my training! The Mundhenke family graciously donated toward a Puppy Head Start sponsorship, which provided them the opportunity to give me my wonderful name in memory of their son. I hope to make them proud!!

Zeus' Journey

Stage 1 Introduction

Hello! I'm Zeus. I am proud to have been selected to enter into the Retrieving Freedom training program. My parents are "Rose" who is originally from Yellow Rose Labradors and is now fostered by the Feckers family, and "Whiskey" from Honey Hollow Labrador Retrievers. During this stage of training I will be spending approximately 8 to 10 months with my new volunteer fosters, Cameron and Katie.

Throughout Stage 1, I will learn the basics obedience, public behavior, and a lot of socialization. I understand that it takes a very special dog to complete the program as there is a high standard to become a Service Dog. I am aware that I may be one of the dogs whose purpose is outside of service work so I will be updating my profile on a monthly basis for all that would like to follow my journey through the program.

December 2020 - 2 months old

This month I transitioned from my wonderful breeding foster's home to my new puppy raiser's home. Cameron and Katie will be providing me with a wonderful foundation to my future (hopeful) career as a service dog! I had the opportunity to meet David, the gentleman who is sponsoring my journey through the first stage of training in memory of his son. I hope I am able to carry the legacy of his name well and make David and his entire family proud! The first tasks I'll work on are potty training, walking on a leash, crate training, and responding to my name!

January 2021 - 3 months old

I enjoy helping my foster Katie with her work-from-home meetings, also known as extra snuggle time for me!

February 2021 - 4 months old

This month I was granted public access by the professional training staff at Retrieving Freedom! This means I am old enough and have received all necessary vaccinations to keep me healthy while exploring new environments and meeting new people out and about. It also means I've shown that I can behave appropriately in public places. I am excited to learn more as I venture into new places!

March 2021 - 5 months old

The fireplace is easily my favorite place to cuddle up in front of, especially after a long day of training. I'm working on staying patient while waiting for my food and knowing where it's appropriate to chew on and play with my toys.

April 2021 - 6 months old

I am beginning to mature a lot! I know commands such as "sit," "down," "place," and "heel." Katie and I partake in training sessions as often as we can at the Retrieving Freedom facility. These are great opportunities to work individually with the trainers as well as in a group session. I'm learning how to behave appropriately when strangers or other dogs come up to me.

May 2021 - 7 months old

I had the opportunity to train at a restaurant for the first time this month. It was a complete success! I walk well on a gentle leader and stay patient at baseball and soccer games when kids come up to greet me. Recently I have trained at these sporting events, restaurants, stores, and church. Even after walking a few miles, I tend to have a lot of energy. Katie is working on creative ways to expel this energy in an appropriate way so I don't jump all over her furniture.

June 2021 - 8 months old

My foster Cameron and I attend trainings at the Retrieving Freedom training facility on a monthly basis. We worked on holding a "place" command while Cameron was farther away from me, and then added in a lot of potential distractions! These distractions included toys being tossed and squeaked around me, other dogs walking by and playing, and kids running around. I did pretty good!