Already worried about missing his Doodle

[Anna and Achilles]

We went to a college open house today with our youngest son. We loved the campus and everything about the college. We are done with our tour and we are headed for our car and what do we see but two beautiful doodles sitting with their owner on a bench. He stops dead in his tracks and says I can't leave Achilles. I will miss him to much. Never mind missing me! I hadn't thought about this. What should I do to prepare him. Has anyone else experienced this. He is so excited about this college. He knows it is the place for him, but to far to commute due to the hours in the theater program. At a loss!

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

Where will he live when he is at school? How far away is it from home? My son goes to college only 60 miles from home. He comes home some weekends and we go and take him to dinner some evenings. He doesn't live in the dorms so he sometimes takes our Springer for a few days. One of the college professors has a dog that looks (to the lay person) like ours which works in our son's favor. He just takes the dog to class with him and no one has ever complained. This might be because some people think he is the professor's dog and others don't care because Gordie is quiet.

[Anna and Achilles]

It is a little over an hour so he could come home when he is free from rehearsals. Thanks for the ideas. I will tell him how you handle it. I could probably bring Achilles for afternoon visits too. There is hope.

[Linda and Murphy]

Thats pretty cool that he can take Gordie to class. Even if my son didn't live in the dorm, I don't think he could get away with bringing Murph (the small horse) to class. The kids say he looks just like Falkor from the Never Ending Story.

[Linda and Murphy]

Yes, but the other way around, too. (see my blog post about Brother subs today). Unfortunately, I am 5 hours from my youngest son, which means we can't just drop in for the day. My older son just moved to Austin (8 hrs) and we have been invited to visit. I think he just wants to use Murph as a "chick magnet" because he is pretty shy (engineer).
Hope you are close enough to visit on the weekends.

[Jessica & Lucie]

As a recent college grad myself, I definitely counted down the days until I could have a dog. I would remind him that you only get to do college for 4 years (approximately) and that he will want to make the most of that time. Achilles will be happiest at home and will be quite content with occasional visits. I am sure once he starts school he will think much less about what he has left at home because of all of the new and exciting opportunities.
That being said, I may not be the best one to speak because now I can't leave my Lucie for more than a few days without missing her TOO much, but I am glad I waited until the right time in my life to bring her into it.

[Carole (*Koda*Monty*Bindi)]

We just experienced this in August when our daughter went off to college. We surprised her with a stuffed Goldendoodle that April was selling and we also had a blanket made with all the photos of our dogs on it to keep her warm. She loved it and cuddles with her stuffed goldendoodle whenever she misses the two doodles.

What her college does, in conjunction with the local animal shelter, is have "rent a dog day". For a $5 donation to the shelter the students get to "rent a dog" for the day and walk it around campus. It's a win win situation as the shelter has a way to earn extra $, the dogs up for adoption get to socialize and be seen by those that are in a position to adopt them and the kids that are missing their dogs back home get some furry time :). It's very possible that his college has such a program. You might want to ask :).

[Anna and Achilles]

Love this idea, I will investigate. Thanks!

[Suzanne & Jack]

That is the coolest idea. I wish they 'd had that when I was in college.

[Frances Pendrous (Horan)]

Aww....so very sweet. My youngest daughter decided on a whim to go off to Vietnam to teach English as a second language. Up until that time, she and my Frankie Girl had be joined at the hip. Parting was such sweet sorrow for all of us but then came SKYPE....Being that doodles are the smartest dogs on the planet, we soon taught Frankie to come to the computer and enjoy listening to my daughter speaking with her. This helped both of them very much and now, as soon as my daughter comes on screen, Frankie Girl just put her big old paws up on the desk and enjoys minutes of chatter with her youngest mistress. She has been gone for nearly one year but the weekly SKYPE visits make it like she is still very much close by.

[Allyson, Peri & Taquito]

My sister studied in England during college and also went to the Peace Corps - during that time, my parents kept her chihuahua Charley. She missed him like CRAZY but we did family SKYPE sessions frequently. He totally knew her voice and she got to see her baby :) It helps.
And BTW, we still do skype once a week with my sister, who moved to Dallas. She puts Charley on her lap to say hello to Peri and Taquito. Peri gets it 100% - she looks straight at Kristin and wags her tail. Doodles are sooooooooo smart.

[Susan, Coby & Chloe]

I can also relate to this - we timed the arrival of our LD puppy this past May with when our son was home between college graduation and starting his new job in LA; over a 5 hour drive way. Needless to say, he formed quite a bond with Bosco, so much so that when it was time to head back to LA in late August it took about 5 minutes for him to say his farewells to us, and a half hour to do the same with Bosco -- whose picture serves as a screen saver on his computer. When we go out to visit in a couple of weeks we're driving instead of our typical flying, and made sure to find a dog-friendly hotel within an easy walk of his apartment, to be sure to bring the most honored family member with us.

The New York Times had an article "Colleges Extend the Welcome Mat to Students' Pets" (6/5/10) that you may find interesting. So heart-warming to hear about a dog accompanying his "brother" to class, and great idea about the Rent-a-dog programs. Sure helps to ease the college transition.

[Anna and Achilles]

Thanks so much, I would love to read that article.